Tag Archives: 1917

accident, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, injury, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war

Private Joseph Soper

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Private Joseph Soper

Joseph William Soper was born at the start of 1876, the third of eleven children to John and Elizabeth Soper. Both of his parents had been born in Dorset but it was in the Devon town of Axminster that their children were raised. John was a labourer, but, when he finished school, Joseph found work as an ostler or groom.

John passed away at the end of 1894, just months after his youngest son, Arthur, was born. Joseph, by this point, had found work as a postman, and, in the spring of 1897, he married Charlotte Annie Lee in his home town. The couple moved across the border to Somerset and settled in Chard. They went on to have a son, Arthur, who was born in the summer of 1900.

Postal work seemed not to have suited Joseph, and he made the move to labouring for a mason. Money appears to have been tight: the 1911 census recorded Charlotte working as a charwoman, while her younger brother, Herbert, was also lodging with them, and working as a grocer’s porter.

War was coming to Europe, but much of Joseph’s military career is a mystery. He had joined up by the autumn of 1916, and was assigned to the 13th (Works) Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment. He was based in Saltash and Plymouth, and served as part of the territorial force.

The only other documents available are Private Soper’s pension ledger and his entry on the Register of Soldier’s Effects. Both confirm that he died on 12th April 1917, and that the cause was “accidental injury received on active service“. Sadly, there is no further information about this. He was 41 years of age when he passed.

Joseph William Soper’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He lies at rest in Chard Cemetery, walking distance from where his widow and son still lived.

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

Private Arthur Wellman

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Private Arthur Wellman

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.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Royal Berkshire Regiment, Somerset, story, war

Private Edward Welch

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Private Edward Welch

Edward Welch was born in Chard, Somerset, at the start of 1899. His parents were Edward and Sarah and he was one of five children, although he also had three half-siblings from Sarah’s previous marriage.

Edward Sr was a gardener who passed away in 1910, leaving Sarah a widow for a second time. She was already working as a lace maker, and this was a trade that Edward Jr’s older siblings also followed.

War was coming to Europe and, while he was too young to enlist when it was first declared, Edward was keen to play his part when he could. He enlisted in the Royal Berkshire Regiment at some point after October 1916, and was assigned to the 9th (Reserve) Battalion. Private Welch was part of the territorial force, and so did not see any action overseas.

There is little additional information about Private Welch’s life: all that can be confirmed is that he passed away “of disease” in hospital on 10th April 1917. He was just 18 years of age.

Edward Welch’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in Chard Cemetery, not far from his family home.

Canada, Canadian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Lieutenant, photography, Somerset, South Africa, story, war

Lieutenant Arthur Tett

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Lieutenant Arthur Tett

Arthur Hopkins Tett was born on 22nd August 1881 in Bedford Mills, Ontario, Canada. He was one of six children to lumberjack John Tett and his wife, Harriet. Both sets of Arthur’s grandparents had moved to Canada in the 1830s – John’s from Somerset, Harriet’s from Ireland – and his paternal grandfather had gone on to represent the county of Leeds in Ontario’s first parliament.

Arthur wanted to see the world, and viewed the army a a way to do that. After leaving school, he attended the Royal Military College, and was subsequently appointed a Signaller in the 3rd Canadian Mounted Rifles. He spent time in South Africa and, on returning to his home country, he took work as a bank clerk with the Union Bank, where he worked his way up to Head Office in Winnipeg.

He soon sought another challenge, and set up business in Outlook, Saskatchewan. In January 1913, Arthur married Bessie Kearns, an artist from back in Westport, Ontario. The couple settled in a detached property on Bagot Street, Kingston, Ontario and went on to have a son, John, who was born in 1917.

Arthur was still active in military circles at this point, playing a part in the local 14th Regiment. When war was declared, he again stepped forward to play his part, taking up a role of Lieutenant in the 253rd Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force: this was a regiment made up mainly of students from the Kingston area, and it is likely that Arthur’s expertise would have been welcomed.

Having initially enlisted on 1st November 1916, Lieutenant Tett was declared fit a few months later and sent to Europe in May 1917. Based in Somerset, Arthur was not far from where his paternal grandparents had come from, nor where his cousins still lived. Sadly, however, his time in England was not to be a long one.

Lieutenant Tett was admitted to the Military Hospital attached to Taunton Barracks, suffering from pneumococcal meningitis. Sadly, this was to get the better of him, and he passed away on 26th August 1917, days after his 36th birthday.

Arthur Hopkins Tett was brought to the village of Kingstone in Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of his second cousin George’s local church, St John and All Saints.

Bessie Tett did not marry again after her husband’s passing. She remained in Ontario for the rest of her life, passing away in October 1974, at the age of 89.

Arthur and Bessie’s son, John, was a babe-in-arms when his father died. He also remained in Ontario for much of his life, although he served in Europe during the Second World War. He married Sylvia Bird in September 1941; the couple went on to have two children. They returned to Canada when the war was over, and remained in Ontario until August 1974, when he passed away.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Gunner, history, photography, Royal Field Artillery, Somerset, story, unknown, war, Wiltshire

Gunner Charles Hooper

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Gunner Charles Hooper

Charles – known as Charlie – Hooper was born on 22nd August 1898, the second youngest of nine children to Sidney and Sarah Hooper. Sidney was a carter from the village of Chillington in Somerset, but it was in nearby Cudworth that the family were born and raised.

Charlie, attended the local school like his older siblings, joining on 2nd June 1902, and remaining there until 28th August 1911. The following month his older sister died, and the next year his mother also passed away.

War was coming to Europe, and, while Charlie was too young to enlist when it first broke out, he seemed keen to play his part as early on as he could. He enlisted with the Royal Field Artillery at the start of 1917, and was assigned to the 23rd Reserve Battery.

Gunner Hooper was sent to Wiltshire for training. The next record for him is that of his passing. He died in Salisbury on 29th April 1917, the cause unrecorded. He was just 18 years of age.

Charlie Hooper’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Michael’s Church in his home village, Cudworth.

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

Private Henry Hounsell

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Private Henry Hounsell

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.

accident, Commonwealth War Graves, Gloucestershire, Gloucestershire Regiment, Great War, history, injury, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Wilfred Vines

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Private Wilfred Vines

Wilfred Vines was born on 19th March 1897 and was one of seventeen children to John and Emma Vines. John was an elastic web maker or braider from Stroud, Gloucestershire, and it was in nearby Wotton-under-Edge that he and Emma raised their growing family.

Braiding and weaving ran in the family: the 1911 census recorded six of the Vines’ children who were over school age were employed in the local mill. This included Wilfred, who was working as a bobbin collector.

War came to Europe, and Wilfred was keen to play his part. He enlisted on 25th May 1915, joining the 15th Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment as a Private. His records show that he stood just 5ft 2ins (1.57m) tall.

Private Vines was sent for training to the camp at Chiseldon, Wiltshire. It seems that, while he was there, he was injured and, although full details are not available, his wounds were serious enough for him to be discharged from the army because of them. He was formally released on 30th May 1916, and returned home to recover and recuperate.

At this point, Wilfred’s trail goes cold. All that is recorded is that, on 5th November 1917, he passed away at home from his injuries. He was just 20 years of age.

Wilfred was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Mary the Virgin Church in his home town. He shares his grave with his younger brother, Leslie, who died the following year.

Commonwealth War Graves, Cornwall, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire

Private William Fuller

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Private William Fuller

William Charles Fuller was born on 31st January 1876 in Newton Abbot, Devon. He was the older of two children to Francis and Mary Fuller. Francis was a nurseryman, and gardening was a trade that both William and his brother followed him in.

Mary died in 1895 and Francis married a second time the following year, to a Mary Rogers. In July 1905, William married Ellen Bland, the daughter of the landlord of the Swan Inn in nearby Highweek. The couple went on to have a son, William, who was born the following year. William Sr continued his nursery trade through until the outbreak of war, while volunteering for the local defence corps.

When war came to Europe, William stood up to play his part. Full details of his service are not readily available, but it is clear that he had enlisted in the 13th (Works) Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment by the summer of 1916.

Private Fuller was based on home soil, serving in both Devon and Cornwall. However, he was billeted on Salisbury Plain by the start of 1917, and it was here that he fell ill. Having contracted influenza, William was admitted to the Fargo Hospital in Larkhill, Wiltshire; this was where he passed away on 25th January 1917. He was days short of his 42nd birthday.

William Charles Fuller’s body was brought back to Devon for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the graveyard of St Mary’s Church in Wolborough, near Newton Abbot.

accident, Australia, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, injury, Lieutenant, photography, Royal Air Force, story, war

Lieutenant Frederick Liardet

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Lieutenant Frederick Liardet

Frederick Charles Evelyn Liardet was born in Brighton, now a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, in 1888, and the eldest son of Wilbraham and Eleanor Liardet.

There is little further information about Frederick’s early life, but, when war broke out, he wanted to play his part for King and Country, and enlisted in the Devonshire Regiment.

He had an adventurous career… Having been twice wounded while on active service in France, he was appointed an instructor in the Balloon Section of the Royal Flying Corps.

Exeter and Plymouth Gazette: Tuesday 18th December 1917

On 23rd October 1915, Frederick married Kathleen Norah Liardet in Highweek, Newton Abbot, Devon. She was the daughter of a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Royal Marine Light Infantry, and may have been a cousin (while their surname is unusual enough for there to be a connection, I have been unable to identify a specific connection). The couple went on to have a daughter, Barbara, who was born in 1917.

In 1916, while on a night flight with the Royal Flying Corps, the now Lieutenant Liardet was involved in an accident and badly injured. He returned to England to recover, he and Kathleen living with her family. While his health initially improved, he relapsed and passed away on 13th December 1917, aged just 29 years old.

Frederick Charles Evelyn Liardet was laid to rest in the graveyard of All Saints Church in his adopted home of Highweek, Devon.

Boy, Chief Writer, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, story, war, writer

Chief Writer James Warne

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Chief Writer James Warne

James Edwin Warne was born on 4th August 1884, in Portsmouth, Hampshire. He was one of four children to shipwright Edwin Warne and his wife Elizabeth.

The naval life was all around him and, straight out of school, James sought out a career in the service and, on 28th December 1899, aged just 15 years old, he enlisted. His service records show that he was just 5ft 2.5ins (1.59m) tall, had dark brown hair, brown eyes and a dark complexion. Initially taken on in the role of Boy Writer, he was sent to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, for training.

Over the next couple of years he learned his trade, serving on a couple of ships, but also at HMS Pembroke and the nearby base in Sheerness, HMS Wildfire. When he came of age in 1902, he was formally inducted into the Royal Navy. His records show that his time in the navy were standing him in good stead – he had grown 5ins (13cm) in the previous couple of years.

James was afforded the rank of 3rd Class Writer. This was a mainly clerical role, James would have been involved in the day-to-day welfare concerns for the crew. Over the next twelve years, he honed his trade, serving on a handful of vessels, but being mainly based in Chatham and Sheerness.

By the time James’ initial period of service came to an end in August 1914, he had risen through the ranks to 2nd Class Writer (in 1906) and 1st Class Writer (four years later).

It was while James was based in Sheerness that he met Emily Jane Hayes. She was the daughter of a naval boilermaker; the couple married in 1906, and went on to have four children: Leonard, Jenny, Edwin and Phyllis.

When war broke out, James’ contract with the Royal Navy was renewed, and he was promoted to Chief Writer. He became permanently based at HMS Pembroke, and the family set up home in Nelson Road, Gillingham, not far from the Dockyard.

In the summer of 1917, HMS Pembroke was an overcrowded place. This was compounded by two events: men who had been earmarked to join the HMS Vanguard had been forced to remain at the barracks after the ship had been sunk at Scapa Flow, while an outbreak of ‘spotted fever’ in the barracks meant that the sleeping accommodation had to be increased in an effort to avoid further infection.

This would have increased Chief Writer Warne’s workload and hours, and he slept on site, in temporary accommodation set up in the barracks’ Drill Hall.

On the night of the 3rd September, the German Air Force conducted the first night time raid on England. Chatham came in the firing line, and the Drill Hall received a direct hit.

Given the proximity of the dockyard to the family home, Emily must have known something was wrong, and could only have hoped that her husband was not involved. Sadly, Chief Writer Warne was among those to be killed. He was 33 years of age.

James Edwin Warne was laid to rest in Gillingham’s Woodlands Cemetery – again, walking distance from the family home – along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid.