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Captain, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Dorset, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Lancashire, Lieutenant, London, photography, Royal Army Medical Corps, Somerset, story, Surrey, war, Wiltshire

Captain James Pettinger

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Captain James Pettinger

The death of Capt. James Wilson Pettinger has taken place in a military hospital at Aldershot. Captain Pettinger came to Kingsbridge [Devon] in 1903, entering into partnership with Dr D de Courcy Harston… He made a wide circle of friends, and was appreciated for his professional skill. Previously to coming to Kingsbridge, he was house surgeon at St George’s Hospital, London. In July 1915, Dr Pettinger volunteered for service in the Royal Army Medical Corps, being appointed Lieutenant to the Plymouth Military Hospital. He quickly gained promotion to captain, and was appointed to a hospital ship, and served in the Mediterranean for several months. He contracted blood poisoning in the arm, and was sent to Netley Hospital [Hampshire]. On recovery he was placed in charge of an infections hospital for several months at Salisbury. He was later ordered to France, and being taken ill was transferred to an Aldershot hospital, where he died from pneumonia. He leaves a widow and one son. Dr Pettinger was 43 years of age.

Western Times: Tuesday 16th October 1917

James Wilson Pettinger was born in the spring of 1874 in Moss Side, Lancashire. The youngest of four children, his parents were doctor and surgeon George Pettinger and his wife, Sarah.

James may have been a sickly child: the 1901 census recorded him as being a patient in community hospital in North Meols, near Southport, Lancashire. The oldest of only three patients, the facility was overseen by caretaker John Carr and his matron wife, Susan.

Having gone on to study at Cambridge University, James was carving a career for himself. By the time of the next census he was living in Shaftesbury, Dorset, he was recorded as being a medical practitioner, living on his own in a house near the centre of town.

As the Western Times was to report, James moved to Devon in 1903. On 8th January, he married Clara Risdon, a nursing sister seven years his senior. She came from the Somerset village of Old Cleeve, and the couple married in her local parish church. The couple set up home in Ewart House in Kingsbridge, and went on to have a son, Geoffrey, who was born that November.

James’ career continues to flourish. The 1910 medical directory noted that he was the Honourable Medical Officer for Kingsbridge & District Cottage Hospital, and noted that he had previously worked as an Honourable Physician, Honourable Surgeon, Ophthalmologist, Aural, Obstetric and Dental Assistant and Assistant Surgical Registrar at St George’s Hospital in London.

Little information relating to James’ time in the armed forces is available, and so it falls to his obituary in the Western Times to fill in the gaps. It would seem that Clara and Geoffrey moved to Minehead, Somerset, while James was serving overseas. The town was not far from where she had been born, and family connections may have helped with her husband’s absence.

When James Wilson Pettinger died, on 6th October 1917, his body was brought to Minehead for burial. He was laid to rest in the town’s sweeping cemetery, and was joined there by Clara when she passed away in 1945: a husband and wife reunited.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, injury, King's Own (Royal Lancashire Regiment), Lancashire, photography, Private, Somerset, story, Surrey, war

Private Charles Bagley

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Private Charles Bagley

Charles Sainsbury Bagley was born in the autumn of 1889, one of eleven children to Benjamin and Jane Bagley. The couple’s early life was an intriguing one: they had both been born in Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex. The 1891 census recorded the couple living on board the barque Mizpah, with their three oldest children. Benjamin was the vessel’s master and there were ten other members of crew on board.

By the time Charles was born, the family had returned to shore and settled in Minehead, Somerset. By now Benjamin was working as a hairdresser and tobacconist on Park Street near the centre of the town.

Benjamin died in 1910, but left a thriving business to support Jane. At least three of the Bagley siblings went into hairdressing, while Charles’ older brother, Joseph, set up a bakery and confectioner’s in the town with his wife. Charles is absent from the 1911 census, although later records would suggest that he had moved to Lancashire, where he was also working as a hairdresser.

On 3rd July 1915, Charles married Celia Rogers in Lancaster. War was raging across Europe at this point and, in August 1916, he enlisted in the army. His service records confirm that he was 5ft 7.5ins (1.71m) tall and weighed 128lbs (58kg). Private Bagley joined the 5th Battalion of the King’s Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment) and by the end of the year he was on the Western Front, based around the Ypres salient.

The early part of 1917 proved relatively quiet for Private Bagley’s troop. At the end of July, however, he was caught up in the battle of Pilkem Ridge, and was shot in his left leg. Initially treated on site, the wound was severe enough for him to be medically evacuated to Britain for treatment.

Charles was admitted to the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford, but his wounds were to prove to be too severe. He passed away on 28th October 1917, at the age of 27 years old.

The body of Charles Sainsbury Bagley was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in Minehead Cemetery, reunited with his parents, Jane having died at the beginning of 1917. The seafaring headstone paid homage to his father’s maritime service.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private Arthur Tudball

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Private Arthur Tudball

Arthur Moyle Tudball was born in the spring of 1893 in Minehead, Somerset. One of seven children, his parents were William Tudball and his Cornish wife, Mary.

When he completed his schooling, Arthur found work as a hairdresser. By the time of the 1911 census, there were seven in the Tudball household: William, Mary, four of their children, including Arthur, and their nephew, four-year-old William, who had been born in Ontario, Canada. There were four wages coming in: William, who was working as a general labourer, Arthur’s hairdressing salary. His older brother was a carpenter, and two sisters were employed as dressmakers.

Details of Arthur’s time in the army are sketchy at best. He certainly enlisted when war broke out, joining the Somerset Light Infantry. His Medal Roll Index Card seems to suggest that he didn’t serve overseas, despite both battalions he served with – the 1st/5th and 2nd/5th – fighting in India.

Private Tudball survived the war, returning to Somerset at the end of the conflict. The next record for him is that of his passing. His death, from disease, was recorded in the Taunton district, which would suggest that he was either still based at the army barracks in the town, or has been hospitalised there. He died on 24th February 1920, at the age of 26 years old.

Arthur Moyle Tudball was buried in Minehead Cemetery, not far from where his grieving family lived. His modest headstone was donated by his army colleagues.

Canada, Canadian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Gloucestershire, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Henry England

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Private Henry England

Henry Edward England was born in Gloucestershire on 7th October 1893. One of seven children, his parents were Charles and Unity England. Charles was coachman and groom to Sir Charles Cuyler, and the family were raised in Bristol.

There are gaps in Henry’s life that are a challenge to fill. He seems to have sought to better himself, emigrating to Canada and becoming a bank clerk in Quebec.

When war broke out, Henry was quick to enlist. He joined up on 21st September 1914, becoming a Private in the 19th Battalion of the Alberta Dragoons. His service records show that he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall and weighed 140lbs (63.5kg). He was noted as being of average physical development with dark hair, brown eyes and a dark complexion.

Private England returned to home shores by December 1914, at which point he transferred to the 6th (Reserve) Battalion of the Canadian Infantry. His troop proceeded to Tidworth Camp in Wiltshire, on the edge of Salisbury Plain.

Army barracks at this time were melting pots: hundreds of men from different parts of the world cramped together in small billets proving breeding grounds for illness and disease. Henry was to prove a victim of the conditions: in the winter of 1914, he contracted meningitis. Admitted to the camp hospital, he was to succumb. Private England breathed his last on 14th February 1915, aged just 21 years of age.

Henry Edward England’s body was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the sweeping vista of Minehead Cemetery, not far from where his family now lived.

Commonwealth War Graves, Cumbria, Great War, history, Ireland, photography, Pioneer, Royal Engineers, Somerset, unknown, war

Pioneer Joseph Maguire

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Pioneer Joseph Maguire

The early life of Joseph Maguire is challenging to decipher. Born in Dublin in 1878, his name is sadly too common to pin down any specific family relationships. Later records suggest that he had a sister, Jane, but again, this does not help narrow down documentation.

It would appear that he had moved to England for work by the time war broke out: he enlisted in the Royal Engineers in Carlisle by November 1917. As a Pioneer, he was attached to the Inland Water Transport Battalion, although it is not possible to ascertain whether he served on the Home or Western Fronts.

Pioneer Maguire died at the Second Southern General Auxiliary Hospital in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. The cause of his passing is not freely documented, but it seems likely to have been the result of an illness. He was 40 years of age.

Joseph Maguire was laid to rest in the sweeping ground of Minehead Cemetery. Commonwealth War Grave Commission records note that he is interred in the Roman Catholic section of the grounds, and that, when it was erected, his CWGC headstone was paid for by the Honourable Secretary of the British Legion.

Pioneer Joseph Maguire
(from findagrave.com)
Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Glamorganshire, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, Wales, war

Private Theodore Slade

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Private Theodore Slade

Theodore Slade was born early in 1885 in Buckfastleigh, Devon and was the second of two children to Frederick and Mary Slade. The 1891 census recorded the family four living with Frederick’s widowed mother and younger sister in Minehead, Somerset, where he had himself been born. Frederick was listed as a schoolmaster, while Mary was working as an organist.

Music definitely ran through the Slade family. The next census, in 1901, found Frederick now working as a gunsmith. Mary, meanwhile, was now noted as being a professor of music, while Theodore and his older brother, appropriately named Beethoven, were both employed as music teachers.

Ten years further on, and Beethoven had moved out of the family home, for a life with his wife and her widowed mother. Frederick was still working as a gunsmith, while Mary and Theodore were still teaching music. All three were self-employed, Theodore also working as an organist at St Andrew’s Church, Minehead, for more than a decade.

An interesting side note to the three document is how the census takers relied fully on the information they were given by residents. In 1891, Frederick gave his age as 41 and Mary 40; ten years later, Frederick was noted as being 56 and Mary 53; the 1911 census gave their ages as 71 and 63 respectively.

When war broke out, Theodore enlisted early on. He joined the Somerset Light Infantry, and was initially attached to the 4th (Reserve) Battalion. Private Slade was transferred across to the 1st Battalion, and soon found himself ensconced at Ypres.

Towards the end of 1915 Theodore came down with tuberculosis, and was medically evacuated to Britain for treatment. He was admitted to St John’s Hospital in Penarth, Glamorganshire, and remained in hospital over the winter months. His lungs weakened, he contracted pneumonia, passing away from the condition on 23rd March 1916, at the age of 31 years old.

Theodore Slade’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the sweeping vista of Minehead Cemetery.

Private Theodore Slade
(from findagrave.com)
Able Seaman, Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Gloucestershire, Great War, history, killed in action, Leading Seaman, Ordinary Seaman, Petty Officer, photography, Royal Navy, Somerset, story, Suffolk, war

Petty Officer Thomas Slade

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Petty Officer Thomas Slade

Thomas Charles Slade was born in Bristol, Gloucestershire, on 13th March 1880. One of twins, he and his sibling Ernest were two of nine children to Charles and Elizabeth Slade. Not long after the twins were born, the family had moved to Minehead, Somerset, where both Charles, who was a mason and bricklayer, and Elizabeth had hailed from.

Whilst Ernest seemed content to remain in Somerset – going on to become a poultry farmer – Thomas sought a life of adventure. Foregoing his gardening job, he enlisted in the Royal Navy, setting his sights on a life at sea.

Thomas’ service records show that he joined up on 12th November 1895. He stood just 5ft 2ins (1.57cm) tall, with brown hair, blue eyes and a ruddy complexion. As he was to young to formally join up, he was give the rank of Boy 2nd Class, and sent to HMS Impregnable, the shore-based training establishment in Devonport, Devon.

Boy Slade seemed to create a good impression. He was promoted to Boy 1st Class in July 1896, and the follow February was given his first posting, on board the battleship HMS Benbow. This was the ship he was serving on when he turned 18 and, having come of age, he was officially inducted into the navy, and given the rank of Ordinary Seaman.

And so began a glittering career for young Thomas. Over the twelve years of his contract, he served on nine different ships, returning to HMS Vivid – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Devonport – between voyages.

Small in stature, Thomas appears to have been a dedicated young man. His annual reviews noted his character was ‘very good’ every year, and his ability was either ‘very good’, ‘superior’, or ‘excellent’. He was promoted to Able Seaman in September 1898, just eighteen months after becoming an Ordinary Seaman. By June 1906 he rose in rank again, ending his initial term of service as a Leading Seaman.

Thomas was not done with the navy yet, however. He immediately re-enlisted and, over the ensuing years served on a further four vessels. He spent more and more time on board HMS Defiance, the torpedo and mining school ship in Devonport. Whether this was because he was being taught, or was supporting incoming students is unclear, but by September 1912, he had been promoted again.

In November 1915, the now Petty Officer Slade had moved to the depot ship HMS Dido. His new posting supported the Tenth Destroyer Flotilla in the North Sea, patrolling the waters off the East Anglian coast. In February 1917 he moved to another of the support vessels, HMS Sturgeon.

In June 1917, a mine exploded on board, injuring a number of the crew, including Petty Officer Slade. The wounded were transferred to a hospital near Ipswich, and it was here that Thomas was to pass away. The only one of those caught up in the incident to die, he was 37 years of age.

Thomas Charles Slade was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the sweeping Minehead Cemetery, close to the grave of his mother, Elizabeth, who had passed away nine years before.

Thomas’ headstone also includes an inscription to Roy Thomas Allen, who died six months after him. Roy was the young son of Thomas’ younger sister Emily: an uncle and nephew reunited.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, photography, Private, Royal Berkshire Regiment, Somerset, story, war

Private Leonard Floyd

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Private Leonard Floyd

Leonard Lionel Floyd (or Floyde) was born in the Somerset village of Watchet in 1898. The eldest of five children, his parents were journeyman tailor Thomas Floyde and his wife, Louise.

Interestingly, at the time of the two censuses in 1901 and 1911, Leonard was away from the family home: the earlier document recorded him living with his maternal grandparents on the outskirts of Minehead. Ten years later he was back in Watchet, residing with his mother’s brother and sister.

Little additional information is available to document Leonard’s young life. With war raging across Europe, he appears to have joined up as soon as he came of age. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the Princess Charlotte of Wales’ (Royal Berkshire Regiment) and sent to Portsmouth, Hampshire, for training.

Tragically, it seems that Private Floyd fell ill while billeted in the cramped barracks there. He was admitted to the 5th Southern General Hospital in the city, but died soon after. He breathed his last on 21st April 1917, aged just 18 years old.

Leonard Lionel Floyd’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the sweeping Minehead Cemetery, not far from where his parents lived, on the outskirts of the town.

Commonwealth War Graves, Essex, Great War, history, injury, London, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war, West Midlands

Private Henry Webber

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Private Henry Webber

Henry James Webber was born in Plaistow, Essex, in 1889. One of ten children, his parents were Frederick and Etty Webber. Frederick hailed from Somerset, but worked as a sergeant in the Metropolitan Police. By the time of the 1901 census, he had been promoted to Inspector: the family moved to Somerset when he retired in around 1905, settling in Minehead.

Of Henry, there is little information documented. He does not appear on the 1911 census, and there are no military records to confirm his service in the army. He had certainly enlisted by the summer of 1916, joining the Somerset Light Infantry.

Private Webber was attached to the 7th (Service) Battalion and certainly saw action overseas. His troop was heavily involved in the Battles of the Somme in 1916, and it was here that he was injured. Again, full details are not available, but his wounds were severe enough for him to be medically evacuated to Britain for treatment.

Henry was admitted to the 1st Southern General Hospital in Birmingham, but his injuries proved too severe. He died on 1st November 1916, at the age of 27 years old.

Henry James Webber’s body was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in Minehead Cemetery, not far from where his grieving family were living in Cher Street.

Able Seaman, Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, Kent, Leading Seaman, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, Somerset, story, war

Able Seaman Amos Cornish

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Able Seaman Amos Cornish

Amos William Cornish was born on 16th August 1887 in Dunster, Somerset. One of five children, his parents were George and Elizabeth Cornish. George, who was a brickmaker, died in 1893, and at this point the family relationships seemed to have broken down.

By the time of the 1901 census, Elizabeth had remarried, and was living with her new husband and Amos’ youngest sibling, sister Lily. Two of Amos’ brothers, Walter and George, were living with his maternal grandparents, while Amos himself was one of three hundred inmates at the Horton Kirby Home for Homeless Boys in the Dartford area of Kent.

Amos’ schooling would have finished by the time he was 14 years old, and he quickly sought work that allow him to support himself as a young man with no home to go to. A career in the Royal Navy seemed to provide that regular pay and, on 4th June 1902, he enlisted.

As he was under age, Amos was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class, and sent to the shore-based training ship HMS Impregnable in Devonport, Devon. His service records show that he stood just 5ft 4ins (1.63m) tall, had brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion. He was noted as having a scar in the centre of his forehead, and a tattoo of clasped hands over a heart on his right forearm.

Boy Cornish transferred to another training vessel – HMS Lion – after a month or so, and it was here, in February 1904, that he was promoted to Boy 1st Class.

Over the next eighteen months, Boy Cornish served at two more training bases – HMS Boscawen and HMS Vivid. He was given his first sea-going posting in April 1905, aboard the cruiser HMS Blake. It was on his next assignment, however, that he came into his own.

In May 1905, Amos boarded HMS Carnarvon, an armoured cruiser that had been launched a couple of years before. He was to spend the next two years as part of her crew, gaining the rank of Ordinary Seaman when he came of age in August 1905, and Able Seaman a year later.

When his time on board Carnarvon came to an end, Amos returned to shore, to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, which was to be his base on and off for the next eight years. During that time, he served on six more ships, and rose to the rank of Leading Seaman in December 1911. This new rank, however, seemed not to suit Amos, and he reverted back to his previous rank eight months later.

Able Seaman Cornish’s longest posting was on board the cruiser HMS Antrim. He joined her crew in September 1913 and, over the next three-and-a-half years he travelled far and wide. Initially patrolling the North Sea – particularly around the Scottish Isles – Amos was on board for a journey to Arkhangelsk in Russia. The ship then transferred to the Western Atlantic, patrolling around America and the West Indies.

Able Seaman Cornish returned to British shores in April 1917, to be based at HMS Vivid, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Devonport, for the nest nine months. During this time, he became ill and was admitted to the Royal Naval Hospital in Truro with double pneumonia. Tragically, this was something he was not to recover from: Amos passed away on 4th February 1918, at the age of 30 years old.

While somewhat stretched, Amos’ family bond still remained. Elizabeth was living in Minehead by this point, with husband Alfred and their two children. It was to the Somerset town, therefore, that Amos William Cornish’s body was brought. He was laid to rest in the town’s sweeping cemetery.

George’s death in 1893, and Elizabeth’s remarriage a few years later split the family, and Amos’ siblings all followed separate paths.

The oldest of his siblings, Walter, also followed a military path. He joined the Royal Garrison Artillery as a Gunner and, by the time of the census, was based in Gibraltar. On completing his service, he returned to Somerset, marrying Florence Peddle in 1925. The 1939 Register found the couple living with his cousin, Amelia, while he worked as a gardener. Walter died in Weston-super-Mare in 1962, at the age of 74.

Amos’ next sibling, brother Harold, seems to have had a less fortunate time of things. Absent from the 1901 census, he appears in prison records four years later. He was incarcerated for six months’ hard labour in Brecon Prison, having been found guilty of “Gross Indecency with another male person”. Harold was 14 years and three months old at the time. A newspaper report from around this time suggests that the other party was a George Williams, but there is no further information about him. Harold seems to have come out the other side of his experience, however: the 1911 census recorded him as living and working with draper and grocer James Ridler and his family in Dunster, Somerset.

Amos’ third sibling, sister Lily, found work as a servant to bakers Joseph and Minnie Bagley in Minehead. She married painter and decorator William Whitting in 1916 and the couple went on to have a daughter, Kathleen, eight years later. The family settled in Weston-super-Mare, Lily passing away in 1968, at the age of 75.

The youngest of the Cornish siblings was George. He remained living with his maternal grandparents in Dunster, and found work as a printer. In the spring of 1921, he married Clara Govier and, by the time of the 1939 Register, they couple were living in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, where George was working as a printer and compositor. He died in 1957, at the age of 62 years old.