Category Archives: Wiltshire

Captain, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Gibraltar, Great War, history, illness, India, Kent, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Colonel, Major, Malta, photography, South Africa, story, war, Wiltshire

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Bingham Day

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Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Bingham-Day

Thomas Hulkes Bingham Day was born on 2nd January 1855 in Frindsbury, Kent. The youngest of four children, his parents were Thomas and Emma Day. Thomas Sr was a banker and a justice of the peace. He died when his youngest was just a child, and Emma was left to raise the family, albeit with the help of five servants.

Thomas sought out a life in the military. After volunteering in the local militia, for a number of years, he gained a commission in the Dorsetshire Regiment. He took on the role of Lieutenant on 29th November 1876.

Over the next two decades, Thomas served around the world, spending time in Malta, Gibraltar, and the East Indies. He was also promoted through the ranks, rising to Captain in 1883 and Major in 1893.

On 25th March 1884, while serving in India, Thomas married Katharine Watts. The couple had a daughter, Winifred, who was born in July 1885, and, eventually they settled in Wiltshire as their base in Britain.

Major Bingham Day served in South Africa during the Boer War, taking part “in the operations at Parde Kraal, and in the operations at Poplar Grove… Vet River, Zand River, Johannesberg and Pretoria. He had the Queen’s and the King’s medals with five bars.” [Lincoln Leader and County Advertiser – Saturday 28 April 1917]

Thomas retired in 1903, and his trail goes cold until the time of the 1911 census. He and Katherine were on holiday when it was taken, and they were listed as boarding at the Beach Lodge on Roseville Street in St Helier, Jersey.

When war broke out, Thomas stepped up to play his part once more. He was put in charge of the 4th (Reserve) Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment, which was based at Sutton Veny in Wiltshire. It seems that he lived off site, as he and Katherine moved into a house in nearby Warminster.

A military funeral took place… on Monday, when Lieutenant-Colonel TH Bingham-Day, in command of a regiment at Sutton Veny, was laid to rest in the churchyard. The deceased officer died suddenly while at mess, as the result of a seizure.

[Devizes and Wilts Advertiser: Thursday 19th April 1917]

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Hulkes Bingham Day was 62 years of age when he passed away on 11th April 1917. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Aldhelm’s Church in Bishopstrow, Wiltshire, not far from the base at which he had so dutifully served.

Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Edwin Beattie

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Private Edwin Beattie

Edwin Beattie was born on 14th March 1894, in the town of Coomera, Queensland, Australia. He was the youngest of three children to John and Mary Beattie.

There is little information available about Edwin’s early life, but when he completed his schooling, he took up farm work. When war broke out, he was keen to play his part, and enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 28th March 1916.

Private Beattie’s service records show that he was 5ft 9.5ins (1.65m) tall, and weighed 136lbs (61.7kg). A Methodist, he was recorded as having brown hair, blue eyes and a medium complexion. He also had a birthmark on the small of his back, and scars on both knees.

Edwin was assigned to the 44th Battalion of the Australian Infantry. His After training, his unit boarded the SS Seang Choon in Brisbane, and set off on the ten month voyage to Britain, arriving in Devonport, Devon, on the 9th December 1916.

During the voyage, Private Beattie had fallen ill, and, on disembarking, he was taken to the local hospital for treatment. By 23rd December, he was moved to the Military Hospital connected to the ANZAC camp in Codford, Wiltshire. His condition – pneumonia – worsened over the coming days, and Edwin would eventually succumb. As a new year began, he breathed his last, passing away on 1st January 1917, at the age of just 22 years of age.

Thousand of miles from home, Edwin Beattie was laid to rest in the newly extended graveyard of St Mary’s Church, Codford.

Private Edwin Beattie
(from findagrave.com)
Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, photography, Private, story, Tipperary, war, Wiltshire

Private Lawrence Kinane

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Private Lawrence Kinane

Lawrence Kinane was born in Tipperary, Ireland, in 1896. One of eight children, his parents were Daniel and Catherine Kinane. Daniel was a farmer and, when Catherine died when Lawrence was just 10 years old, he was left to raise the support the family on his own.

At this point, the family’s trail goes cold, and it later picked up in an unexpected way. Daniel and some of the children seem to have emigrated to the United States, and he died in Brooklyn in March 1914. Lawrence, meanwhile, seems to have gone further, seeking a new life in Australia. A cousin, Mary Mulcahey, was living with her husband in Warwick, Queensland, and, by the time war broke out, he had moved to Brisbane.

Lawrence was working as a labourer when, on 10th June 1916, he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force. His service papers show that he was 5ft 11ins (1.8m) tall and weighed 147lbs (66.7kg). A Roman Catholic, he had dark brown hair, grey eyes and a medium complexion. Under Distinctive Marks, he was recorded as having a large patch of scars on his left side, about 7ins (18cm) above his buttock.

Private Kinane’s unit – the 49th Battalion of the Australian Infantry – set sail from Brisbane on the 19th September 1916. His ship – the SS Seang Choon – would take ten weeks to reach its destination – Devonport, Devon, and Lawrence finally arrived at the ANZAC base in Codford, Wiltshire in mid-December.

The lengthy sea voyage had taken its toll on a lot of the soldiers being transported, and Private Kinane was not to be immune. Within weeks of arriving, he came down with pneumonia, and was admitted to the No. 3 New Zealand General Hospital in nearby Sutton Veny on 31st December. Lawrence’s condition worsened, and he finally succumbed to it on 6th January 1917. He was just 20 years of age.

Thousands of miles from Australia, and with no family close by, the body of Lawrence Kinane was instead laid to rest in the graveyard of St Mary’s Church in Codford, not far from the base that had been his home for just a few short weeks.

Private Lawrence Kinane
(from findagrave.com)
Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Driver, Great War, history, illness, photography, story, war, Wiltshire

Driver David McGregor

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Driver David McGregor

David Edward McGregor was born in Bega, New South Wales, Australia, in the summer of 1880. One of fourteen children, his parents were John and Isabella McGregor.

There is little information about David’s early life, but when he completed his schooling, he found work in a dairy, eventually becoming employed as a cheesemaker.

When war broke out, David stepped up to serve his King and Empire, enlisting in the Australian Imperial Force as a Driver on 7th July 1916. His service records show that he was 5ft 10.5ins (1.79m) tall and weighed in at 168lbs (76.2kg). A Presbyterian, he was noted as having black hair, brown eyes and a medium complexion.

Driver McGregor’s unit – the 15th Battalion of the Australian Infantry – set sail from Brisbane on the SS Boonah on 21st October 1916. Their journey would take ten weeks, arriving in Devonport, Devon, on 10th January 1917. From here David was marched in to the ANZAC camp at Codford, Wiltshire.

The lengthy sea voyage had taken its toll on a lot of the troops, and David was not to be immune. He came down with pneumonia and, after initially being treated in the camp hospital, he was admitted to the military hospital in Codford in a moribund condition. Driver Brooks’ move was to prove too little, too late, and he passed away on 23rd January 1917, just a day after being admitted. He was 36 years of age.

David Edward McGregor was laid to rest in the ANZAC extension to St Mary’s Churchyard in Codford, Wiltshire, not far from the base he had so briefly called home.

Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Harold Brooks

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Private Harold Brooks

Harold Vincent Brooks was born in Ipswich, Queensland, Australia, in the spring of 1898. One of ten children, his parents were William and Mary Brooks.

Little information is available about Harold’s early life, but when he completed his schooling, he found work as a labourer. When war broke out, he was initially turned down for military service because of poor eyesight, but as the conflict rolled on, he tried to enlist again and was accepted into the Australian Imperial Force.

Private Brooks’ service records show that he was 5ft 4.5ins (1.63m) tall, and weighed 136lbs (61.7kg). A Roman Catholic, he had brown hair, hazel eyes and a medium complexion.

Assigned to the 47th Battalion of the Australian Infantry, Harold left his home country from Brisbane on the 27th October 1916. The ship his unit was sailing on – the Marathon – took just over ten weeks to reach Britain, eventually docking in Devonport, Devon. From there Private Brooks was marched to the ANZAC camp in Codford, Wiltshire.

Harold’s time in Britain was not to be a lengthy one. He contracted pneumonia, and was admitted to the nearby Sutton Veny Military Hospital on 24th January. Private Brooks’ condition worsened, and he passed away on 5th February 1917. He was just 19 years of age.

Thousands of miles from home, the body of Harold Vincent Brooks was buried in the newly extended St Mary’s Churchyard, Codford.

Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Alfred Parkinson

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Private Alfred Parkinson

Alfred Henry Parkinson was born in Reedy Creek, South Australia, on 20th October 1880. One of nine children, his parents were William and Isabella Parkinson.

There is little concrete information about Alfred’s early life, but when he finished his schooling he found work in the mines. When war broke out, however, he stepped up to play his part, joining the Australian Imperial Force on 2nd November 1916.

Private Parkinson’s service records show that he was 5ft 9ins (1.65m) tall, and weighed in at 10st 4lbs (65.3kg). He was noted as having brown hair brown eyes and a fair complexion. After a month’s training, he left Australia on board the SS Berrima, bound for Europe.

Alfred’s unit – the 16th Battalion of the Australian Infantry – arrived in Devonport, Devon, on 16th February 1917. Within a matter of days he arrived at the ANZAC camp at Sutton Veny, Wiltshire.

Illness amongst the Australian troops was rife by the time they arrived in Britain, and Private Parkinson was not to be immune. He was admitted to the Military Hospital connected to the camp on 20th March, suffering from bronchial pneumonia. The condition worsened, and he died just six days later. Alfred was 36 years of age.

Thousands of miles from home, the body of Alfred Henry Parkinson was laid to rest in the newly extended graveyard of St Mary’s Church, Codford, not far form the base in which he had breathed his last.

Berkshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Drummer, Great War, history, Lincolnshire, photography, Sherwood Foresters, story, unknown, war, Wiltshire

Drummer Malcolm Vacher

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Drummer Malcolm Vacher

Born at the start of 1902, Malcolm Edward James Vacher was the younger of two children to James and Alice Vacher. James was a domestic coachman and both he and Alice were born in Milton Abbas, Dorset. By the time Malcolm was born, the family had relocated to the village of Mortimer, Berkshire.

Alice died when her youngest was just five, and James moved the family to the village of Kelstern in Lincolnshire, possibly for work. Sadly, James passed away in 1916, leaving Malcolm and his older sister, Gladys, as orphans.

By this point war was raging across Europe, and it seems that Malcolm looked to the army as a new family. He enlisted in the Sherwood Foresters (Notts and Derby Regiment), although his service papers have been lost to time.

It is unclear how or where Drummer Vacher served. He survived the war, however, and by the autumn of 1919, found himself on furlough in Wiltshire. His death certificate records that died on 26th October, from a combination of appendicitis and heart failure. Just 17 years of age, his sister was by his side when he passed.

Malcolm Edward James Vacher was laid to rest in St John’s Churchyard, Warminster. The Grave Registration Form notes that the headstone was paid for by his uncle.

By this point, Gladys had lost her parents and her brother. Twenty-one years of age when her sibling died, she nonetheless found the resilience to carry on.

The 1921 census recorded Gladys living at 1 Corporation Street, Kidderminster. Boarding with Jane Smith, she was working as garage assistant for the motorcycle department of the Castle Motor Co Ltd on Vicar Street.

In the spring of 1925, Gladys married radio engineer and dealer George Whitford. By the time of the 1939 Register, the couple were living at 81 New Road, Kidderminster. Gladys was helping her husband with the business, and was recorded as being a radio dealer and travel agent.

Gladys Whitford, née Vacher, passed away in the spring of 1960. An obituary outlined the life she had forged for herself after losing her brother:

Mrs Gladys Mary Whitford, who has died at her home in New Road, Kidderminster, aged 63, had conducted one of the oldest travel agencies in the Midlands for 30 years. The firm, founded by her husband’s grandfather in 1856, arranged emigration for many families seeking a new life in the Commonwealth.

Mrs Whitford joined the Women’s Legion in 1916 and was one of the first motor-cycle despatch riders attached to the Royal Army Service Corps. She was a member of the Kidderminster Chamber of Commerce and of the committee of the Kidderminster Retail Traders’ Association. She is survived by her husband, Mr George Whitford, a radio and television dealer.

[Birmingham Daily Post – Tuesday 12 January 1960]

My thanks go to Peter Calver and the members of the Lost Cousins website for their help in filling in details of Gladys’ life after the loss of her family.

Able Seaman, Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Hampshire, history, killed in action, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, story, war, Wiltshire

Able Seaman John Butler

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Able Seaman John Butler

John Stuart Butler was born on 8th May 1896 in Warminster, Wiltshire. The middle of three children, he was one of three boys to John and Harriet Butler. John Sr was a coachman, and the family lived at 3 St John’s Terrace on the eastern side of the town.

When John Jr – who was known as Jack to avoid any confusion with his father – finished his schooling, he found work as an office boy. He sought a life of adventure, however, and looked to the Royal Navy.

Jack enlisted on 3rd June 1912 and, being underage, he was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class. Initially sent to HMS Impregnable, the training base in Devonport, Devon, within three months he had been promoted to Boy 1st Class.

Over the next year-and-a-half, Jack served on three separate ships. After leaving Impregnable, he was assigned to armoured cruiser HMS Royal Arthur. From there he moved to the battlecruiser HMS New Zealand and the battleship HMS Dreadnought. In between assignments Boy Butler’s returned to what became his shore base, HMS Victory, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth, Hampshire.

While assigned to Dreadnought, Jack came of age. He was formally enlisted in the Royal Navy, his service papers confirming that he was 5ft 6.5ins (1.69m) tall, with brown hair, grey-blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He was also noted as having a scar on his right side.

In May 1915, Jack was promoted again, this time to Able Seaman. His annual reviews noted his character was very good, but that his ability was satisfactory. He would remain on HMS Dreadnought for nearly three years, before being reassigned to HMS Mohawk, a destroyer that was attached to the Dover Patrol, protecting the English Channel against German incursions, in July 1916.

On the night of the 26th October 1916 a number of enemy torpedo boats carried out a raid into the Channel. When one of the German vessels sank HMS Flirt, Mohawk was one of six ships sent to retaliate. As she left Dover harbour, she was hit by a barrage of shells. Her steering jammed, but she remained floating. The German torpedo boats escaped, but four of the Mohawk’s crew – including Able Seaman Butler – were killed. He was just 20 years of age.

The body of John Stuart “Jack” Butler was taken back to Wiltshire for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St John’s Church, on the same road as where his grieving parents were still living.

Australia, Australian Pioneers, Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire, Yorkshire

Private Osborne Robinson

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Private Osborne Robinson

Osborne Robinson was born in the autumn of 1891. The middle of three children, he was the only son to Edward and Edith Robinson. Edward was a merchant of foreign products from West Hartlepool, County Durham, and this is where the family were raised.

Edward died in 1905, and this provided a marked change for the Robinsons. Edith moved the family to Richmond, Yorkshire, which is where her widowed mother still lived. The 1911 census recorded a divided family. Osborne’s older sister, Mary, was employed as a housekeeper for a widowed farmer in Thornton Watless, south of Richmond. His younger sister, Elsie, was living with her maternal grandmother and aunt in Richmond.

Edith and Osborne, meanwhile, were living at Swale Farm, Ellerton Abbey, to the west of Richmond. Edith recorded herself as living on private means, while her son was employed as a grazing farmer, presumably connected to the farm they were living on.

Osborne wanted to expand his horizons and, at the beginning of 1914, took the decision to seek a new life overseas. On 30th January, he boarded the SS Norman, bound for Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Within a matter of months, war had broken out, and Osborne felt he needed to play his part for King and Empire.

On 25th July 1915, while working near Cootamundra, New South Wales, Osborne enlisted, joining the Australian Imperial Force as a Private. His service papers show that at 23 years of age, he was 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall and weighed 140lbs (63.5kg). He had dark brown hair, blue eyes and a dark complexion, presumably from working outside.

Private Robinson left Australia on 5th October 1915, travelling on board HMAT A32 Themistocles for his journey to Europe. His unit – the 1st Australian Pioneer Battalion – spent time in Egypt, before moving on to Marseilles, France, in April 1916. By the autumn Osborne was on the Western Front, and, on 3rd September, during the Battle of Pozières, he was wounded in his left hand.

Initially treated at the 17th Casualty Clearing Station, Private Robinson was stoon transferred to the 1st Southern General Hospital in Birmingham. His injury took close to six weeks to heal, and he returned to an ANZAC base in Wareham, Dorset, towards the end of October.

Osborne spent a good few months on home soil, eventually re-joining his unit in France on 18th October 1917. Over the next year, he served on the Western Front, with two periods of leave – a week in Paris in March 1918 and a fortnight in the UK the following October. The Armistice declared, Private Robinson’s unit returned to its base near Warminster, Wiltshire, in January 1919.

Osborne had fallen ill with influenza by this point and his condition was to worsen to pneumonia. He died at a private address in Warminster on 8th February 1919: he was 28 years of age.

The body of Osborne Robinson was laid to rest in St John’s Churchyard, Warminster. It is unclear why Edith chose not to bring her son home, but the 1921 census recorded her, Mary and Elsie (neither of whom were married) living in the village of Reeth, on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales. All three were noted as being employed with home duties.

Australia, Australian Field Artillery, Bombardier, Commonwealth War Graves, Driver, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, Lance Serjeant, Middlesex, photography, Private, Sergeant, story, war, Wiltshire

Serjeant Richard Ford

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Serjeant Richard Ford

Richard Oscar Ford was born in Williamstown, Australia, in July 1891. The oldest of four children – and the only son – his parents were Anthony and Mary Ford. Anthony was a soldier, but Richard chose a different route and took work as a labourer when he completed his schooling.

There is little information available about Richard’s early life, but when war broke out, he stepped up to play his part. He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 9th November 1914.

By this point he was working as a bushman, and his service papers reveal something of the man he had become. Standing 5ft 7ins (1.7m) tall, he weighed 140lbs (63.5kg), Private Ford had auburn hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Assigned to the Light Horse Regiment, Richard left Australia for Europe on in March 1915. His unit arrived on the Gallipoli Peninsula on 15th July, and he would remain there for the next five months.

In December 1915, Richard came down with a bout of influenza, and was medically evacuated to the island of Mudros, then on to Alexandria, Egypt. In January 1916, he was admitted to hospital again, this time suffering from gonorrhoea and, after treatment, he re-joined his unit on 2nd February.

Private Ford’s unit spent that spring training in Egypt, but on 29th May, they set sail for the Western Front. Within a week they had disembarked in the French port of Marseilles and headed north to Etaples.

The next couple of years would prove a little disjointed. Richard switched units in August 1916, and given the rank of Gunner, but within two months his role had changed to Driver. His service records suggest that he managed to avoid injury during the fighting he was involved in, but that did not mean that he avoided hospital completely.

In January 1917 Driver Ford was admitted to the 51st General Hospital with a heart murmur, returning to his unit on 16th March. He had a second spell in hospital in February 1918, having come down with laryngitis.

In July 1918, having spent some time at the 4th Army Corporal School, Richard was reassigned to the 3rd Australian Field Artillery. This move seemed to have been the focus he needed. Initially promoted to Bombardier, within a month he rose to Lance Corporal, and by December 1918 he was a full Sergeant.

After the Armistice was signed, Richard was given three weeks’ leave, which he spent in Britain. By January 1919, however, his health was becoming an issue again, and he was admitted to the military hospital in Fovant, Wiltshire, suffering from influenza. The condition worsened, and Sergeant Ford passed away from bronchopneumonia on 4th February 1919. He was 27 years of age.

Richard Oscar Ford was laid to rest in Highgate Cemetery, Middlesex. While there seems to be no direct connection between the location and the man, his father, Anthony, had been born in Hackney, so it can be assumed that there was a family link to the area.