Category Archives: unknown

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

Private Alfred Creese

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Private Alfred Creese

Alfred Isaac Matthew Creese was born in Wellow, Somerset, in the summer of 1889, and was the youngest child to Jacob and Elizabeth Creese. Jacob was a wagon builder for the Somerset & Dorset Railway, working in the village’s station. When Alfred left school, however, he found employment as a farm labourer.

When war came to Europe, Alfred stepped up to play his part. Sadly, few of his military records remain, and those that do give little information away. He enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry as a Private and, as a result of his war service, he was awarded the Victory, British and Territorial Force War Medal.

Private Creese survived the conflict, but, according to his headstone, he passed away at the Rock House Hospital in Bath. While this does not appear to be a dedicated hospital, there are a number of locations called Rock House in the Bath area, and it is likely to have been a house used for convalescent purposes. Whatever the location, this is where Private Creese passed away on 18th April 1919, at the age of 29 years old.

Alfred Isaac Matthew Creese was brought back to Wellow for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the village’s peaceful cemetery, to be joined there by his mother in 1930, and his father in 1932, a family reunited once more.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Machine Gun Corps, photography, Private, Somerset, Staffordshire, story, unknown, war

Private Arthur Selway

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Private Arthur Selway

Arthur Ernest Selway was born on 30th October 1898 in Wellow, Somerset. The oldest of six children, his parents were Frederick and Mary Selway. Frederick was a coal miner, and this is likely to have been the line of work for Arthur to follow, had war not intervened.

Arthur enlisted in the Machine Gun Corps on 19th April 1918 and was assigned to the 44th (Reserve) Battalion. Sent to the Rugeley Camp in Staffordshire for training, Private Selway’s time in the army was not to last long, however. While his service records are lost to time, he is recorded as having passed away while at the camp on 3rd October 1918.

Private Selway was just 19 years of age and, having been in the army for just five months and two weeks, this meant that his family were not eligible to receive a war gratuity from the army, as he had not completed six months’ service.

Arthur Ernest Selway’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful Wellow Cemetery.

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

Private William Humphrys

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Private William Humphrys

William James Humphrys was born early in 1880, the fourth of seven children to Mark and Alice Humphrys. Mark was a gardener from Wellow in Somerset, but it was in nearby Norton St Philip that the family were born and raised.

Alice died in 1904, by which time William was working as a mason’s labourer. By the time of the 1911 census, he was living in the family home on Church Street, with his father and two older sisters, Annie and Mary.

On 17th April 1911, William married Annie Holcombe, a farmer’s daughter from the village. It is likely that they set up home with Mark, but those details are lost to time.

War came to Europe in the summer of 1914, and William was quick to step up and play his part. He enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry early in 1915, and was assigned to the regiment’s 6th Battalion as a Private.

William arrived in France in June 1915, and over the next eighteen months was caught up in some of the fiercest battles of the war. The 6th Battalion first saw fighting at the Action of Hooge, where it had the misfortune to be the first to be attacked by flamethrower. During 1916, Private Humphrys was firmly ensconced at the Somme, although full details of his service are lost to time.

In fact, the only other concrete information about Private Humphrys is that of his passing, which happed on 14th January 1917 at King George’s Hospital in London. The cause of his death is unknown, but he was 36 years old at the time.

William James Humphrys was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of Saints Philip & James’ Church, Norton St Philip, within sight of his family home.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, photography, Private, Royal Warwickshire Regiment, Somerset, story, Tyne & Wear, unknown, war

Private Albert Warr

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Private Albert Warr

Albert Warr was born in Chaffcombe, near Chard, Somerset, in the spring of 1900. He was the middle of three children to William and Edith. Edith, who was also known as Sophie or Sophia, was nine years older than her husband, and had been married previously. When her first husband passed away, she was left with three children under ten years old – half-siblings to Albert – and so married William to provide them and her a home.

William was an agricultural labourer, but by the time of the 1911 census, the family had moved east to Crewkerne, where both he and Edith took up work in a laundry. The household was complemented by the two older of Edith’s children – Edith, who helped with the laundry work, and Samuel, who was a fishmonger.

Little information is available for Albert’s military service, so his time in the army is a challenge to piece together. He enlisted no earlier than April 1918, and was assigned to the 5th Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. Private Warr’s troop fought in France and Italy, although it is unlikely that he saw any action overseas.

All that can be confirmed is that he was admitted to the 1st Northern General Hospital in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, although his condition is unknown. Private Warr passed away on 17th October 1918, aged just 18 years old.

The body of Albert Warr was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the Townsend Cemetery, within walking distance of the family home in Crewkerne.

Private Warr’s pension ledger notes that Edith had passed away, and that the beneficiary was to be William instead. As this document is not dated, it is not possible to determine when Albert’s mother died, but it is likely to have been between 1917 and 1919.

Commonwealth War Graves, Essex, Great War, history, London, photography, Private, Royal Army Service Corps, Somerset, story, Surrey, unknown, war, Wiltshire

Private George Hutchings

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Private George Hutchings

George Robert Hutchings was born towards the end of 1883 in Forest Gate, Essex. He was the oldest of four children to George and Mary Ann Hutchings. George Sr was a labourer for the railways, and this led to the family relocating to Swindon, Wiltshire, in the 1890s.

George Jr took up work with the Great Western Railway when he left school, while his father switched employment and, by the time of the 1911 census, he was working as a collector for a clothing supply company.

On 13th July 1911, George Jr married Daisy Smale in the Sanford Street Congregational Church, Swindon. Daisy was a school teacher, and was the daughter of an iron moulder. It is likely that the couple met through George’s workplace. The newlyweds had a son, Raymond, who was born in 1914 and, at some point moved to Bath in Somerset.

When war came to Europe, George stepped up to play his part. He enlisted in the Royal Army Service Corps and, unsurprisingly, given the work he was doing, was assigned to the Mechanical Transport division. Little information about his military service remains, but is it clear that he had enlisted in the second half of 1915.

The next available record for Private Hutchings is that of his passing. He had been admitted to the Royal Herbert Hospital in Woolwich, South East London, and died there on 15th December 1915. No cause for his death is evident, but he was 32 years of age.

George Robert Hutchings was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in Bath’s St James Cemetery.

When her husband died, Daisy was pregnant. In March 1916 she gave birth to a daughter, Winifred, who was never to know her father.

Daisy never remarried. By the time of the 1939 register, she was living in Northampton Street, Bath, sharing the house with a Mr and Mrs Spreadbury. Her employment was listed as unpaid domestic duties.

Daisy and George’s son Raymond was focused on his education. He made an eventual move to Birmingham, where, at the outbreak of war, he was working as a research chemist. He died in Bath in 1982, at the age of 68.

Winifred married grocer Kenneth Batten in Bath in 1938. The couple had three children and emigrated to Australia after the war, and settled in Coffs Harbour, New South Wales. Kenneth died in 1988, at the age of 72; Winifred died in 2003, aged 87.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, photography, Private, Somerset, story, Suffolk, unknown, war

Private Ernest Whatley

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Private Ernest Whatley

Ernest James Victor Whatley was born in the spring of 1899, the youngest of three children to George and Clara Whatley. Clara passed away in 1908, and George remarried the following year, to a woman called Sarah. Ernest’s brothers were sixteen years older than him, and so by the time of the 1911 census they had moved out of their father’s home. By that point, Ernest living with his father and stepmother in their house in Bath, Somerset.

Little further information is available about Ernest. With war raging across Europe, he enlisted in the army, but this was not before September 1916, and it is likely that he came of age before joining up.

Private Whatley served in the 1st/7th (Cyclist) Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment, and was based in Suffolk. It is while he was billeted that he was admitted to a hospital in Ipswich, although the cause of his admission is unclear.

Whatever befell Private Whatley, it was to prove his undoing. He passed away in the Ipswich hospital on 9th March 1917, at the tender age of just 18 years old.

Ernest James Victor Whatley’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in St James’ Cemetery, Bath, not far from his mother, Clara.

Air Mechanic, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Lincolnshire, photography, Royal Air Force, Somerset, story, unknown, war

Air Mechanic 1st Class Joseph Chivers

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Air Mechanic 1st Class Joseph Chivers

Joseph Shore Chivers was born in the summer of 1889 in Walcot, Bath, Somerset. He was the youngest of seven children to William and Jane Chivers. William was a blacksmith and, after he and Jane died within nine months of each other in 1904/05, Joseph went to live with his brother, Edward, remaining there with his sister-in-law when his sibling also died in 1910.

Joseph had found work as a French polisher and cabinet maker by this point and this is what he was doing when he married local woman Ellen West in on 11th September 1915.

War was on the horizon by this point and Joseph was soon called on to serve his country. On 26th July 1916 he enlisted in the Royal Flying Corps, as an Air Mechanic 2nd Class. His service records give little away, but do confirm that he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall.

Joseph was dedicated to his role and, on 1st January 1918, was promoted to Air Mechanic 1st Class. Three months later, when the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service combined to become the Royal Air Force, Joseph made the transfer across.

In August, Air Mechanic Chivers moved to RAF Bracebridge, to the south of Lincoln, where he remained until the end of the war and beyond. He was attached to 120 Squadron, which delivered mail and communications to the troops overseas. Little additional information is available about his life there, other than his admission to the 4th Northern Hospital in April 1919, through causes unknown.

Whatever the cause of his need to be admitted, he was to succumb to it. Air Mechanic Chivers passed away on 1st May 1919, at the age of 29 years old.

Joseph Shore Chivers’ body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in St James’ Cemetery, in his home city of Bath.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Malta, photography, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, unknown, war

Private Joseph Viles

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Private Joseph Viles

Joseph Viles was born at the end of 1886 in Bath, Somerset. One of seven children, his parents were collier-turned-general labourer Joseph Viles and his wife, Sarah.

When he left school, Joseph found work as an errand boy, but, in reality, there is little documented about his life. There are only really two records that give an insight into the man he became.

The first is the 1911 census, which confirms he was a Private in the 2nd Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry. The return gives his location as the St Andrew’s Barracks in Malta.

The second document dates from 29th June 1909, and is a court martial for Private Viles’ for the use of insubordinate language towards a senior officer, in this case a Major. The trial was held in Portland, Dorset, and Joseph was sentenced to 30 days’ imprisonment.

Sadly, a lot of the service records for the Somerset Light Infantry have been lost over time, and those relating to Joseph are amongst them. The only other confirmed detail for Joseph is that of his passing, but even this raises questions.

Private Joseph Viles died on 4th August 1914 – just seven days after war was declared. His regiment was actually based in Quetta, India, at this point, so it is likely that he was at home on leave at the time he died. No cause for is death is noted, and it is likely to have been from an illness of some description, as nothing unusual was reported in the newspapers of the time. Joseph was 27 years of age.

Joseph Viles was laid to rest in Bath’s St James’ Cemetery, where his parents would also be buried, Joseph Sr in 1948, and Sarah in 1958.

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

Private Alfred Stoyle

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Private Alfred Stoyle

Details of Alfred Lawrence Stoyle’s life a challenging to piece together. Most of the information comes from his service records, but even that is limited.

The Somerset Light Infantry records suggest that Private Alfred Stoyle was born in March 1890 in Widcombe, Bath. Physically, he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall, and weighed 109lbs (49.4kg). He had blue eyes, brown hair, a tattoo of crossed flags on his right forearm and a scar above his right eye.

According to the document, Alfred’s parents were Alfred and Ellen Stoyle, and he had been working as a mason’s labourer before he enlisted on 13th February 1909. Early records for the Stoyles are hard to come by, The 1891 census found Alfred and Ellen living in Walcot, Somerset, with their eight children. They have a son, Alfred, although he is noted as being 19 at the time, which does not match the service records for the Alfred who enlisted. They have another son, Albert, who was born in 1886, and it seems that he may have used the name Alfred when enlisting (indeed, those service records note not only Alfred’s parents, but his older siblings Nellie, Ada, Henry and Alfred).

The next census, in 1901, recorded Alfred Sr as being a pauper in the Bath Union Workhouse. He was also listed there in the 1911 census, while that document recorded Ellen living in two rooms in the centre of Bath with Albert/Alfred and her youngest son, William.

Alfred Jr was recorded as being a general painter. By this time, he had enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, and was on reserve status, allowing his daily life to continue. He undertook annual training, and, when war broke out in August 1914, he was formally mobilised.

Private Stoyle was sent to France the following month, and ended up spending four months there. In January 1915 he returned home, and there appears to have been a medical reason for doing so. Within a matter of months, he was discharged from the army as he was no longer physically fit. The service records do not give a reason for his dismissal.

At this point, Alfred’s trail goes cold. He seems to have returned home to Somerset, and passed away on 21st August 1915. Based on his service records, he was just 25 years old, although his true age is debatable.

Alfred Lawrence Stoyle was laid to rest in St James’ Cemetery Bath.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, photography, Royal Engineers, Sapper, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, unknown, war

Sapper Albert Colston

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Sapper Albert Colston

Albert Edward Colston was born in the spring of 1887 in Bath, Somerset. The oldest of seven children, his parents were Thomas and Elizabeth Colston. Thomas was a carpenter and the family were raised in Lyncombe, to the south of the city centre.

Elizabeth died in 1905, by which time Albert had left school. He worked with Thomas and, by the time of the 1911 census, the family – father and four children at home – had moved to a terraced house in the suburbs of Twerton.

During this time, Albert volunteered with the Somerset Light Infantry. When war came to Europe, however, he was enlisted into the Royal Engineers. He joined on 28th February 1916, and was assigned to the Wessex Field Company. His service record show that he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall, of normal physical development and with good vision.

A few months after enlisting, Albert married Alice Selway. She was a groom’s daughter from Bath who, at the time of their marriage, was working as a housemaid in a boarding house in the centre of the city.

Sapper Colston spent the next year on home soil. In March 1917, however, he was discharged from the army as he was deemed no longer medically fit for active duty. Sadly, the records do not confirm the complaint that led to his dismissal.

It is likely that he returned home when he was discharged. He died in Bath just weeks later, on 4th April 1917. He was thirty years of age.

Albert Edward Colston was laid to rest in St James’ Cemetery in his home city, the same location as Elizabeth, mother and son reunited again.

Alice married for a second time in May 1919. He husband was William Keepen, and the couple went on to have a son, Reginald, who was born in 1920. Reginald died in 1937, while Alice lived until 1918. The couple were buried in Haycombe Cemetery on the outskirts of Bath.