Category Archives: illness

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Dorsetshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, Norfolk, photography, Private, story, war

Private William Thick

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Private William Thick

William Thick was born in Gillingham, Dorset, in the autumn of 1885, and was the oldest of four children to Henry and Emma Thick (who also went by the names Harriett and Fanny). Henry was a general labourer, and the family lived in a cottage at Culvers Corner, on the western outskirts of the town.

William initially found work as a mason, but he sought bigger and better things. Already a volunteer in the local militia, on 19th April 1904, he formally enlisted in the army. Taking the rank of Private in the Dorsetshire Regiment, he was attached to 2nd Battalion. His service papers note that he was 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall and weighed 129lbs (58.5kg). He was recorded as having dark brown hair, hazel eyes and a fresh complexion. His medical report also notes a lateral curvature of his spine.

Private Thick spent the first two years of his service on home soil. In February 1906, however, his unit was sent to India, and he would spend the next five years in and around Poona. William completed an initial seven years’ service in April 1911: stood down to reserve status, he returned home.

In the spring of 1914, William married Eliza Belgin. There is little information available for her, but she gave birth to the couple’s only child, daughter Hettie, the following January.

By this point, war had broken out, and Private Thick was called into action once more. Attached to the 1st Battalion, he was sent to France within days of the outbreak of hostilities. Within the first six months of the conflict, William’s unit was involved in the battles of Mons, the Marne, the Aisne, Messines and Armentières, some of the fiercest fighting of the conflict.

By the summer of 1915, Private Thick was suffering from rheumatism. He was admitted to the No. 1 Canadian General Hospital in Boulogne, but was soon transferred to Britain, as he contracted pleurisy. Sent to the Norfolk War Hospital in Norwich, his condition deteriorated, and he passed away on 2nd July 1915: he was 29 years old.

The body of William Thick was taken back to Dorset for burial: he was laid to rest in Gillingham Cemetery, not far from where his family were living.

Eliza had been widowed just six months after having Hettie. The only other record for her is the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s record that she had moved to Harold Road, Roath, South Glamorgan.

Bombardier, Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Great War, Gunner, history, illness, Kent, photography, Royal Field Artillery, Scotland, story, war

Gunner William Taylor

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Gunner William Taylor

Military honours were paid to Bombardier W Taylor, of the 59th Battery, RFA, who succumbed to an attack of double pneumonia in the VAD Hospital on Saturday at the age of 23. The funeral took place on Tuesday afternoon in the presence of a large gathering, including some from each battery billeted in the town, to the number of nearly 200. The service, which was a most impressive one, was conducted by the Vicar (Red. WEH Sotheby). The deceased came with a draft from Glasgow over a fortnight ago and soon got his first stripe; but it was willed that he should rise no higher, as the day after he received his first promotion he was taken to the hospital. A tribute of respect was paid to him from each battery in the shape of wreaths subscribed for by the men.

[Southern Times and Dorset County Herald: Saturday 23rd January 1915]

William John Taylor was born in St Helier, Jersey, in 1883. He was the only child to John Lebanon Taylor and his wife, Margaret. John had been born ‘at sea’ and was a writer for the Royal Arsenal. His work had taken him to the Channel Islands, and this is where he met and married Margaret in the autumn of 1882.

By the time of the 1901 census, the Taylor family had moved back to the mainland, and were living at 12 Mineral Street, Plumstead, Kent. William had finished his schooling by this point, and was employed as a commercial clerk.

William disappears from the 1911 census, while his parents had moved to a larger property at 101 Tuam Road, Plumstead. John was now listed as an army pensioner, and it was just him and Margaret living in the house.

By this point, William’s trail had gone completely cold. When war broke out he was called on to play his part, and the newspaper report, while giving an incorrect age, does outline what would seem to be his time in the army. He passed away in the Red Cross Hospital in Gillingham, Dorset, on 16th January 1915: he was 31 years of age.

John appears to have passed away by this point too, and it seems possible, that Margaret was unable to cover the cost of bringing her son back to Kent. Instead, Gunner William Taylor (his rank before the promotion to Bombardier was formally recorded) was laid to rest in Gillingham Cemetery, close to the hospital where he had died.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Great War, history, illness, Kings Royal Rifle Corps, Middlesex, photography, Rifleman, story, war

Rifleman Richard Hazlewood

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Rifleman Richard Hazlewood

Richard Hazlewood was born in the spring of 1892 in Kentish Town, Middlesex. One of at least seven children, his parents were railway engine driver George Hazlewood and his wife, Sarah.

There is frustratingly little documentation for Richard’s early life. The family do not appear on the 1901 or 1911 census records, and it is only when he enlists on 5th June 1915, that his name appears on paperwork once more.

Richard was working as a cook when he joined up, and gave this up to join the King’s Royal Rifle Corps. His service record notes that he was a little over 5ft 9ins (1.76m) tall, and had brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion.

Rifleman Hazlewood was attached to the 12th Battalion, and, after his initial training, he was sent to France. He would spend the next three years overseas, his unit being caught up in the fighting at the Somme and Ypres. In February 1917, he spent a few days in hospital, suffering from scabies in his right foot.

In the autumn of 1918, Richard came down with pneumonia. He was medically evacuated to Britain for treatment, and was admitted to the Station Road Hospital in Gillingham, Dorset. His condition would prove fatal: Rifleman Hazlewood passed away on 12th November – a day after the Armistice was signed. He was 26 years of age.

George had died in 1911, and it seems likely that Sarah, who was now living at the St Pancras Almshouses, Kentish Town, was unable to cover the cost of bringing her son back to Middlesex. Richard Hazlewood was instead laid to rest in Gillingham Cemetery, not far form the Dorset hospital in which he had died.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Driver, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Royal Army Service Corps, Somerset, story, war

Driver Frederick Street

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Driver Frederick Street

Frederick Street was born in the autumn of 1882, and was one of ten children. His parents were James Street and his wife Izett (or Izit, Ezit, or Iyitt, depending on which document you are looking at: both of Frederick’s parents were illiterate, and so there is no consistency in how his mother’s unusual name was spelt). James was a general labour from East Stour, Dorset, but it was in the nearby town of Gillingham where the family were born and raised.

When Frederick completed his schooling, he also took up work as a labourer. In the autumn of 1908 he married Mary White. Born in Yeovil, Somerset, in 1885, she was working as a servant for draper Sidney Clement when the couple exchanged vows. They set up home on Milton Lane, Gillingham, and went on to have two children: Charles, born in 1909, and William, born in 1916.

Frederick had taken work as a gardener by the outbreak of war. He was called upon to play his part and, while full details of his service have been lost to time, it is clear that he had enlisted in the Army Service Corps no earlier than the spring of 1917.

Sent to Kent for his service with the No. 2 Horse Transport Depot Company, Driver Street fell ill with tetanus. He was admitted to the Brook War Hospital in Woolwich, but the condition would prove too severe. Frederick died on 29th October 1917: he was 34 years of age.

The body of Frederick Street was taken back to Dorset for burial: he was laid to rest in Gillingham Cemetery, not far from where his widow and children were still living. This was the second death in the family in six months, James Street having died in March: the location of his burial is unclear.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Hertfordshire, history, illness, Inns of Court Officer Training Corps, London, photography, Private, story, war

Private George Manaton

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Private George Manaton

It is with deep regret we record the death of Mr G Aubrey Manaton, son of Mr and Mrs William Manaton, of Braunton, who had just passed away at his home in Braunton. Mr Manaton was a young journalist of brilliant prospects, his scholarly attainments and aptitude for the profession being such that he made rapid steps for one so young. Having served his articles on a Barnstaple weekly newspaper, he went to London and joined the staff of one of the Newsagencies, and subsequently that of “The Times.” For a short while he was a war correspondent for the latter paper in France, and during that period made most able contributions to the paper, notably among them being a graphic account of the sinking of a large warship off the French coast, of which he was an eye witness in the early days of the war. He served for a short time with the Inns of Court Officers’ Training Corps, from which he was invalided on account of ill-health. Besides being naturally gifted in his literary capacity, Mr Manaton had a wealth of charm of personality and character, and his death, at the early age of 26, is deeply regretted, especially among his intimate friends, of whom he had a great many. He was unmarried. In their bereavement, the parents, whose eldest son was killed in the war some time since, will have a measure of sympathy both full and sincere. One of deceased’s brothers, Lieut. Arthur Manaton, is serving in France with the Yorks and Lancs Regt.

[Western Times: Tuesday 30th July 1918]

George Aubrey Manaton was born on 9th June 1892 in Braunton, Devon. The second of five children, his parents were William and Sarah Manaton. William was a tailor and outfitter, and the family lived in a nine-roomed house – Hillside – on Church Street, to the north of the town centre.

George was working as a journalist by the time of the 1911 census. When war broke out, his work took him to France, but by the summer of 1915, he felt he could no longer remain a mere observer. Back in London, on 17th June, he enlisted in the army, and was assigned to the Inns of Court Officers’ Training Corps.

Private Manaton was sent to Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, for his training. His time in the military, however, was to be a short one, and he was discharged for being unlikely to become an efficient soldier on medical grounds on 26th November 1915.

At this point, George’s trail goes cold. His older brother, Fred, a Private in the 9th (Service) Battalion of the West Yorkshire Regiment, had survived Gallipoli, but was killed during the Battle of the Somme in September 1916. He was laid to rest in Puchevillers British Cemetery in Picardie.

George Aubrey Manaton passed away on 25th July 1918: he had turned 26 just a few weeks before. He was laid to rest in the Methodist Chapelyard of his home town, Braunton.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, Monmouthshire, Monmouthshire Regiment, photography, Private, South Wales Borderers, story, Wales, war

Private Cecil White

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Private Cecil White

Cecil George White was born in Cardiff, Glamorganshire, in the summer of 1899. The youngest of four children, his parents were called William and Mary. William was a stevedore and, at the time of the 1901 census, the family lived at 6 Whitchurch Road, to the north of the city centre.

The 1911 census shows things had changed significantly for the White family. They had left Wales, and had set up home in the Devon village of Croyde. William and Mary were now employed as farmers, with Cecil’s older sisters, Cordelia and Lilian, also helping out on the farm.

Europe descended into war in the summer of 1914, and while Cecil was initially too young to serve, he would eventually be called upon to play his part. Full details of his time in the army have been lost to time, but it would seem that he joined the South Wales Borderers, but was attached to the Monmouthshire Regiment.

Private White’s trail is tantalisingly sparse. The one document relating to his passing notes that he died of sickness in Barnstaple, Devon, on 12th November 1918 – the day after the Armistice was signed. Given the town’s proximity to the family home, it is fair to assume that he had been home on leave when he fell ill.

The body of Cecil George White – just 19 years of age when he died – was taken the short distance back to Croyde for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the village’s Baptist Chapelyard, alongside his sister, Lilian, who had passed a few weeks before.

The family would be reunited in death: William was buried alongside his children when he died in 1946, at the age of 78. Mary died in 1960, at the age of 91, and was interred with her family.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Dorsetshire Regiment, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, India, injury, Lance Corporal, photography, Private, story, war

Lance Corporal Hugh Parmiter

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Lance Corporal Hugh Parmiter

Hugh Norman Trivick Parmiter was born on 21st February 1898, and was the sixth of ten children. His father, James, was a Sergeant in the Dorsetshire Regiment, and the family travelled to where the army needed him. Hugh was the third of the children to be born in Bangalore, India, while his mother, Annie, gave birth to his oldest two siblings in Egypt.

By 1900 the Parmiters had returned to Britain, Annie and the children living in family barracks in Dorchester, while James was being trained in Hythe, Kent.

The 1911 census records the family living in the rural Dorset village of Gussage St Michael. Having been pensioned from the army, James was employed as a dairyman, and the family lived in a modest village cottage. At thirteen years of age, Hugh was still attending school, growing up in the peaceful surroundings of the Dorset countryside.

When war broke out, Hugh stepped up to play his part. Full details of his service have been lost to time, but from what remains it is clear that he enlisted in the Devonshire Regiment in the opening weeks of the war. By 11th July 1915, Private Parmiter’s unit was ensconced in the Balkans.

Hugh was caught up in the fierce fighting at Gallipoli, and rose to the rank of Lance Corporal. He would not come out unscathed, however, and was medically evacuated to Britain for treatment. While details of his injuries are unclear, they were severe enough for him to be medically discharged from the army: he was formally stood down on 17th January 1916, a week after the final evacuations from the Dardanelles Strait.

At this point, Hugh’s trail goes cold. James had passed away in 1914, and Annie had moved to Pimperne, a village on the outskirts of Blandford Fordham. Hugh’s health still dogged him however, and he passed away on 6th May 1918: he was 20 years of age.

The body of Hugh Norman Trivick Parmiter was laid to rest in St Peter’s Churchyard in Pimperne.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, story, war

Private George Everett

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Private George Everett

George James Everett was born in Fordington, Dorset, on 3rd July 1898. The fifth of six children, his parents were Frank and Jane Everett. Frank was a shepherd, and farm work was a trade into which at least two of George’s older siblings went.

George was only sixteen at the outbreak of the First World War, and so had to bide his time before he could serve his country. This he did, however, enlisting in the Hampshire Regiment on 24th July 1916. Assigned to the 52nd (Graduated) Battalion, he was sent to Canterbury, Kent for his training.

Private Everett’s time in the army was not to be as much of an adventure and he might have hoped. He spent his time on home soil, and, by the end of 1917, his health wasn’t standing up to the rigours of army life. George had contracted tuberculosis, and the contagious health condition led to his discharge from the military service on 5th December.

At this point, George’s trail goes cold. He returned to home to recuperate, and back at home, he fell in love. Amelia Aylen had been born in Beckenham, Kent, and it seems that she may have moved to Dorset to live with her brother, , Thomas, who had found farm work there. George and Amelia married in Blandford Forum on 3rd March 1919, and had a son, George Jr, that September.

George’s health would ultimately get the better of him. He passed away from tuberculosis and exhaustion on 8th July 1920: he had turned 22 years old just a few days before.

The body of George James Everett was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Peter’s Church in the village of Pimperne, to the north of Blandford.

As George and Amelia had been married after his discharge from the army, she was not eligible for his war pension. The 1921 census found her working as a servant for a retired army major in Wiltshire, while George Jr was being raised by her brother’s family.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Pioneer, Royal Engineers, story, war

Pioneer Albert Miles

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Pioneer Albert Miles

Albert George Miles and his twin Judith Ann Miles were born on 8th August 1893 in the Devon village of Georgeham. Two of five siblings, their parents were labourer and road contractor Richard Miles and his wife, Elizabeth.

When Albert finished his schooling, he found work as a farm labourer, but when war broke out, he was keen to play his part. There is little information about his time during the conflict, but it is clear that he enlisted in the Royal Engineers and attached to the 315th Field Company. According to a later newspaper report, he served in both France and Germany.

Pioneer Miles survived the war, and was medically discharged from army duties on 10th November 1919, almost exactly a year after the Armistice was signed. He returned home, but was dogged by illness.

Great sympathy has been manifested towards Mr and Mrs R Miles, of Croyde, in the loss of their youngest son, Albert George, who passed away last Friday, aged 27. The deceased served in the RE… during the war, but had not been well since he came home. However, he took to his bed only a fortnight before he died. He then sank rapidly.

[North Devon Herald: Thursday 12th August 1920]

Albert George Miles died on 6th August 1920, two days before his and Judith’s 28th birthdays. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St George’s Church, in his home parish of Georgeham.

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

Able Seaman William Lang

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Able Seaman William Lang

William John Lang was born on 22nd August 1882, and was one of six children to Thomas and Elizabeth Lang. Thomas was a general labourer from the Devon village of Georgeham, and this is where the family were born and raised.

William initially followed his father into labouring work, but after Thomas died in 1891, he decided he wanted bigger and better things. On 28th February 1899 he joined the Royal Navy. Under the age to formally enlist, he was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class, and sent to HMS Impregnable, the school ship based in Devonport, for his training.

It seemed that William impressed his teachers. By the end of November he had been promoted to Boy 1st Class, and in the spring of 1900, he was given his first assignment, on board the frigate HMS Agincourt. In August he was transferred to the battleship HMS Camperdown, and he was within days of arriving that he came of age.

William was now formally inducted into the Royal Navy, and given the rank of Ordinary Seaman. His service papers show that he was a little over 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall, with light brown hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Ordinary Seaman Lang signed up for a period of 12 years, and during that time, he would serve on eight vessels, returning to what would become his shore base – HMS Vivid in Devonport – between assignments. In January 1903 he was promoted to Able Seaman but, while his annual reviews consistently noted a very good character, as time went on, his ability varied from good to moderate.

Able Seaman Lang’s contract came to an end in August 1912, and he immediately re-enlisted. In November 1913 he was assigned to the battleship HMS Colossus, and she would remain his home for the next three years. The posting seemed to suit William well, and his annual reviews reflected this, with superior ability being noted at the end of 1914.

By the start of 1916, William’s health was beginning to be affected and, he returned to HMS Vivid. He had contracted tuberculosis, and this led to his ultimate discharge from naval service on 22nd March.

At this point his trail goes cold, but it is likely that he returned home. Elizabeth had remarried by this point, and she and her husband, Thomas Physick, were living on a farm in Georgeham. William’s lung condition would get the better of him, and he passed away on 2nd September 1916. He had not long turned 34 years of age.

The body of William John Lang was laid to rest in the family plot in St George’s Churchyard, Georgeham: father and son reunited after 15 years.