Richard George Dale was born Padstow, Cornwall, in the summer of 1889, the oldest child to Alice Dale. She married Frederick Bryant in March 1894, but and went on to have two children – Frederick and Albert – but, by the time of the 1901 census, her husband has passed away. The document gives Richard’s surname as Bryant, but there is no real indication that he was Frederick’s son.
Alice had been living with her greengrocer parents, but the 1901 census in a small cottage off Lanadwell Street, a couple of door away from them. As a widow at 31 years old, she is noted as being on parochial relief.
Details of Richard’s later life are a challenge to track down. Absent from the 1911 census, it was around that time that he married Agnes MacKintosh. While she was born in Edinburgh, the wedding took place in St Columb, Cornwall.
When war broke out, Richard was working as a farmer. He enlisted the day after hostilities were declared, and joined the Royal Garrison Artillery. Gunner Dale was, according to the records, 5ft 3ins (1.6m) tall, with medium colour hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He had a scar between his eyebrows.
Gunner Dale served for nearly four years, all the time being based on home soil. He suffered from epilepsy, however, and this is what led to his eventual discharged from armed service in March 1918.
Richard returned home, but his health was compromised. He passed away on 11th October 1918, from a combination of influenza and pneumonia. He was 29 years of age.
Richard George Dale was laid to rest in Padstow Cemetery, in sight of his younger brother Albert, who had passed away eleven years before.
William George Masters was born in Padstow, Cornwall, on 15th April 1877. The older of two children, his parents were Samuel and Catherine (or Kate) Masters. Samuel was an agricultural labourer, but his son sought a life at sea.
On 7th November 1894, William enlisted in the Royal Navy. Sent to HMS Northampton, an armoured cruiser repurposed as a training ship, he took on the role of Boy 2nd Class. His service records show that he was 5ft 6.5ins (1.69m) tall, with brown eyes, auburn hair and a freckled complexion. He was noted as having a scar on the third finger of his right hand.
Over the next six months, William showed a remarkable dedication to the job. On 7th February 1895 he was promoted to Boy 1st Class, and, just three months later, he came of age and assumed the rank of Ordinary Seaman.
William’s shore base was to be HMS Vivid, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Devonport, Devon, and he returned here regularly over the twelve years of his service. Ordinary Seaman Masters served on ten ships during this time and, on 1st May 1902, was promoted to Able Seaman.
His time in the navy wasn’t to be without incident, however, and he had two spells in the brig – for three days in July 1897, and ten days in December 1905. His misdemeanours are lost to time, but they did blemish an otherwise clear term of service for William.
William married Laura Oldham in 1905: they would go on to have three children – William Jr, Emily and Katharine. He was stood down to reserve status in April 1907 and, by the time of the next census in 1911, the family were living in Church Street, Padstow. No longer working for the Royal Navy, he was, instead, self-employed as a general labourer.
When war was declared in August 1914, William was called back into action. Assigned to HMS Argonaut, he once again too the rank of Able Seaman. He spent a year on board, patrolling the Atlantic, before the protected cruiser was converted to a hospital ship.
In September 1915, Able Seaman Masters transferred to another cruiser – HMS King Alfred – which served in the Mediterranean. He remained on board until the following summer, by which point his health was beginning to become affected.
William returned to Devonport in August 1916, remaining there for a couple of months. On 4th October, he as medically discharged, suffering from myocarditis, a heart condition.
At this point William’s trail goes cold. He returned to Cornwall, passing away at home on 13th September 1917: he was 40 years of age.
William George Masters was laid to rest in Padstow Cemetery, on the outskirts of the town he called home.
The funeral of Mr Henry Hutchings, the Zulu war veteran, who died suddenly at Lower Weston on Tuesday, took place on Saturday afternoon…
The principal mourners were: Mrs Hutchings (widow), Sergt. Hutchings (son)(who wore the Mons ribbon and a Zulu war medal), Mr AE Adams (step-son), Mrs A Hutchings (daughter-in-law), Mr David Adams (step-son), and Mrs Emily Pickworth (step-daughter).
In order to attend the funeral Mr AE Adams had returned from France, where he has been carrying out work for a local firm.
Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette: Saturday 16th February 1918
Tracking down Henry Hutchings’ early life is a bit of a challenge, but working backwards through census records sheds some light onto his later years.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission record states “Hutchings, Pte. Henry, 14475. Royal Defence Corps. 5th Feb., 1918. Age 59. Husband of Theresa Hutchings… Served in the Zulu War (1877-79) with Army Service Corps.”
The 1911 census recorded Henry and Theresa living in Shepherd’s Bush, Hammersmith. The document confirms they had been married for less than a year and, unusually, suggests both were twice married. Henry had been born in Notting Hill, and was employed as a smith’s hammerman. Theresa was born in Byfleet, Surrey, and the couple were living with Henry’s son, Henry Jr, and Theresa’s daughter, Alice.
Turn the clock back ten years, and the 1901 census tells a more confused story. Henry was living in Edmonton, Middlesex, where he was employed as a general labourer. Theresa is noted as being his wife – in contrast to the later census return – and the couple were living in Gilpin Crescent with Henry’s sons – Henry Jr, Edward and Sidney – and Theresa’s two children – Alice and Albert.
Going back a further ten years leads to a dead end. Neither Henry nor Theresa are readily identifiable on the 1891 census, even though both should have had their older children by that point.
An 1877 military record confirms Henry’s earlier time in the army. It was in July of that year that he enlisted, joining the Army Service Corps. At 18 years of age, he had been working as a carman, but a dedicated career is what he sought out. His record confirms he was 5ft 4ins (1.63m tall, with brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. Henry lists his next of kin as brother Robert Hutchings, although, again further family details are lost in the mists of time.
Private Hutchings spent twelve years in the army. After eighteen months on home soil, he was dispatched to South Africa, as the later newspaper report suggests, and spent a year overseas. He returned home in March 1880, and was stood down to reserve status until the end of his contract in July 1889.
The documentation uncovers details of Henry’s second period of time in the military. He enlisted in the Royal Defence Corps in September 1915, and was based at Alexandra Palace in London. His time there was limited, however, as he began to show signs of heart disease. By the following summer, Private Hutchings suffered from breathlessness and chest pains, to the point where he was medically discharged from service on 21st August 1916.
Henry and Theresa had moved to Somerset by January 1917, presumably for the cleaner air that their home in Bath would provide. This was not to be enough, however. Henry died a little over a year later, at the age of 59 years old.
Henry Hutchings was laid to rest in the sweeping grounds of Locksbrook Cemetery, Bath. He was to be reunited with Theresa when she passed away in 1926.
William Kennedy Blundell early life seems anything but ordinary. Born in Cardiff, Glamorgan, in the summer of 1890, he was the only child to bank clerk Edmund Blundell and his wife, Annie. Edmund was born in Staplegrove, Somerset, while Annie had grown up in Lahore, India.
The 1891 census found William living with his maternal grandparents James and Edith Kennedy in the Walcot area of Bath, while his parents were firmly based in Cardiff. Edmund died the following year, so it is possible that he was placed out of the way while Annie tended to her husband (along with her sister-in-law and a domestic servant).
By the time of the next census return, Annie and William were reunited, and were living in Avenue Road, Wimborne Minster, Dorset. Anne was living off her own means, and had a servant, Emily Chaffey, to hep look after the home.
Both Annie and her son disappear from the 1911 census. It is likely that William had embarked on a military career by this point, and may have been serving overseas. Sadly, his trail goes cold, but scraps of later information help identify some of what became of him.
By the outbreak of the First World War, he was serving in the Bedfordshire Regiment. He was based in Egypt from January 1916, and rose to the rank of Captain by the end of the conflict. By 1918, he was attached to the 12th (Transport Workers) Battalion, and was back in Britain.
Captain Blundell was in Sussex by the time of the armistice, and it was here that he fell ill, contracting pneumonia. He was admitted to the General Eastern Hospital in Brighton, but the condition was to prove too severe. He passed away on 13th December 1918, at the age of 28 years old.
William Kennedy Blundell’s body was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the sweeping grounds of Locksbrook Cemetery in Bath.
Arthur Edward Naile was born in the summer of 1888, the youngest of ten children to James and Mary Naile. Both of his parents were born in Bath, Somerset, and this is where they raised their growing family.
The Nailes lived in the Camden area of the city, consecutive census returns showing different addresses, as the children grew and then left home. In 1891, they lived at 11 Malvern Buildings, a small terraced house on a steep hill. Ten years later, they had moved to 3 George’s Road, to another terraced cottage close to their old home. By 1911, only Arthur was still living at home, which was now the four-roomed terrace at 51 Brooklyn Road, in the more built up Larkhall area no the northern outskirts of the city.
During all of this time, James had worked as a printer’s compositor. By 1911 he was 64 years of age, and was employed by a newspaper in the area. Arthur, meanwhile, was working as a grocer’s assistant.
On 9th August 1914, he married soldier’s daughter Bessie Brine. She was working as a dressmaker, and lodging with Charles and Eleanor Richman, in a small cottage in Dover Place. Their marriage certificate shows that Arthur was living three doors down, so it is likely she caught his eye not long after he moved in. They went on to have a son, Leslie, in November 1916.
War was raging across Europe by this point, and Arthur had stepped up to serve his country. He joined the Royal Engineers as a Sapper, but there is little concrete information about his time in the army. He was awarded the Silver War Badge, which was given to men medically discharged from military service during the conflict, which would suggest that he was badly wounded at some point. He died in a hospital in Hastings, East Sussex, an annexe of which was dedicated to personnel who had been blinded during the war.
Sapper Arthur Edward Naile passed away from a combination of influenza and diabetes on 31st October 1918: he was 30 years of age. His body was taken back to Somerset for burial, and he lies at rest in a peaceful corner of Bath’s sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery.
After Arthur’s death, Bessie was left to bring up their young son. In the autumn of 1923, she married again, to John Forman, and not long afterwards the three of them emigrated to Australia, in search of a better life. They settled in Bunbury, Western Australia, and went on to have two children, Ron and Nan.
When war broke out again, Leslie was old enough to step up, and joined the Royal Australian Air Force. By 1943, he found himself as a Flight Sergeant in Waltham, Lincolnshire. He had joined 100 Squadron of Bomber Command and, on the night of 25th June 1943, was piloting a Lancaster over the Netherlands. His plane was hit and destroyed, killing all those on board. Father and son both lost to war, Flight Sergeant Naile was just 26 years of age when he passed. He was buried in Westbeemster, and commemorated on memorials in Runnymede, Surrey, and Canberra, Australia.
Bessie lived on until her early 70s. She died on 8th December 1960, and is buried in the family plot in Bunbury Cemetery.
George Edward Tucker was born in Lyncombe, Bath, Somerset in the autumn of 1883. The fourth of eight children, his parents were stone mason Edward Tucker and his wife, both of whom were from northern Somerset.
When he finished his schooling, George found work as an errand boy. By the time of the 1911 census, however, he had taken a job as a painter, possibly being employed by his father’s boss.
George married Rosina Hurley at Bath Register Office at the start of 1913. the couple set up home and went on to have two children, Edina and Audrey.
George enlisted in the opening weeks of the First World War, joining the Somerset Light Infantry as a Private. His time in service was not to last long, however. He was out on a route march on 1st December, when he was pulled up with acute pain in the chest.
Private Tucker was sent back to barracks, and given light duties. A subsequent medical confirmed an enlarged heart, and he was medically discharged from military service on 31st December 1914.
At this point, George’s trail goes cold. The next record for him is that of his passing, on 2nd January 1917. He was 33 years of age.
George Edward Tucker was laid to rest in Bath’s sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery.
William James Mackay was born in Bath, Somerset, on 2nd January 1900. The son of a woman called Matilda, the following year’s census found him living as a nurse child in the home of John and Elizabeth Logie. The household was made up of the Logies, their five children, a boarder, and another nurse child, Harold Fellows.
The next census, taken in the spring of 1911, shows a change in circumstances for the family. Matilda and William were living in the Walcot area of the city, with Matilda’s husband, William Smith. The document suggests that the couple had been married for twelve years, but this would not account for the younger William’s original surname. The census return states that he had taken the name of Smith as well, and there was a fourth resident in the household, widow Elizabeth Clarke.
War came to Europe in the summer of 1914, and William Jr was keen to step up and play his part. Because of his age he was unable to enlist immediately, and it was not until the start of 1917, that he was able to enlist.
William – who had returned to the name Mackay by this point – was working as a clerk when he joined the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) on 23rd January 1917. His service records show that he enlisted as a Boy Mechanic, and that he was 5ft 8.5ins (1.74m) tall. He had brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion.
Boy Mechanic Mackey was assigned to HMS Daedelus, one of the RNAS shore-based facilities: it was here that he was to receive his training over the spring and summer. Military barracks were notoriously cramped and hotbeds for illness and disease, and William was not to be immune to health issues. He contracted cerebrospinal meningitis within months of arriving at the base, and passed away on 5th August 1917. He was just 17 years of age.
William James Mackay was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the sweeping grounds of Bath’s Locksbrook Cemetery.
David Orr was born in Ballymena, County Antrim, in 1897, one of five children to William and Annie Orr. William was employed as a railway porter but, when Annie died in the early 1900s, he took on work as a dealer.
By the time of the 1911 census, David, who was now 13 years old, had taken a job as a message boy. War was coming to Europe, however, and he felt it his duty to serve his King and Country.
David joined the Royal Irish Rifles, and was attached to the 18th Battalion. He “was one of the first in [the] district to join the Ulster Division when it was formed in September 1914, and began his training at Cleggan Camp. He was subsequently transferred with his regiment to Clandeboye, where he completed his training…” [Ballymena Weekly Telegraph: Saturday 26th February 1916]
Rifleman Orr’s unit arrived in France on 5th October 1915, but was only overseas for a matter of months.
While serving in the trenches, he was stricken by illness, and was eventually sent back to England and underwent treatment in the 4th London General Hospital, Denmark Hill, and at the Wallace Field Convalescent Home, Croydon. His condition improved somewhat, and he was afterwards transferred to Victoria Barracks, Belfast; but the improvement was, unfortunately, only of a temporary nature…
Ballymena Weekly Telegraph: Saturday 26th February 1916
David Orr passed away on 17th February 1916: he was 18 years of age. He was laid to rest in Ballymena New Cemetery, not far from where his family still lived.
Rifleman David Orr (from britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)
John Bowden was born in Slaght, Ballymena, County Antrim, in 1896. The third of four children, he was one of three sons to David and Margaret. David was a railway labourer, and by the time of the 1911 census, the family had four wages coming in. John, at 15, was working as a solicitor’s clerk, while his older brothers were both employed, one as a baker, the other as an engine cleaner.
On Saturday afternoon last there were laid to rest in the Ballymena New Cemetery the mortal remains of Lance-Corporal John Bowden, of the Royal Irish Rifles, whose lamented demise from scarlet fever took place at Newtownards Camp… to the intense regret of his commanding officers and comrades, with all of whom he was on the most intimate and friendly terms.
The deceased was a bright, intelligent young man, of a rather retiring disposition but by his unassuming personality, combined with a cheery and lovable disposition, he gained for himself hosts of friends wherever he went.
He served his apprenticeship to the law in the office of Mr John Owens, solicitor… where he was held in the very highest esteem by his employer and fellow clerks. Indeed he was on happy relations with all the law clerks and young men in the town, all of whom deeply deplore his demise.
He was for a considerable length of time a staunch and loyal member of Slatt LOL No. 475, and… [at] Ballymena District Orange Lodge very sympathetic allusions were made to his untimely death, and the District Secretary (Br. Hugh Ballentine) was instructed to forward a letter of sympathy and condolence to the bereaved parents and other relatives in this season of their affliction.
The deceased was a most enthusiastic member of the No. C Company Ulster Volunteers (Harryville Branch) and here is may be remarked that out of a hundred of a membership there at the present time thirty-nine members in Lord Kitchener’s army, together with eight reserve men at the front, which educed the company by almost fifty per cent…
Shortly after the outbreak of hostilities the deceased very gallantly volunteered for active service and was accepted, being attached to the 12th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles… He was most attentive to his drill instructions, courteous and obliging to his officers, and a true comrade in every sense of the term.
Ballymena Observer: Friday 9th April 1915
Much of John’s service records are lost to time. His commitment to duty was underlined by his promotion to the role of Lance Corporal within months of enlisting.
John Bowden passed away from scarlet fever at Newtownards Camp on 1st April 1915. He was just 19 years of age. He was laid to rest in Ballymena New Cemetery, the newspaper report going on to outline the outpouring of grief at what would have been one of the town’s first military funerals of the war:
The tremendous crowds which formed in the funeral procession at the several squares and crossings en route to the cemetery testified to the respect in which the deceased was held by all who knew him.
The footpaths were lined and thronged with people all along the entire way, and as the funeral passed through the town business was suspended for the time being…
On arriving at the Cemetery the place was absolutely packed with spectators, all anxious to witness the carrying out of the obsequies… the scene was truly most pathetic, whilst to add to the sorrow and sympathy manifested on the face of everyone, the wailing and sobbing of deceased’s little sister as the remains were lowered into the grave were heartrending.
Alexander Reid was born in Ballymena, County Antrim, in the autumn of 1898. Information about his early life is a challenge to pin down, as there were a number of boys with the same name growing up in the area at the time. However, his parents were John and Margaret – or Maggie – Reid.
When Alexander finished his schooling, he found employment as a mill hand. However, when war broke out, he received the call to play his part and, on 13th October 1917, he enlisted in the Army Service Corps. His service records show that he was 5ft 7.5ins (1.71m) tall and weighed 138lbs (62.6kg). He was noted as having a tattoo of his initials on his left thumb, and that his right knee was stiff and swollen from an old injury.
Private Reid was sent to England to serve. He was attached to the Mechanical Transport Depot at Grove Park, Kent. Barracked in an old workhouse that had been taken over for army use, he remained there until the spring of 1918.
Alexander had contracted tuberculosis and was medically discharged from service because of the contagious disease. He returned home to Ballymena, but the condition worsened. He passed away at home on 12th November 1918, aged just 19 years old.
Alexander Reid was laid to rest in Ballymena New Cemetery, County Antrim, a twenty-minute walk from where his grieving family lived, in the centre of the town.
Death and Service 