Tag Archives: 1918

Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Great War, history, illness, Labour Corps, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, photography, Private, Royal Army Service Corps, story, war

Private Harry Mildenhall

Leave a comment
Private Harry Mildenhall

Harry Mildenhall was born in the autumn of 1873 in Eton, Buckinghamshire. The third of six children, his parents were Henry and Harriet Mildenhall. Henry was a groom, and the family lived on first on Mill Lane, before moving to Alma Road in nearby Boveney, by the time of the 1891 census.

The next census return, taken in the spring of 1901, recorded Harry as having left home. Initially apprenticed to house painter Glen Rowland, the document found him as boarding with his employer at 1 Thames View, Clewer, on the outskirts of Windsor, Berkshire.

It was not long before Harry would set out on his own. On 14th April 1906, he was living on Speedwell Street, Oxford. It was on that day that he married Annie Berridge in the parish church. Seven years her new husband’s junior, Annie was a labourer’s daughter, with a history of her own:

Annie Berridge (19), domestic servant, Peterborough, was charged with obtaining 4s. by false pretences from Martha Withers on Feb. 4th. The evidence showed that Berridge had been residing with Mrs Knighton of Wellington-street, who was known to Mrs Withers. On Monday week she visited the latter’s house at Oundle-road and stated that Mrs Knighton wanted to borrow 6s. In consequence Mrs Withers gave her 4s., but afterwards discovered that Mrs Knighton had never sent for the money. Accused pleaded guilty, electing to be dealt with summarily. The Bench gave defendant a chance to retrieve her character by dealing with her ad a first offender and binding her over to come up for judgment when called upon.

[Peterborough Standard: Saturday 16th February 1901]

But Annie was not done with the law just yet:

Annie Berridge (19), single soman, of no fixed abode, was charged with stealing from 11, City-road, a pair of shoes, value 4s. 6d., the property of Elizabeth Ryall, on the 24th. She was further charged with stealing from 7, Perseverance Cottages, Star-lane, money to the amount of 1s., the property of Ethel Norman, on the 18th. In the first care Elizabeth Ryall stated that accused asked for lodgings. She stayed one day and went out the following morning. As accused did not return witness looked round and missed a pair of shoes (produced), an old pair being left in their place. Detective-Sergeant Smith stated that he saw accused in Broadway on the 25th wearing the shoes missed by the previous witness. Accused, who cried bitterly, elected to be dealt with summarily, and pleaded guilty. The Chief Constable stated that a fortnight ago the accused was before the Bench and was then bound over to be of good behaviour. The Bench retired, and on their return into Court the Chairman stated that it appeared leniency was no good. That had been tried a fortnight previously, and a sentence of two months’ imprisonment would now be passed. The second charge was not proceeded with.

[Peterborough Standard: Saturday 2nd March 1901]

The 1902 census, taken just a month later, recorded Annie’s fate: she was imprisoned in Northampton Prison. Meeting Harry may have been what helped Annie back on the rails. After their wedding the couple took rooms at 6 Mill Street, Kidlington, Oxfordshire, and went on to have three children: Edward, Albert and Annie.

War came to Europe in the summer of 1915, and, despite his age, Harry would step up to play his part. He enlisted in the Army Service Corps on 16th September 1915, his papers confirming that he was of Church of England by faith, and was 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall.

Private Mildenhall was sent to France within a fortnight of enlisting, although his exact role is unclear. He certainly remained overseas until April 1917, when he returned home for three months. He returned to the fray in July 1917, transferring to the Labour Corps.

Harry next returned to Britain in May 1918. By this point, however, he had fallen ill, and was admitted to Station Road Hospital in Gillingham, Dorset, suffering from bronchitis. Any treatment proved to be too little, too late: Private Mildenhall died from heart failure at 8:15pm on 16th May 1918, at the age of 44 years old.

The body of Harry Mildenhall was laid to rest in Gillingham Cemetery, not far from the hospital where he had breathed his last.

Of Annie there is no further record. The 1921 census records the three children boarding with separate families: Edward and Albert were living with the Bowd family at 35 Gracious Street, Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire. Annie, meanwhile, was living with Joseph and Harriett Wing, just around the corner from her brothers at 5 Whitmore Street. The census records note that the children’s father was dead, but their mother alive.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Great War, history, illness, Kings Royal Rifle Corps, Middlesex, photography, Rifleman, story, war

Rifleman Richard Hazlewood

Leave a comment
Rifleman Richard Hazlewood

Richard Hazlewood was born in the spring of 1892 in Kentish Town, Middlesex. One of at least seven children, his parents were railway engine driver George Hazlewood and his wife, Sarah.

There is frustratingly little documentation for Richard’s early life. The family do not appear on the 1901 or 1911 census records, and it is only when he enlists on 5th June 1915, that his name appears on paperwork once more.

Richard was working as a cook when he joined up, and gave this up to join the King’s Royal Rifle Corps. His service record notes that he was a little over 5ft 9ins (1.76m) tall, and had brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion.

Rifleman Hazlewood was attached to the 12th Battalion, and, after his initial training, he was sent to France. He would spend the next three years overseas, his unit being caught up in the fighting at the Somme and Ypres. In February 1917, he spent a few days in hospital, suffering from scabies in his right foot.

In the autumn of 1918, Richard came down with pneumonia. He was medically evacuated to Britain for treatment, and was admitted to the Station Road Hospital in Gillingham, Dorset. His condition would prove fatal: Rifleman Hazlewood passed away on 12th November – a day after the Armistice was signed. He was 26 years of age.

George had died in 1911, and it seems likely that Sarah, who was now living at the St Pancras Almshouses, Kentish Town, was unable to cover the cost of bringing her son back to Middlesex. Richard Hazlewood was instead laid to rest in Gillingham Cemetery, not far form the Dorset hospital in which he had died.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, Monmouthshire, Monmouthshire Regiment, photography, Private, South Wales Borderers, story, Wales, war

Private Cecil White

Leave a comment
Private Cecil White

Cecil George White was born in Cardiff, Glamorganshire, in the summer of 1899. The youngest of four children, his parents were called William and Mary. William was a stevedore and, at the time of the 1901 census, the family lived at 6 Whitchurch Road, to the north of the city centre.

The 1911 census shows things had changed significantly for the White family. They had left Wales, and had set up home in the Devon village of Croyde. William and Mary were now employed as farmers, with Cecil’s older sisters, Cordelia and Lilian, also helping out on the farm.

Europe descended into war in the summer of 1914, and while Cecil was initially too young to serve, he would eventually be called upon to play his part. Full details of his time in the army have been lost to time, but it would seem that he joined the South Wales Borderers, but was attached to the Monmouthshire Regiment.

Private White’s trail is tantalisingly sparse. The one document relating to his passing notes that he died of sickness in Barnstaple, Devon, on 12th November 1918 – the day after the Armistice was signed. Given the town’s proximity to the family home, it is fair to assume that he had been home on leave when he fell ill.

The body of Cecil George White – just 19 years of age when he died – was taken the short distance back to Croyde for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the village’s Baptist Chapelyard, alongside his sister, Lilian, who had passed a few weeks before.

The family would be reunited in death: William was buried alongside his children when he died in 1946, at the age of 78. Mary died in 1960, at the age of 91, and was interred with her family.

Caithness, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Lanarkshire, photography, Queen Alexandra Imperial Military Nursing Reserves, Scotland, sister, story, unknown, war, West Midlands

Sister Christina Jack

Leave a comment
Sister Christina Jack

Christina Jack was born in Thurso, Caithness, Scotland, on the 19th December 1882. One of eight children, her parents were Donald and Margaret Jack. Donald was a merchant and rope maker, and the family lived on Bank Street, to the north of the town centre.

Margaret died in 1907, by which point Christina had taken a job in nursing. The 1911 census found her in Govan, Lanarkshire, where she was employed as a registered general nurse. When war broke out, she volunteered to do her duty, and joined the Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Military Nursing Service.

Sister Jack remained on home soil, and was attached to the 1st Birmingham War Hospital in Rednal. Nursing staff were vulnerable to the infections and diseases of the men they were treating, and it appears that Christina was not immune to this. She passed away on 22nd October 1918, at the age of 35 years old.

The body of Christina Jack was taken back to Caithness for burial. She was laid to rest in Thurso Cemetery, on the outskirts of the town in which she had been born and raised.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Dorsetshire Regiment, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, India, injury, Lance Corporal, photography, Private, story, war

Lance Corporal Hugh Parmiter

Leave a comment
Lance Corporal Hugh Parmiter

Hugh Norman Trivick Parmiter was born on 21st February 1898, and was the sixth of ten children. His father, James, was a Sergeant in the Dorsetshire Regiment, and the family travelled to where the army needed him. Hugh was the third of the children to be born in Bangalore, India, while his mother, Annie, gave birth to his oldest two siblings in Egypt.

By 1900 the Parmiters had returned to Britain, Annie and the children living in family barracks in Dorchester, while James was being trained in Hythe, Kent.

The 1911 census records the family living in the rural Dorset village of Gussage St Michael. Having been pensioned from the army, James was employed as a dairyman, and the family lived in a modest village cottage. At thirteen years of age, Hugh was still attending school, growing up in the peaceful surroundings of the Dorset countryside.

When war broke out, Hugh stepped up to play his part. Full details of his service have been lost to time, but from what remains it is clear that he enlisted in the Devonshire Regiment in the opening weeks of the war. By 11th July 1915, Private Parmiter’s unit was ensconced in the Balkans.

Hugh was caught up in the fierce fighting at Gallipoli, and rose to the rank of Lance Corporal. He would not come out unscathed, however, and was medically evacuated to Britain for treatment. While details of his injuries are unclear, they were severe enough for him to be medically discharged from the army: he was formally stood down on 17th January 1916, a week after the final evacuations from the Dardanelles Strait.

At this point, Hugh’s trail goes cold. James had passed away in 1914, and Annie had moved to Pimperne, a village on the outskirts of Blandford Fordham. Hugh’s health still dogged him however, and he passed away on 6th May 1918: he was 20 years of age.

The body of Hugh Norman Trivick Parmiter was laid to rest in St Peter’s Churchyard in Pimperne.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, photography, Private, Royal Marines, story, war

Private Frank Tucker

Leave a comment
Private Frank Tucker

Frank Tucker was born in the Devon village of Georgeham on 7th June 1890. The youngest of seven children, his parents were farmers Charles and Mary Tucker.

When Frank completed his schooling, he joined his older siblings helping on the farm. The 1911 census recorded all but one of the Tucker household doing agricultural work, Frank’s older sister Hannah being the exception, as she was working as an elementary school teacher.

War broke out in the summer of 1914, and Frank would be called upon to play his part. He did not enlist until 21st June 1918, however, when he joined the Royal Marine Artillery as a Private. His service papers note that he was 5ft 10ins (1.77m) tall, with fair hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Private Tucker was sent to the Royal Marine depot in Eastney, Hampshire, for this training, but his time there was not to be a lengthy one.

It is with regret that we have to record the death from pneumonia, of Pte. Frank Tucker (RMA) son of Mr and Mrs C Tucker, or Darracott, which occurred at Haslar Hospital, Gosport, on Tuesday in last week after a brief illness. Deceased, aged 28, had been serving with the colours just a month, and his death came as a sad blow to his many friends and relatives resident in Braunton and district.

[North Devon Journal: Thursday 25th July 1918]

The body of Frank Tucker was taken back to Devon for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St George’s Church in his home village.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Orkney, photography, Private, Scotland, Seaforth Highlanders, story, war

Private James Mackay

Leave a comment
Private James Mackay

James – or Jim – Mackay was born in Kirkwall, Orkney, in 1897, and was the youngest of six children to John and Margaret Mackay. John was a stone mason, and the family lived in a small cottage at 14 Victoria Road, close to the town centre.

Little information survives about Jim’s life, and the family do not appear on the 1911 census. He would have been too young to enlist when war broke out, but at some point during the conflict, he enlisted in the army, joining the Seaforth Highlanders as a Private. His unit – the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion – was a depot unit, and was based at Cromarty, to the north of Inverness, for the duration.

In the closing weeks of the war, Jim fell ill, and was admitted to the military hospital in Cromarty, suffering from pneumonia. The condition would prove fatal, and he passed away on 11th November 1918, the day the Armistice was signed. He was just 21 years of age.

The body of James Mackay was taken back to Orkney for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Magnus’ Cathedral, a short walk from where his family still lived.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Midlothian, Orkney, photography, Private, Scotland, Seaforth Highlanders, story, war

Private John Brass

Leave a comment
Private John Brass

John Harcus Brass was born in Kirkwall on the Orkney mainland in May 1900. He was the oldest child to Thomas and Margaret Brass. Thomas was a grocer, and the family lived at 3 Union Street, to the south of the town centre.

There is little information about John’s early life. Better known as Jackie, he was too young to enlist when war broke out, but joined up as soon as he came of age. He was assigned to the Seaforth Highlanders and, as a Private, was attached to the 4th Battalion.

Jackie was sent south for training, and was billeted in Glencorse, to the south of Edinburgh. Sadly, Private Brass’ war was not to be a lengthy one. He was admitted to the 2nd Scottish General Hospital in Edinburgh, suffering from influenza. The condition was to get the better of him, and he passed away on 30th October 1918. He was just 18 years of age.

The body of John Harcus Brass was taken back to Orkney for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Magnus’ Cathedral, in his home town of Kirkwall.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Nottinghamshire, photography, Royal Army Ordnance Corps, Scotland, Staff Sergeant, story, unknown, war, Wiltshire

Staff Serjeant George Brent

Leave a comment
Staff Serjeant George Brent

George Brent was born in the autumn of 1887 in Bratton, Wiltshire, and was the only child to George and Naomi Brent. Census records humbly record George Sr was a wool carder, although he actually ran Luccombe Mill, the family living in the substantial Luccombe House.

George had been widowed in the 1870s, and was thirty-four years older than his second wife, Naomi. When he died in 1900, she was left to raise her teenaged son. She was not on her own, however, the 1901 census recording her as living on her own means, and with servant Eliza Whately to support her.

Education was important to Naomi, and by the time of the 1911 census, George was working as a draughtsman and designer for an engineering company. War was on the horizon, however, and he would step up to serve his country.

George enlisted in the Army Ordnance Corps, and served in the Balkans from October 1915. Full details of his time in the army have been lost, but he rose through the ranks and, by the summer of 1918, he was a Staff Serjeant.

At some point love blossomed and, George married a woman called Edith. Sadly, her life is destined to remain a mystery: she is noted as being George’s widow on his probate record and his beneficiary in the Army Register of Soldiers’ Effects.

Staff Serjeant Brent’s health seems to have suffered after three years in the eastern Mediterranean. He was admitted to the military hospital in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, although his condition is unclear. He passed away on 3rd September 1918, at the age of 30 years old.

The body of George Brent was taken back to Wiltshire for burial. He was laid to rest in Bratton Baptist Chapelyard, not far from Luccombe House.

George left an estate of £978 16s 6d (approx. £58,000 in today’s money) to his widow. Naomi must have taken some comfort in Edith’s presence: the 1921 census found them living in Luccombe House.

The census sheds some light on Edith’s background, noting that she was born in Grangemouth, Stirlingshire. Interestingly, she and Naomi have two visitors: widow Helen Harrower (aged 65) and Helen Georgina Harrower (aged 32). The younger Helen was also born in Grangemouth, and it appears that the visitors were Edith’s mother and sister.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Machine Gun Corps, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire, Wiltshire Regiment

Private Jesse Doughty

Leave a comment
Private Jesse Doughty

Jesse Doughty was born in the Wiltshire village of Bapton in the autumn of 1896. One of ten children, his parents were shepherd George Doughty, and his wife, Fanny.

George died in 1902, and Jesse’s mother was left to raise the children. His older brother William took the role of head of the family, however, and, by the time of the 1911 census, the Doughtys were living in a six-roomed cottage, with six wages coming in. Jesse, the second youngest of the siblings, had finished school by this point, and was working as a shepherd boy.

When war broke out, Jesse stepped up to serve his country, although full details of his time in the army have been lost to time. It seems that he initially joined the Machine Gun Corps, but transferred to the Labour Corps of the Wiltshire Regiment.

By the autumn of 1918, Private Doughty was based in Fovant, Hampshire. While there, he fell ill, and was admitted to a military hospital with pneumonia. The condition would prove fatal, and he passed away on 16th December, at the age of 22 years old.

The body of Jesse Doughty was taken back to Wiltshire for burial, and he was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Nicholas’ Church, Fisherton de la Mare, a short walk from where his family were still living in Bapton.