Joseph William Vickery was born in the spring of 1865 in the Somerset village of Isle Abbots. He was the older of two children to farm carter James Vickery and his wife Sarah. James died when Joseph was around six years old, and Sarah remarried, going on to have five children with her new husband, John Kitch.
The new family moved to North Curry, where Joseph found work as a farm labourer when he finished school. The years passed and, on 15th September 1894, Joseph married Elizabeth Ann Saturday, a labourer’s daughter from Chard. The couple settled in the town, and went on to have five children.
By the time war broke out in 1914, Joseph was approaching 50 years old. He still felt a duty to play his part, however, and enlisted towards the end of the following year. Little information survives of Joseph’s military career, but he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry and was assigned to the 1/5th Battalion.
Sent to Salisbury Plain for training, Private Vickery was billeted at Tidworth, Wiltshire. While there, he contracted bronchitis and was admitted to hospital. Sadly, the lung condition was to prove too much for his body to bear, and he passed away on 12th December 1915, at the age of 50 years old.
Joseph William Vickery was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in Chard Cemetery.
Joseph and Elizabeth’s son Victor also played his part in the conflict.
Born in 1900, he was too young to enlist at the start of the war, but, by April 1918, he had joined the Scots Guards as a Private. There is no evidence of him serving overseas, and his service seems to have passed uneventfully. He was demobbed in February 1919, and returned to Somerset to continue his work as a furnaceman.
Thomas Harris – known as Tom – was born on 13th October 1876, the only son of Edmund and Mary Harris. Edmund was an agricultural labourer from the Somerset village of Seavington St Mary, and this is where Tom was born and raised.
Mary had married Edmund in the spring of 1876, but had been married before; she was widowed when her previous husband, Alfred Vickery, died ten years before. They had had seven children of their own, half-siblings to Tom.
Edmund died in the Wells Lunatic Asylum when Tom was only six years old. When he left school, he found work as a farm labourer, but sought bigger and better things, even though he was now the only one of Mary’s children still living at home.
Tom enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry in January 1893, and soon found himself overseas. During his sixteen years’ service, he spent seven years in India and six months fighting in the Second Boer War. Corporal Harris seems to have had a sickly time of it, and while in India, was admitted to hospital a number of times for fever, ague and diarrhoea, as well as a bout of conjunctivitis.
When Tom’s contract came to an end in 1909, he returned to Britain, setting up home in Newport, South Wales, where he found work as a sheet weigher at the local steel works.
Mary died of senile decay and cardiac failure in May 1910. She was 74 years old, and sadly passed away in the Chard Workhouse, in similar circumstances to her late husband.
In October 1913, Tom married Ada Long in Chard. She was the daughter of a shopkeeper, and the couple set up home in South Wales, where Tom was still working.
War, by now, was closing in on Europe, and Tom wanted to use his previous experience to serve his country once again. He enlisted on 20th August 1914 in Newport, joining the Devonshire Regiment as a Private, although he was quickly promoted first to Corporal and then to Serjeant. His service records show that he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall, had blue eyes, brown hair and a tattoo of a Spanish girl on his right forearm.
After a year on the Home Front, Serjeant Harris was sent to Egypt in September 1915. On the way out, he contracted a severe cold, which left him deaf in his left ear. He was also suffering from varicose veins, which left him in pain in his right leg. He was treated for both conditions, and put on light duties for three months.
In November 1916, Serjeant Harris was supporting a food convoy when it came under attack. Buried in sand and wounded, he was laid up in a hole for two days and nights before help came. He was initially treated for shell shock in the camp hospital, but was eventually evacuated to Britain for treatment.
The incident had put too much of a strain on Tom, and he was medically discharged from the army in April 1917. While his medical report confirmed that the general paralysis he was suffering from was a result of the attack, it also noted on six separate occasions that he had previously suffered from syphilis, suggesting this may also have been a contributing factor to his mental state.
Tom was discharged initially to an asylum in South Wales, before returning home to Ada. The couple were soon expecting a child, and a boy, Sidney, was born in February 1918. By that summer, however, Tom’s condition had worsened enough for him to be admitted back to the Whitchurch Military Hospital in Cardiff.
It was here that Tom passed away, dying from a combination of chronic phlebitis – an extension of the varicose veins he had previously complained of – and general paralysis on 8th August 1918. He was, by this point, 41 years of age.
Tom Harris was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest – finally at peace – in Chard Cemetery.
Arthur Wellman was born in the spring of 1891 and was one of nine children. His parents – road builder Thomas and collar machinist Eliza – were both born in Somerset, and it was in Chard that they married and raised their family.
Arthur and his siblings found work in the local lace industry – the 1911 census recorded him living with his family in Chard, working as a lace hand, minding the machinery in the mill.
In the summer of 1915, Arthur married Daisy Jane Slade, the daughter of an agricultural labourer from North Curry, Somerset. They went on to have a daughter, Beryl, who was born in May 1916.
By May 1916, Arthur had seen two of his brothers serve and die in the war: Private Bert Wellman had been killed serving with the Somerset Light Infantry in Mesopotamia, while Gunner William Wellman died from tuberculosis having served with the Royal Field Artillery. Whether through a sense of duty or a sense of guilt, he put his name forward to play his part. Full details are not available, but he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry that autumn.
Private Wellman was assigned to the 4th (Reserve) Battalion, and was sent for training. Sadly, while in barracks, he contracted cerebrospinal meningitis; he died in hospital on 20th March 1917, at the age of just 25 years old.
Arthur Wellman’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in Chard Cemetery, not far from his brother, William.
Herbert George Matthews was born in the autumn of 1886 in the Somerset village of Chillington. He was the oldest of two children to George and Elizabeth (known as Rosa) Matthews, and was baptised in the village church on Christmas Day that year.
George was a farm labourer, and this is work into which Herbert also followed. Rosa passed away in December 1910, leaving George a widow after 26 years of marriage.
War came to Europe in 1914, and Herbert signed up to play his part for King and Country. Full details of his service are not available, but he initially enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry. He soon transferred across to the Royal Warwickshire Regiment (although the date of this is unclear) and was assigned to the 2nd/6th Battalion.
Private Matthews’ troop spent the war on the Western Front, and was involved at Fromelles, Ancre, Ypres and Cambrai. In the spring of 1918, he was caught up in the Battle of St Quentin – part of that year’s battles on the Somme. He was wounded, and medically evacuated to England, where he was admitted to the University War Hospital in Southampton.
Sadly, Private Matthews’ wounds proved too severe; he passed away from his injuries on 5th April 1918, at the age of 31 years old.
Herbert George Matthews was laid to rest in Chillington Cemetery, not far from where his mother was buried, and within walking distance of where his father still lived.
Henry James Hounsell was born in the spring of 1891, one of ten children to George and Emma Hounsell. George was a farm labourer and carter, and the family were raised in Tatworth, on the outskirts of Chard, Somerset.
Henry may have followed his father in farm work, but he wanted bigger and better things from life. The 1911 census recorded him as boarding with the Burt family in Corscombe, Dorset, where he was working as a baker’s van man.
Henry’s two older brothers, George and Alfred, died in 1913 and 1914 respectively; this left him as the oldest male of the siblings. In the summer of 1915, he married Lydia Lentell, the daughter of a shirt starcher and collar maker from East Coker, Somerset.
By this point, however, war was raging across Europe, and Henry was called upon to play his part. Full details of his service are lost to time, but it is clear that he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry as a Private in the 4th (Reserve) Battalion. By the time he joined up – at some point after August 1916 – his troop had already been sent out to Mesopotamia; it is unclear whether Henry also went overseas, but it appears unlikely.
The only other documents relating to Private Hounsell are those concerning his passing. His pension record confirms that he died on 3rd February 1917, having been suffering from a tumour in the back of his head, which had been aggravated by his military service. He was just 25 years old.
Henry James Hounsell was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in Tatworth Cemetery in Chard.
Lydia and Henry had had no children; she remained a widow for a number of years, before marrying for a second time in the autumn of 1939. Tragically, this was also destined to be a short-lived marriage – her new husband, Frederic Hodge, died just three years later.
William Brewer House was born in Chard, Somerset, in the spring of 1888, one of eleven children to William and Minna House. William Sr was a farm labourer, and it was dairy work that William went into when he left school.
Little of William Jr’s life is documented. When war broke out, he stepped forward to play his part, enlisting in the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry at some point after October 1915. This particular troop was a territorial force, based primarily in Devon, and it is unlikely that Private House saw service overseas.
Sadly, the only other detail about his life is that relating to his passing. He was noted as having died on 8th April 1916 in the Military Hospital in Plymouth, although no cause is evident. He was just 28 years of age.
William Brewer House was brought back to Somerset for burial. He lies at rest in the Tatworth Cemetery near his home town of Chard.
William’s younger brother Frederick (known as Gordon) House also fought with the Somerset Light Infantry. He was killed in Mesopotamia in the spring of 1917.
William Thomas Woodham was born at the end of 1877 in Peasedown St John, Somerset. One of four children, his parents were coal miner and pit worker William Thomas and his wife, Sarah. The young family quickly moved from Peasedown to nearby Radstock to set up home.
William Jr did not immediately follow his father to the mine: instead, when he left school, he found work as a cowherd for a local farm. By the time of the 1911 census, however, he was recorded as being a colliery stoker.
The following year, William married Matilda Gulliford. She was a local coal miner’s daughter: the couple went on to have three children, Gwendoline, Stanley and Irene.
In his spare time, William volunteered for the Somerset Light Infantry and, when war broke out, he was formally placed on reserve – mining was one of the reserved occupations. However, in June 1915, he transferred to the Royal Engineers, and was sent to the Military Barracks at Taunton for training.
Sapper Woodham was due to be sent to France in the spring of 1916, but started feeling unwell. He was admitted to the Taunton Military Hospital, suffering from pneumonia on 20th February, but his condition worsened. He passed away at the hospital on 1st March 1916, aged 38 years old.
William Thomas Woodham’s body was brought back to Radstock; he was laid to rest in the graveyard of the town’s St Nicholas’ Church.
Sapper William Woodham (from britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)
Frederick Charles Flint was born in the summer of 1872 in Bath, Somerset. He was the oldest of seven children to tailor Frederick Flint and his wife, Mary Ann.
Tailoring, however, was not a career that Frederick Jr wanted to follow and, in November 1890, he enlisted in the 7th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry. Over his twelve years’ service, he was posted to India and South Africa, gaining clasps for the Punjab Frontier 1897-1898, Relief of Ladysmith, Tugela Heights, Orange Free State, Cape Colony, Transvaal, South Africa 1901 and 1902 and the King’s South Africa Medal.
He returned to England in 1902, when he found employment as a postman back in Bath. He met Florence Novena Fishlock and the couple married at St Michael’s Church in Bath on 5th February 1905, before moving to nearby Radstock.
Frederick remained with the Post Office until the outbreak of war, when he again enlisted for duty, re-joining the Somerset Light Infantry. While he did not serve overseas, Serjeant Flint took on a training and mentoring role on Salisbury Plain. Suffering from tuberculosis, he was formally discharged from the army on medical ground in August 1915, and returned home.
The next few years proved challenging for Frederick, as his illness left him incapacitated. He was nursed through by Florence, but eventually his body could take no more. He succumbed to the condition on 28th March 1918, at the age of 45 years old.
Frederick Charles Flint was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Nicholas’ Church in Radstock. Florence passed away ten years after her husband; she was laid to rest in the same plot in the summer of 1928.
Walter Bailey was born on 6th October 1882 in Midsomer Norton, Somerset. He was one of eight children to Wiltshire-born labourer John Bailey and his wife, Emma, who came from the town in which they settled.
When he left school, Walter followed his siblings into the local boot industry and, by the time of the 1901 census, was working as a shoemaker. He was a sporty young man, and played in the local Welton Rovers Football Club.
When war came to Europe, Walter was eager to play his part. He enlisted in the 1/4th Somerset Light Infantry and, on 9th October 1914, was shipped to India. His battalion later moved to Mesopotamia where, on 8th March 1916, he was wounded in the foot in fighting. (Walter’s nephew, Corporal Tom Bailey was in the same regiment and, in the same fighting, he was killed. He is commemorated on the memorial in Basra, Iraq.)
Walter was invalided to India, but returned to his regiment when he recovered. He continued fighting, and was eventually promoted to Company Sergeant Major, while being mentioned in dispatches in 1918.
While waiting to return to England when the war ended, Walter fell ill. He was transported back to Southampton on a hospital ship, and from there was taken to a hospital in Glasgow. Sadly, the dysentery and anaemia he was suffering from were to get the better of him: Company Sergeant Major Bailey passed away on 27th July 1919, at the age of just 36 years old.
Walter Bailey’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He lies at rest in the family plot in the cemetery of St John the Baptist Church in his home town, Midsomer Norton.
Company Sergeant Major Walter Bailey (from britishnewspaperarchive.com)
Thomas George Taylor was born in the summer of 1886, and was the youngest of five children to George and Sarah Taylor. George was a gamekeeper in Clutton, Somerset, and he and Sarah raised their family in Rudges Cottage opposite the village church.
Thomas’ older brother John found a variety of jobs, from boot finisher to coal miner, but Thomas followed in his father’s footsteps, and, by the 1911 census, was recorded as a butcher’s apprentice.
Storm clouds were brewing across Europe by this point and, when war broke out, Thomas was one of the first to enlist. Sadly, there is little information on his military service, but it is clear that he joined the 7th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry and was quickly promoted from Private to Lance Corporal.
The only other documentary evidence for Thomas is his entry in the Army Register of Personal Effects. This confirms that he was admitted to the Isolation Hospital in Aldershot, suffering from meningitis. Lance Corporal Taylor passed away from the condition on 16th April 1915, aged just 29 years old.
Brought back to Somerset for burial, Thomas George Taylor was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Augustine’s Church, across the road from his family home in Clutton.
Death and Service 