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Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, London, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Sidney Macey

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Stoker 1st Class Sidney Macey

Sidney Albert Macey was born in Clapham, South London on 16th March 1898. The fourth of seven children, his parents were William and Beatrice Macey. William worked as a groom and coachman for a dairy, but, intriguingly, he and Beatrice appear to have been living as a common-law couple, rather than being formally married.

Beatrice was born in Wiltshire, and had married George Hodges; they had a son, also called George, before she was widowed in 1891. The 1901 census lists mother and son as William’s visitors, but, by this time, he and Beatrice had gone on to have five children of their own, Sidney included.

When he left school, Sidney found work as a telegraph messenger, but by this point, war was on the horizon. His older brothers went off to war – the oldest, William, died in France in August 1916 – and Sidney seemed keen not to be left out of the action.

On 30th June 1916, he enlisted in the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class. His service records show that he stood 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall, had brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion. He was initially dispatched to HMS Pembroke – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – for training, before being assigned to the cruiser HMS Dartmouth, that October.

Stoker Macey spent nine months on board Dartmouth, and gained a promotion to Stoker 1st Class in the process. In July 1917, his assignment complete, he returned to Chatham. HMS Pembroke was particularly busy that summer, and he was billeted in temporary accommodation in the town’s Drill Hall.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force scored a direct hit on the barracks and Drill Hall; Stoker 1st Class Macey was killed instantly. He was just 19 years old.

Sidney Albert Macey was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham. He was the second of two brothers lost to the conflict.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, Kent, killed in action, London, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Frederick Hartnall

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Stoker 1st Class Frederick Hartnall

Frederick George Hartnall was born in St John’s Wood, London, on 28th March 1892. He was the youngest of three children to Harry and Elizabeth Hartnall, although, tragically, his two older brothers had both passed away within their first year.

Harry worked as a compositor – type setting for a local printer – and this is a trade into which Frederick followed his father, when he left school. After his mother passed away in 1907, he realised that he wanted bigger and better things. On 19th April 1910, having just turned 18, he enlisted in the Royal Navy.

Frederick’s service records show that he stood 5ft 4ins (1.63m) tall, had brown hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion. He was sent to HMS Victory – the naval base in Portsmouth – for his training as a Stoker 2nd Class, and his naval career began.

Over the next four years, Frederick served on six different ships, rising to the rank of Stoker 1st Class in the process. In between his ocean trips, however, his time was spent at on-shore bases, both in Portsmouth and Chatham – the Royal Naval Dockyard known as HMS Pembroke.

When war was declared in 1914, Stoker Hartnall was on board the cruiser HMS Dido. The reality of his life may well have hit home; on two separate occasions during this particular assignment, he was confined to the brig. Sadly his misdemeanours are lost to time now, but they must have been significant: his first confinement lasted a week, while his second was for 42 days, and ended with his transfer to HMS Pembroke.

For most of the rest of his service, Stoker Hartnall was shore-based. By the summer of 1917, he was back at HMS Pembroke. The base was particularly busy that summer, and he was billeted in temporary accommodation in the town’s Drill Hall.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force scored a direct hit on the barracks and Drill Hall; Stoker Hartnall was among those killed instantly. He was just 25 years old.

Frederick George Hartnall was laid to rest, alongside the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, Scotland, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class John McGregor

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Stoker 1st Class John McGregor

John McGregor was born Aberdeen in 1898, the son of James McGregor. Little specific information is available about John’s early life, but it is clear that James remarried at some point, Jane McGregor becoming John’s stepmother. The family moved south to Airdrie, living on one of the main thoroughfares, South Bridge Street.

At some point after the outbreak of war, John joined up, taking on the role of Stoker 2nd Class in the Royal Navy. During his time in the service, he was promoted to Stoker 1st Class. By 1917, he was assigned to the HMS Prince George, a battleship that patrolled the English Channel, and acted as support for the Dardanelles campaign in the Eastern Mediterranean.

In the summer of 1917, Stoker McGregor was transferred to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. That point in the war was particularly busy for the base, and temporary accommodation was set up in the Drill Hall; this is where John found himself billeted.

By this point in the war, the German Air Force had suffered huge losses during the daylight bombing raids it had been undertaking. It was imperative for them to minimise these losses, and so a new tactic – night time raids – was employed.

The first trial of this approach was on the night of 3rd September 1917, and Chatham suddenly found itself in the firing line, startlingly unready and fundamentally unprotected. One of the German bombers landed a direct hit on the Drill Hall, and Stoker McGregor was amongst those to be instantly killed. He was just 19 years old.

Ninety-eight servicemen perished during the Chatham Air Raid that night. They were buried in a mass funeral at the Woodlands Cemetery in nearby Gillingham. This, too, is where John McGregor was laid to rest.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, Lancashire, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war, Yorkshire

Stoker 1st Class William Smith

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Stoker 1st Class William Smith

William Hardwick Smith was born in Slingsby, Yorkshire, on 12th April 1887, the oldest of four children to John and Sarah Smith. John was a house painter, but William had his sights set a seafaring career.

By the summer of 1909, he had enlisted in the Royal Navy. He gave his previous profession as seaman, and his place of birth as Manchester, but there is no documentation to confirm either his previous role, or to challenge his Yorkshire birth.

Joining the navy as a Stoker 2nd Class, his service records give his height as 5ft 8.5ins (1.74m) and show that he had auburn hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion. William had a number of tattoos as well, including a ship and anchor, clasped hands and heart, a woman’s head and bird and the words “True Love” and “W Smith” on his right forearm.

During his initial five years’ service, Stoker Smith served on six different vessels, attaining the rank of Stoker 1st Class in the process. His career was not entirely without problems, however, and his records show that he was detained for 28 days for being AWOL in 1911, and imprisoned again for a further twelve days two years later.

As his term of service came to an end, the storm clouds of war were knocking on England’s shores, and William volunteered for a further seven years. During this time, he was primarily based at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard at Chatham, Kent, although he was also assigned to the depot ship HMS Dido. Again, his time on board saw him spend two further periods in the brig, although his exact misdemeanours are lost to time.

Back at HMS Pembroke in the summer of 1917, William found himself in an overly packed base. He was billeted in the Chatham Drill Hall, which was being used as temporary accommodation.

On the 3rd September 1917, the German Air Force carried out its first night-time air raid. They scored a direct hit on the Drill Hall; Stoker 1st Class Smith was amongst those killed instantly. He was 30 years old.

William Hardwick Smith was laid to rest, alongside the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, London, photography, Royal Navy, Scotland, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Arthur Charlton

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Stoker 1st Class Arthur Charlton

Arthur Charlton was born in St Pancras, London, on 21st November 1891. His parents were Arthur and Bridget Charlton, but little further information on Arthur Jr’s early life remains.

When he left school, he found work as a butcher, but it seems he was after a life of adventure and travel. On 6th November 1913, he enlisted in the Royal Navy, initially for a period of twelve years as a Stoker 2nd Class. Arthur’s service records show that he stood 5ft 6.5ins (1.69m) tall, had brown hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Stoker Charlton was initially posted to HMS Pembroke – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – and this is where he did his training. He was then sent to the battleship HMS Vanguard, on board which he served for nearly three-and-a-half years. Arthur was assigned to Vanguard in the summer of 1917, when the vessel was sunk following a series of internal explosions in Scapa Flow, Scotland, with the loss of more than 800 souls. It seems, however, that he was not on board at the time, which likely saved his life.

Brought back to HMS Pembroke that summer, and with the Vanguard destroyed, Arthur found himself in an overly packed dockyard. He was billeted in the Chatham Drill Hall, which was being used as temporary accommodation.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force scored a direct hit on the barracks and Drill Hall; Stoker 1st Class Charlton was killed instantly. He was just 25 years old.

Arthur Charlton was laid to rest, alongside the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Arthur’s pension record gives a Mrs Amelia Ward as his next of kin. No details of a marriage between them are evident, and, as there is no record of his early life, it is not possible to identify whether Amelia was his sister. A mystery left unsolved.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, Leading Stoker, London, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Leading Stoker Percy Moore

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Leading Stoker Percy Moore

Percy Edwin Moore was born on 14th April 1889, one of nine children to farrier Charles Moore and his wife, Eliza. Both of Percy’s parents were from West London, and the family was raised on the border between Kensington and Hammersmith.

When Percy left school he found work as a builder’s labourer, but he was drawn to bigger things and, in 1909, he joined the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class. His service records show that he stood 5ft 6ins (1.68m) tall, had light brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion. He had a scar above his right eye, and a tattoo on each arm.

Percy’s sense of adventure seemed to have been kindled in his earlier years; the tattoo on his right arm was a depiction of Buffalo Bill Cody, the American showman who brought the Wild West to England in the early 1900s. Young Percy’s interest was obviously piqued early on.

Stoker Moore’s first posting was on board HMS Acheron. In the years leading up to the war, he served on six further vessels, returning to HMS Pembroke – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – in between voyages. During this time, he was promoted to Stoker 1st Class for his work.

It was during one of these pauses, in August 1913, that he married Annie Eliza Wells, a labourer’s daughter from Kensington. There honeymoon was brief – just five days after they married, Percy was back at sea.

When war was declared, Stoker Moore was assigned to the battleship HMS Triumph. She served in the Mediterranean, seeing action early on in the Gallipoli campaign. After a short spell back in Chatham, he transferred to HMS Tyne, a depot ship, and received a promotion to Acting Leading Stoker.

By the summer of 1917, Percy was back at HMS Pembroke. The base was overly busy that summer, and he was billeted in temporary accommodation in the town’s Drill Hall.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force scored a direct hit on the barracks and Drill Hall; Acting Leading Stoker Moore was killed instantly. He was just 28 years old.

Percy Edwin Moore was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Canada, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Naval Reserve, Seaman, story, war

Seaman Francis Crocker

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Seaman Francis Crocker

Francis Thomas Crocker was born on 5th February 1895 to Job and Irene Crocker. One of eleven children, the family were born and raised in the small Newfoundland town of Trout River.

Sadly, there is little documentation about Francis’ life. What is clear, however, is that, when war broke out, he volunteered for the Royal Naval Reserve.

By 1917, Seaman Crocker was based at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. The base was overly busy that summer, and Frances was billeted in temporary accommodation in the town’s Drill Hall.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force scored a direct hit on the barracks and Drill hall; Seaman Crocker was killed instantly. He was just 21 years old.

Francis Thomas Crocker was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham, some 2500 miles (4000km) from his Canadian home.

Commonwealth War Graves, County Durham, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, Uncategorized, war, Yorkshire

Stoker 1st Class Joseph Beha

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Stoker 1st Class Joseph Beha

Joseph Beha was born on 16th June 1891, in the Yorkshire town of Whitby. He was the middle of five children to Joseph and Alice Beha, and had a half-sister, through his mother’s previous relationship.

Joseph Sr was a labourer in the local shipyard, and the family had moved to Hartlepool by the time his son had reached 10 years old. The sea had a definite draw for Joseph Jr, and by his twentieth birthday he had enlisted in the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class.

The service records show Joseph Jr stood 5ft 3.5ins (1.61m) tall, had brown eyes, dark hair and a fresh complexion. His land base was HMS Pembroke, the alternative name for the Royal Naval Dockyard at Chatham, Kent, and it was here that he received his initial six months’ training.

Stoker Beha’s first sea posting was HMS Falmouth, a light cruiser, on board which he served for more than eighteen months, gaining a promotion to Stoker 1st Class in the process. Over the next few years, he was posted to two further ships and, by the time the First World War broke out, was serving on the armoured cruiser HMS Lancaster.

While his record suggests he was of generally good character, Joseph’s time was totally without blemish. He served time in the cells on three separate occasions – for five days in 1913, fourteen days in 1915 and ten days in 1917 – although no evidence of his misdemeanours remains.

The summer of 1917, found Stoker Beha back on dry land in Chatham. HMS Pembroke was a particularly busy place at that point in the war and temporary accommodation was set up. Joseph found himself billeted at The Drill Hall, away from the main barracks.

On the night of 3rd September 1917, Chatham suddenly found itself in the firing line, as the German Air Force launched a bombing raid. One of the bombs landed squarely on the Drill Hall, and Stoker Beha was killed instantly. He was just 26 years old.

Ninety-eight servicemen perished during the Chatham Air Raid that night. They were buried in a mass funeral at the Woodlands Cemetery in nearby Gillingham. This, too, is where Joseph Beha was laid to rest.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Joseph Brightwell

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Stoker 1st Class Joseph Brightwell

Joseph Clarence Henry Brightwell was born in Greenwich, Kent, on 4th August 1894. He was one of eight children to Norfolk-born Charles Brightwell and his wife, Ellen. Charles was originally a builder in the nearby Woolwich Dockyard. The 1911 census, however, shows that he had changed career completely, and was working as a hotel cook.

The same document records that only the three youngest children of the family – Joseph included – remained living in the family home; the youngest, Rosetta, was still at school. Joseph, the next oldest, was employed as a milk boy, while his older brother, Edward, was working as a butcher’s boy.

Joseph was set on a life of adventure. By the next year, he had found work as a kitchen hand – possibly in the same hotel as his father – but, like Charles, a different career beckoned.

On 9th September 1912, Joseph enlisted as a Stoker 2nd Class in the Royal Navy. His service records show that he enlisted for the standard twelve-year term. He stood 5ft 2ins (1.57m) tall, had brown hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Stoker Brightwell was primarily based at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. After his initial four-months’ training period, he was assigned to his first ship, the battlecruiser HMS Indomitable. He spent three years aboard, reaching the rank of Stoker 1st Class, before returning to Chatham and transferring to HMS Africa. Joseph spent nine months on board the battleship, which ploughed the waters of the South Atlantic, protecting the convoys.

By the spring of 1917, Stoker Brightwell was back at HMS Pembroke, and it was here that he spent the summer. The base was a particularly busy place at that point in the war and temporary accommodation was set up. Joseph found himself billeted at Chatham Drill Hall, away from the main barracks.

On the night of 3rd September 1917, Chatham suddenly found itself in the firing line, as the German Air Force launched a bombing raid. One of the bombs landed squarely on the Drill Hall, and Stoker Brightwell was killed. He was just 23 years old.

Ninety-eight servicemen perished during the Chatham Air Raid that night. They were buried in a mass funeral at the Woodlands Cemetery in nearby Gillingham. This, too, is where Joseph Clarence Henry Brightwell was laid to rest.

Commonwealth War Graves, County Durham, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Naval Reserve, Stoker, story, Uncategorized, war, Yorkshire

Stoker George Simpson

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Stoker George Simpson

George Wilfred Simpson was born early in 1882, the second of seven children to Robert and Mary Simpson. Robert was a shipbuilder from Yorkshire, and the family were raised in Thornaby, on the River Tees near Middlesbrough.

Details of George’s early life are a bit patchy, but when he left school he found work as a warehouseman. He met Florence Unwin, who was born in Stockton-upon-Tees, and they married in the spring of 1906. They young couple set up home in the town and went on to have four children, all boys.

When the war came to Europe, George wanted to do his part. His full service records are not available, but he enlisted in the Royal Naval Reserve as a Stoker at some point during the conflict. By the summer of 1917, he was based at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent.

The base was a particularly busy place at that point in the war and additional accommodation was desperately needed. Stoker Simpson found himself billeted at Chatham Drill Hall, away from the main barracks.

On the night of 3rd September 1917, Chatham suddenly found itself in the firing line, as the German Air Force launched a bombing raid. One of the bombs landed squarely on the Drill Hall, and Stoker Simpson was killed. He was just 35 years old.

Ninety-eight servicemen perished during the Chatham Air Raid that night. They were buried in a mass funeral at the Woodlands Cemetery in nearby Gillingham. This, too, is where George Wilfred Simpson was laid to rest.