Tag Archives: 1917

Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Gwynedd, history, illness, Lancashire, photography, Private, story, Wales, war

Private Hugh Jones

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Private Hugh Jones

Hugh Henry Jones was born in around 1876 in the Welsh village of Llanberis, Gwynedd. He was one of seven children to quarryman John Jones and his wife Mary.

Slate was the big industry in Snowdonia, and Hugh and his brothers all followed his father into the quarries. Labour was plentiful and wages would not have been high, so when the opportunity arose for employment overseas, he seems to have taken it.

Exact details are sketchy, but Hugh emigrated to Australia at some point in the early 1900s. He settled in the city of Goulburn, New South Wales and the experience he had built up back home stood him good stead, as he continued working as a quarryman.

When war broke out in Europe, those in the British colonies were called upon to play their part, and Hugh was among those to serve King and Country. He enlisted on 29th December 1915, joining the 55th Battalion of the Australian Infantry.

Private Jones’ service records show that he was 40 years and six months old, stood 5ft 4ins (1.63m) tall and weighed 130lbs (59kg). He had a dark complexion, blue eyes and black hair. He also appears to have had a denture in his lower jaw.

After initial training, Private Jones set off for Europe at the end of September 1916, arriving in Plymouth six weeks later. Within a matter of weeks he was on the move again, sailing for France, and arriving at Etaples at the start of 1917.

Private Jones was ensconced on the Western Front for the next few months but, as spring came, he was starting to have some health issues. In April he was admitted to a field hospital suffering from dyspepsia (indigestion), which was subsequently diagnosed as gastritis.

Medically evacuated to Britain for treatment, Hugh spent the next few months being treated in hospitals in Kent, and Dorset, before being admitted to the Royal Infirmary in Liverpool. Sadly, by this point, his condition had been identified as stomach cancer and, while in Liverpool, he passed away. Private Jones breathed his last on 13th November 1917, at the age of 41 years old.

Hugh Henry Jones was brought back to Wales for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Peris Church in his home village of Llanberis.

Private Hugh Jones
(from findagrave.com)
Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Gwynedd, history, illness, photography, Private, Royal Welsh Fusiliers, story, Wales, war

Private William Rowlands

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Private William Rowlands

William Pierce Rowlands was born the summer of 1891 and was the oldest of three children to Thomas and Ellen Rowlands. Thomas was a slate dresser and quarryman from North Wales, and William was born in Ffestiniog, Gwynedd. By the time his sister Margaret was born, the young family had moved to Llanberis, settling in a small cottage on the outskirts of the village.

When he left school, William found work as a clerk, and this was the work he was carrying out when was broke out. He enlisted on 10th April 1915, joining the 14th (Service) Battalion of the Royal Welch Fusiliers. His service records show that he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall.

Private Rowlands served on home soil for just over seven months, before being sent to France on 30th November 1915. He had been suffering from a cough for a couple of weeks, and this came to a head while he was overseas. He reported sick on 16th December, and was sent back to Britain for treatment a month later.

His condition was identified as pulmonary tuberculosis, aggravated by military service. Private Rowlands was medically discharged from the army on 8th February 1916, and returned home.

At this point, William’s trail goes cold. His condition appears to have worsened, however, and it was from tuberculosis that he was to die. He passed away at home on 18th February 1917, at the age of 25 years old.

William Pierce Rowlands was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Peris Church, in the family home village of Llanberis.

Thomas and Ellen lived until 1932, when the passed away within a couple of months of each other (Thomas in August, Ellen in November). They were reunited with the son, and lie together in the family grave, along with Ellen’s brother, also called William, who had passed away in 1930.

Commonwealth War Graves, Driver, Great War, Gwynedd, history, illness, photography, Royal Field Artillery, story, Wales, war

Driver Griffith Williams

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Driver Griffith Williams

Griffith Owen Williams was born the autumn of 1876 in Llanberis, Gwynedd. One of nine children, his parents were blacksmith William Williams and his wife, Alice.

Little information remains about Griffith’s teenage years. The 1891 census record that, at 14 years old, he was a scholar, but the next document that can be attributed to him comes fourteen years later.

At this point, on 7th March 1905, he married Margaret Jane Williams at the parish church in Llanberis. Margaret was 24 years old, and the daughter of a quarryman: Griffith gave his profession as Post Office official, and he was living in Caernarfon, eight miles away, on the Menai Strait.

The young couple went on to have a daughter, Maggie, in January 1906. Sadly, Margaret died on 5th May 1908, when she was just 27 years of age. While the young family had been living in Caernarfon, she was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Peris Church in Llanberis.

At this point, Griffith’s trail goes cold once more. When war broke out, he enlisted in the Royal Field Artillery, and was assigned as a Driver in the 248th (Howitzer) Brigade. By April 1915, Griffith found himself on the Western Front and, by the next spring he was fighting at the Somme.

During the winter of 1916/17, Driver Williams fell ill. He contracted bronchial pneumonia, and was medically evacuated to Britain to recuperate. Sadly, the condition was to prove too much for his body to take. He passed away on 23rd February 1917, at the age of 46 years old.

Griffith Owen Williams’ was laid to rest with his late wife in St Peris Churchyard, in their home village of Llanberis.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, photography, Private, Royal Army Service Corps, Somerset, story, Wales, war

rivate Walter Strickland

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Private Walter Strickland

Walter Strickland was born in 1890 in Pitminster, Somerset, the youngest of eight children to William and Sarah Strickland. William was a farm labourer, but his son found employment in the local coal mines on leaving school.

In December 1910, Walter married local woman Eliza Burton. The couple moved with Eliza’s brother and sister-in-law to Monmouthshire, where mining was the primary industry. After a couple of years, the young couple moved back to Somerset and went on to have a son, Wilfred, who was born in 1913. Walter had found other work, by this time, and was employed as a groom.

Storm clouds were brewing over Europe, and Walter enlisted in September 1915. He was assigned to the Royal Army Service Corps and given the rank of Private. His service records show that he was 5ft 6ins (1.67m) in height, and had a 35in (89cm) chest measurement.

Details of Private Strickland’s military service are limited. It seems likely that he was sent overseas, but that cannot be confirmed. By the start of 1917, however, he was back in England, and had been admitted to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Netley, near Southampton. He was suffering from an exophthalmic goitre – also known as Grave’s Disease – which results in heart palpitations, and an enlargement of the thyroid gland.

Sadly, this was an illness to which Private Strickland was to succumb: he passed away in the hospital on 28th February 1917, Eliza by his side. He was just 27 years of age.

Walter Strickland’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of All Saints’ Church in his now home town of Norton Fitzwarren.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Royal Warwickshire Regiment, Somerset, story, Training Reserve Battalion, war

Private John Winter

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Private John Winter

John Charles Winter was born in the summer of 1898, the younger of two children to James and Henrietta Winter. James was an agricultural labourer and carter from the village of Oake in Somerset. Henrietta had been born in Ontario in the USA, and was the daughter of English immigrants.

Little is documented about John’s early life. The 1911 census shows him living with his parents and his mother’s widowed brother, an army pensioner. At 12 years old, John was still at school.

War was coming to Europe by this point, and, as soon as he was able to (and probably encouraged by his uncle), John enlisted. He joined the 33rd Training Reserve Battalion, which was connected to the Warwickshire Regiment, at some point after August 1916.

Again, the details of his military service are scarce, but it seems that he soon fell ill, presumably from one of the medical conditions that tend to run rife in barracks crowded with men from across the country. The illness was to get the better of him and, on 4th February 1917, Private Winter passed away. He was just 18 years of age.

John Charles Winter was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Bartholomew’s Church in his home village of Oake.

Private John Winter
(from findagrave.com)
accident, Captain, Commonwealth War Graves, Flight Lieutenant, Great War, history, photography, Royal Air Force, Royal Field Artillery, Royal Navy, Second Lieutenant, Somerset, South Lancashire Regiment, story, war

Flight Lieutenant Lewis Morgan

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Flight Lieutenant Lewis Morgan

Lewis Morgan was born on 22nd May 1892 in Plymouth, Devon. He was one of six children to former army officer and rector Lewis Harold Gilbert Morgan and his wife, Mary.

Growing up in Plymouth, it seems inevitable that the sea life would take hold in Lewis Jr. He first took up a post in the Merchant Navy, rising to Second Mate in December 1911.

By this point, however, he had set his sights on something more formal and soon enlisted in the Royal Navy. He served on a number of vessels over the years, and was re-engaged when war broke out. By the summer of 1915, he transferred to the Royal Naval Air Service, earning his wings on 5th August that year.

The now Flight Lieutenant Morgan’s service grew as the war continued. The life of air crew at this point in the era of flight was notoriously dangerous, and Lewis was to meet his own fate. On 11th May 1917, he was flying with Probationer Flight Officer Randolph Seed around Edmonton, Middlesex, when an accident occurred. The local newspaper reported on the incident and the subsequent inquest:

Flight-Lieutenant Mitchell gave a graphic account of the accident. He said that about eight o’clock in the evening he was flying at a height of 1,000 feet, and the machine containing the deceased officers was just ahead, but 500 feet higher. The flying conditions were good, and at the time both machines were going steadily. Glancing upwards he notices that the other machine suddenly appeared to collapse, the front extension of the main plane crumpling up. The machine nose-dived, and a black object fell out of it. The machine continued its descent and fell into the Edmonton Sewage Farm… The machine was so entirely broken up that it was impossible to theorise upon the cause of the accident. Morgan was said to have fallen on a concrete path. The deaths were instantaneous.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 23rd May 1917

Lewis Morgan was just 24 years old, and days away from his 25th birthday. His body was brought back to Somerset, and laid to rest in the graveyard of Holy Cross Church in Sampford Arundel. By this point, his parents were living in the nearby Woolcombe House, so their son was, in a way, brought home.

The newspaper article went on to report that Flight Lieutenant Morgan was the third and last son to Lewis and Mary.

Francis Morgan – five years Lewis’ senior – enlisted in the Royal Field Artillery when war broke out. He rose to the rank of Captain, and was mentioned in Despatches for his actions. He was killed in the Dardanelles – potentially at Gallipoli – on 2nd May 1915, at the age of 28 years old.

Walter Morgan was a year younger than Lewis. He also played his part in the First World War, joining the South Lancashire Regiment, and rising to the rank of Second Lieutenant. Walter was also sent to fight in Gallipoli, and this is where he also lost his life. He was killed just three months after Francis, on 9th August 1915. He was just 22 years of age.

The loss of three sons in two years was to take a further toll on the Morgan family. Mary had suffered from poor health for a while, and the deaths of Francis, Walter and Lewis was to prove too much. She passed away at home on 15th July 1917, aged just 56 years old.

Flight Lieutenant Lewis Morgan
Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Gunner, history, Kent, photography, Royal Garrison Artillery, story, unknown, war

Gunner George Boorman

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Gunner George Boorman

George Boorman was born in Lenham, Kent, in the spring of 1886, one of thirteen children to farm labourer George Boorman and his wife, Sarah. There is little further information about his early life, other than that he went into labouring when he finished school.

And agricultural life was not enough for George, however, and, on 15th January 1907, he enlisted in the Royal Garrison Artillery. His records show that he was 5ft 9.5ins (1.77m) tall and weighed 134lbs (60.8kg). George had hazel eyes, brown hair and a fresh complexion.

Full details of Gunner Boorman’s military service are not available, but the 1911 census records him as being attached to the 64th Company, based in Aden.

Further information about George’s life is difficult to piece together. His father died in 1913, and the next evidence of Gunner Boorman is that of his passing, on 18th March 1917. The cause of his death is lost to time, but he was 31 years of age.

George Boorman was laid to rest in the Borough Cemetery in Faversham, Kent.

Tragedy struck Sarah Boorman on more than one occasion. Four of George’s brothers died before they turned eighteen, while only six of her thirteen children outlived their mother.

Canada, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Naval Reserve, Seaman, story, war

Seaman Albert Cluett

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Seaman Albert Cluett

Albert Cluett was born on 2nd August 1896, one of three children to fisherman Richard Cluett and his wife, Johanna. The couple were third generation immigrants to North America, and had made their home on the remote Fogo Island, to the north of Newfoundland.

There is little concrete information about Albert’s life; given his father’s occupation, it seems likely that he would have had a good working knowledge of seafaring, and this led him to enrol in the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve when war broke out.

Details of Seaman Cluett’s military life are scant. All that we know is that, by the summer of 1917, he was based at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. He was billeted in the Drill Hall, which had been set up with temporary accommodation because the barracks themselves had become overcrowded.

On the night of the 3rd September 1917, the German Air Force carried out an air raids on Chatham. The town was heavily bombed and the Drill Hall received a direct hit. Seaman Cluett was badly injured and died of his wounds in hospital the following day. He had just celebrated his 21st birthday.

Albert Cluett was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Seaman Albert Cluett
(from ancestry.co.uk)

Another young man from Fogo, Seaman Thomas Ginn, also died during the bombing raid; given the remoteness of the Newfoundland town, it seems very unlikely that he and Albert did not know each other.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Ireland, Kent, killed in action, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, story, war

Ordinary Seaman William Nolan

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Ordinary Seaman William Nolan

William John Nolan was born in County Kildare, Ireland, on the 8th October 1892, one of ten children to agricultural labourer Thomas Nolan and his wife, Anna.

There is little documentation connected to his early life, but when he left school, William found work as a porter, and is was this that he was doing up until war broke out in 1914.

William was conscripted on 1st March 1915, joining the Royal Navy as an Ordinary Seaman. His service records show that he stood 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall, had brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion. He was also noted as having tattoos on his forearms, and a scar on his right one.

Ordinary Seaman Nolan was sent to HMS Pembroke, the Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, for training. Within a month, he was given his first posting, on board the armoured cruiser HMS Lancaster. He spent fifteen weeks aboard and, over the next two years, he served on four more ships, returning to his base in Chatham after each voyage.

William came back to HMS Pembroke in July 1917: the base was particularly busy and cramped that summer, so much so that additional temporary accommodation was set up in the barracks’ Drill Hall. This is where Ordinary Seaman Nolan was billeted.

On the night of the 3rd September 1917, Chatham was bombarded by a German air raid, and the Drill Hall received a direct hit. Tragically, Ordinary Seamen Nolan was amongst those killed. He was just 24 years old.

William John Nolan’s body was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, alongside the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, Lincolnshire, photography, Royal Naval Reserve, story, Suffolk, Trimmer, war

Trimmer Gilbert McLoughlin

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Trimmer Gilbert McLoughlin

Gilbert McLoughlin was born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, on 19th August 1896, one of eight children to Charles and Isabella McLoughlin. Being a fishing port, it is likely that Charles was involved in the industry, and it is no surprise that Gilbert and his siblings followed suit.

When war came to Europe, his skills at sea led to him being brought into the Royal Naval Reserve, and indeed Gilbert joined up on 20th March 1916. His service records show that he stood 5ft 2.5ins (1.59m) tall, had brown eyes and a sallow complexion, and had tattoos on his left arm.

Trimmer McLoughlin was based at HMS Pekin, a shore establishment in Grimsby, from which he would have served on ships patrolling the Lincolnshire coast. He remained posted in his home town until the end of 1916, at which point he moved down the coast to HMS Ganges, the naval base in Ipswich.

Gilbert made a further move in July 1917, when he was posted to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. The base was particularly crowded that summer, and he was billeted in temporary accommodation set up in the barracks’ Drill Hall.

On the night of 3rd September, Chatham came under attack from a German air raid, and the Drill Hall received a direct hit. Trimmer McLoughlin was among those to be killed that night. He was just 20 years of age.

Gilbert McLoughlin was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, Kent, alongside the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid.

Gilbert’s older brother Joseph McLoughlin was also a victim of the First World War. As the conflict began, he continued his work as a trawlerman, although the role of his ship – the Kilmarnock – now also included elements of mine location.

On the afternoon of the 22nd September 1914, the Kilmarnock left Grimsby on a routine trip. She was around thirty miles offshore when the captain spotted floating mines ahead.

The skipper put out a buoy to mark the position, and intended returning to port to report the matter to the Admiralty authorities, but seeing some naval vessels in the distance he made towards them instead with the object of reporting.

Whilst doing so an explosion occurred amidships, and the vessel was blown into two parts, which sank immediately.

The skipper was blown to pieces on the bridge and the chief engineer badly injured.

The naval vessels, attracted by the explosion, hurried to the spot, picked up the wounded engineer, mate, and one member of the crew.

Boston Guardian: Saturday 26th September 1914

Joseph was one of the six crewmen to be killed in the incident. He was just 19 years of age.