John Pole was born in Halse, Somerset, early in 1897. He was one of eleven children to Robert and Martha Pole. Robert was a basket weaver, and the family had moved to nearby Fitzhead by the time of the 1901 census.
Martha died in 1911, at the age of 51. John had finished his schooling by this point, and had found employment as a gardener. When war came to Europe, he gave that up to serve his King and Country. Details are scarce, but it is clear that he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, and was attached to the 5th Battalion.
Private Pole was sent to Taunton for training, but his time in the army was not to be a lengthy one. His unit was sent to Southampton in September 1914, but it seems that he did not go with them. John contracted pneumonia, and seems to have been admitted to a military hospital in the town – possibly connected to his barracks. He died from the condition on 18th December 1914, aged just 17 years old.
John Pole’s body was brought back to Fitzhead for burial. He was laid to rest in the tranquil surroundings of St James’ Churchyard, close to where his father and siblings still lived.
Herbert Snook was born in the spring of 1895 in the village of Thurlbear, Somerset. The fourth of nine children, he was the second son of Henry and Clara Snook. Henry was employed as a stockman and cowman and by the time of the 1911 census, the family had moved to Bishop’s Lydeard, to the west of Taunton.
When Herbert completed his schooling, he found work as a postman. When war broke out, Herbert stepped up to play his part. Sadly, full details of his time in the army are no longer available, but the documents that remain give an indication about what he did.
Private Snook enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, and was assigned to the 8th (Service) Battalion. His unit served in France, but there is no evidence that Herbert went with them. During his time with the regiment, however, he was promoted, reaching the rank of Corporal.
In the summer of 1918, Herbert married Alice Webber. There is little information about her, but the wedding took place in Taunton. That winter, Herbert fell ill, contracting a combination of influenza and pneumonia. His health deteriorated quickly, and he passed away at his in-laws’ home on 3rd March 1919. He was just 24 years of age.
Herbert Snook’s body was taken to Ash Priors, near Bishop’s Lydeard, for burial. He was laid to rest in the tranquil graveyard of Holy Trinity Church, not far from where his family were living.
Robert Snow was born at the end of 1890 and was the fourth of six children. His parents were Somerset-born Henry and Elizabeth Snow, and the family were raised in the village of Combe Florey, near Taunton.
When Robert completed his schooling, he also found work as a farm labourer. On 10th September 1914, he married Mabel Trebble in the local parish church: the couple went on to have a daughter, Clarice, who was born in December.
By this point, war had consumed Europe. Robert was called upon to play his part and he joined the Devonshire Regiment as a Private. Little information about his military service survives, but it is clear that he was attached to the 10th (Service) Battalion, and was sent to France in September 1915.
Private Snow did not spend much time in France, however, as, just a couple of months later, his unit was transferred to Salonika in the Eastern Mediterranean. He appears to have spent most of the rest of the conflict there, as the next records relating to him show that he survived the war, and was back in Britain by March 1919.
An inquest was held at Bath War Hospital on Pte. Robert Snow, 28… who died on Tuesday evening just as he had been put under an anaesthetic prior to an operation for lumbar abscess, the man having tubercular spinal complaint. He had been at the hospital since March 29th, when he was transferred from the 2nd General Hospital Bristol. The coroner entered an inquisition of death from cardiac failure while under an anaesthetic. This was the first death of the kind at the hospital, through nearly 3,000 patients have been given anaesthetics.
Langport & Somerton Herald: Saturday 7th June 1919
Robert Snow died on 3rd June 1919. His body was taken back to Combe Florey for burial. He was laid to rest in the village’s cemetery, to be reunited with his widow, when she passed away in 1958, at the age of 71 years old.
Official intimation has been received of the death of Capt. Lord Kesteven, of the Lincolnshire Yeomanry, who sailed for the Balkans last week. Sir Thomas Carew Trollope… third Baron Kesteven, who was born in May 1891, was the only son of the late Hon. Robert Cranmer Trollope and the Hon. Mrs Trollope, of Crowcombe Court, Taunton, and was educated at Eton. He succeeded to the barony on the death of his uncle, the second Baron, in July last. He joined the Lincolnshire Yeomanry about six years ago, when his uncle was Colonel of the regiment, and was gazetted Captain in October 1914. He had seen service in France during the present war, being attached to Jacob’s Horse, Indian Cavalry, until he succeeded to the title. Lord Kesteven was unmarried, and the title becomes extinct, but the baronetcy goes to Mr William Henry Trollope.
Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette: Saturday 13th November 1915
Thomas Carew Trollope was born in Middlesex, London on 1st May 1891. He was the younger of two children to Robert and Ethel Trollope, whose main residence was Crowcombe Court in Somerset.
Thomas was destined for great things. The 1901 census recorded him as being a boarder at Naish House Preparatory School in Wraxall, Somerset, while his older sister, Dorothy, remained at home with their parents and ten live-in servants.
Ten years later, and on his way to being prepared for the barony, Thomas was living with his uncle, John Trollope, the Baron Kesteven, at his estate, Casewick, in Uffington, Lincolnshire.
On the 5th November 1915, on Thomas’ journey to the Balkans, the ship he was on, the SS Mercian, was shelled by U-Boat SM U-38. After more than an hour being bombarded, the Mercian escaped. By that time, however, 78 men were wounded, 23 were killed, and 22 troops and eight crew members were missing. The Mercian managed to dock at Oran, Algeria, and those killed were either buried at sea or in the city’s cemetery.
Captain Sir Thomas Carew Trollope was also killed: he was just 24 years of age. It is unclear whether Thomas’ body was brought back to Britain or was buried in Oran, but the family plot includes a memorial to him.
A memorial service was held in the Church of the Holy Ghost, Crowcombe, on Monday 15th November 1915, the villagers commemorating the untimely passing of their favourite “Mr Tom Trollope”.
Captain Sir Thomas Trollope, Baron Kesteven (from findagrave.com)
Herbert Griffith was born in the summer of 1883 in the Somerset village of Crowcombe. One of eight children, his parents were coachman James Griffith and his wife, Selina.
Herbert’s early life is a challenge to piece together. The 1901 census recorded him as living at Weacombe House, West Quantoxhead, where he was employed as a footman.
On 16th December 1909, Herbert married Selina May Davies. Also born in Crowcombe, she was the daughter of a tailor. The couple’s marriage certificate confirms the wedding was conducted at the village church. The couple went on to have two children, Dorothy in 1912, and Geoffrey four years later.
Herbert, at this point, was living in Farnborough, Warwickshire, where he was employed as a valet. (While no document remains to confirm this, it seems possible that this was actually Farnborough Hall, home to generations of the Holbech family.)
When war broke out, Herbert seemed keen to serve his country. He enlisted in the Royal Army Medical Corps, although his full service records no longer remain, so it is not possible to confirm whether he served on home soil or overseas.
The next record relating to Private Griffith is that of his passing. He died in Southampton, Hampshire, on 22nd February 1916, as a result of a combination of bronchitis, asthma and cardiac failure. He was 32 years of age, and would never get to meet his son, who was born two weeks later.
The body of Herbert Griffith was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful surroundings of the Church of the Holy Ghost in his home village, Crowcombe.
William James Stevens was born in the autumn of 1891, and was the fourth of eight children to William and Emily Stevens. William Sr was a carter on a farm in Stogumber, Somerset, and this is where the family would come to be raised.
William Jr followed his father’s trade when he finished his schooling, but stepped up to serve his King and Country when war was declared. Little information remains about his time in the army, but it is clear that he had enlisted in the Royal Field Artillery by the spring of 1916.
The only other records relating to William are those connected to his passing. He was discharged from the army on medical grounds in November 1916, and was suffering from tuberculosis. He appears to have been admitted to a hospital that winter, and died from the lung condition on 16th February 1917. He was 25 years of age.
William James Stevens was laid to rest in the tranquil surroundings of St Mary’s Churchyard in Stogumber.
Basil John Corney was born in Berrynarbor, Devon, in the summer of 1895. The fourth of five children, his parents were William and Elizabeth. William’s work as a farm bailiff, took the family across the area: by 1901, they had moved to Shapwick in Somerset, and the next census record, in 1911, found the family living in Stogumber, where William had taken up management of the White Horse Hotel. Basil, meanwhile, was employed as a butcher’s assistant in the village.
When war came to Europe, Basil stepped up to serve his King and Country. He enlisted on 10th December 1915 and, from this point, preferred to go by his middle name, rather than his first. He asked to be assigned to the Royal Army Service Corps, but by the time he was mobilised in April 1916, he was attached to the Royal Garrison Artillery. Gunner Corney’s service records show that he was 20 years and 8 months old, stood 5ft 10ins (1.77m) tall and weighed 155lbs (70.3kg).
Basil was assigned to the 143rd Siege Battery and, by August 1916, he was sent to France. His time in Europe was to be brief, however, as, on 1st October, he was shot and wounded by shell fire in his right knee while fighting at the Somme. Invalided to Britain for treatment, he eventually seemed to recover, and was transferred to the regiment’s No.2 Depot.
In April 1918, Gunner Corney was admitted to hospital in Edmonton, Middlesex, as his injury was causing some issues again. An examination identified that his kneecap had all but disintegrated, and this led to his eventual dismissal from armed service on medical grounds. He left the Royal Garrison Artillery on 14th November 1918 and was awarded the Silver Badge, noting the reason for him not being in the army.
Basil returned to Somerset, but his time back with his family was to be brief. He passed away at home on 12th December 1918: he was 23 years of age.
The body of Basil John Corney was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Mary’s Church in Stogumber, across the road from, and within sight of, where his family still lived and worked at the White Horse Hotel.
George Bartraham was born in the autumn of 1868 in the Somerset village of Sampford Brett. One of seven children, his parents were George and Sarah Bartraham. George Sr was a farm labourer and, while his son initially followed suit, he sought a life of adventure in the wilder world.
George Jr had found work as a tailor, and was apprenticed to a Charles Taylor, who lived in the village. That bigger and better life was niggling away, however, and, on 11th June 1888, he enlisted in the Royal Engineers. His service records show that he was 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall, with black hair, dark eyes and a fair complexion. Sapper Bartraham was also noted as having a scar on his left foot.
George initially signed up for seven years’ service, with an additional 5 years on reserve status once that was completed. The 1891 census recorded him as being based at Fort Blockhorse in Alverstoke, Hampshire. Early in 1894, he married Mary Bowden, in Portsmouth: the couple would go on to have two children, George and Albert. The following year, Sapper Bartraham opted to remain on full service with the Royal Engineers, partially, it is fair to assume, as the pay would be better to support his family than on reserve.
By 1901, George had been moved to barracks in Pembroke Docks, Wales. Mary and the children remained in Hampshire, living with her parents in Unicorn Street, close to the town’s naval base. Wales was not to be the last stop for George, however, and in October 1902, he was sent to Ceylon, where he remained for the next three years.
During his time in the army, George did not sit on his laurels. He received a certificate as a master tailor, became skilled in submarine mining, and also received a qualification in signalling. He was promoted to Lance Corporal in 1899, and full Corporal four years later.
George returned to Britain in January 1906, and seems to have returned to a base in Hampshire. It was here, on 28th December 1908, that an altercation led to him being convicted of assault. He was charged with ‘unlawfully and maliciously wounding one Albert Edward Bartraham, by stabbing him with a pair of scissors, at Aldershot… and counts for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and common assault’ [Calendar of Prisoners, 1868-1929]
Albert was George’s older brother, and he was convicted to six months’ hard labour for the assault. Corporal Bartraham returned to base on 6th June 1909, and was discharged a few days later, having completed 21 years’ service in the Royal Engineers.
The next census record, taken in 1911, found a family divided by work or circumstance. Mary and the children remained firmly ensconced in Portsmouth with her parents, while George was living in Aldershot, where he was employed as a tailor. His employer is noted as being the Government, so it seems likely that he was still connected to the army camp there.
When war came to Europe, George was called upon to play his part once more. Promoted to the rank of Serjeant, he was attached to the 136th Fortress Company of the Royal Engineers. He arrived in Egypt in June 1915, although it is unclear how long he remained overseas.
By the start of 1916, Serjeant Bartraham was back in Britain, primarily because of ill health. He had come down with nephritis, or inflamed kidneys. Admitted to hospital in South London, he died from the condition on 14th January 1916, at the age of 47 years old.
Brought back to Somerset, George Bartraham was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St George’s Church in the village of his birth, Sampford Brett.
This was a time of tragedy for the Bartraham family.
George’s father, George, had died around the same time as his son, and was buried near him.
George and Mary’s son, George, had enlisted in the Hampshire Regiment when war was declared and, by the summer of 1916, was based in Iraq. He died on 23rd September 1916, through causes unclear, and was laid to rest in Baghdad War Cemetery.
Three generations of Bartrahams, all called George, had passed away within nine months.
In the summer of 1917, Sarah Bartraham also passed away. She was laid to rest with her husband and son in St George’s Churchyard.
Harold George Shopland was born in the spring of 1893, the youngest of nine children to George and Mary Shopland. George was a joiner and platelayer for Great Western Railways: he died when Harold was just seven years old, which left Mary to raise the family alone. She did this with the support of the community and Harold’s older siblings.
By the time of the 1911 census, Harold, who was now 17 years of age, was the only one of her children to still be living at home: he was a stone mason’s carter, while Mary was getting by as the housekeeper for the local Wesleyan chapel.
When war broke out, Harold stepped up to play his part. Possibly keen to follow in his oldest brother’s footsteps – Private Walter Shopland had died at Bloemfontein in 1901 – he enlisted on 23rd November 1914. Harold joined the Royal Garrison Artillery as a Private, his service records confirming that he was 5ft 10ins (1.77m) tall, and weighed 165lbs (74.8kg).
Harold spent more than two years on home soil, before being sent to France in July 1917, with a promotion to Serjeant. He remained overseas, but fell ill with tuberculosis that winter, and was medically repatriated the following January. He was admitted to the Queen Mary’s Military Hospital in Whalley, Lancashire, and remained there for the next couple of months.
Harold’s condition meant that he was no longer fit for military duty, and was dismissed from service on 8th March 1918. He remained in hospital, however and his condition worsened. He passed away on 28th March 1918, at the age of 24 years old.
Mary brought Harold George Shopland’s body back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful setting of St Andrew’s Churchyard in Old Cleeve, not far from his father’s grave.
William Eric Tyler was born in the spring of 1888 in Carhampton, Somerset, the older of two children to farmers William and Nina Tyler. The details of William Jr’s early life are a bit sketchy: he was sent to a private school in Minehead, where he boarded for a while.
William Sr died in 1908, and Nina re-married, to farmer George Risden a couple of years later. Of William Jr there is no trace in the 1911 census, and the next record for him relates to his military service. He enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry when war broke out, but transferred to the Machine Gun Corps in May 1918, receiving a commission to Second Lieutenant when he did so.
Again, details of Second Lieutenant Tyler’s time in the army are scarce. The only other document relating to him is that of his passing. He died, on 28th October 1918 at Belton Park Military Hospital near Grantham, Lincolnshire. He was 30 years of age.
Belton Park was primarily a facility to treat wounded soldiers returning from the Front Line, but it was also treated Machine Gun Corps personnel connected to the neighbouring camp. It is not possible, therefore, to identify the cause of his death.
William Eric Tyler’s body was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the graveyard of St John the Baptist Church in his home village, Carhampton. Buried alongside his father, he was reunited with his mother, when Nina died in 1946.
Death and Service 