Tag Archives: 1918

Commonwealth War Graves, Essex, Gloucestershire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war

Private Harold Randall

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Private Harold Randall

Harold Stanley Randall was born in Taunton, Somerset, in the autumn of 1898. One of twins, his parents were Joseph and Elizabeth Randall. Joseph was a carpenter, and when Elizabeth died in 1900, he was left with nine children to raise on his own. This led to Harold being raised Joseph’s brother and sister-in-law, George and Caroline, and he is noted as living with them in Bath, Somerset, in the 1901 and 1911 censuses.

There is little direct evidence of Harold’s life: at the time of the 1911 census he was still at school, so it is not clear what employment he took up once his education came to an end. When war broke out, he played his part, and had enlisted in the Gloucestershire Regiment by the summer of 1918.

Private Randall was attached to the 17th Battalion, a territorial force based in Essex. By the end of the war, Harold was billeted in St Osyth, and it was here that he fell ill. Details of his condition are lost to time, but his health was impacted enough for him to be admitted to the general hospital in Colchester.

Harold Stanley Randall’s illness was to get the better of him. He passed away on 7th December 1918, aged just 20 years old. His body was brought back to Somerset for burial, and he was laid to rest in Bath’s sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery. His next of kin was noted as his aunt Caroline, who had raised him from a toddler.

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

Private Victor Blatchford

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Private Victor Blatchford

Victor William Haydon Blatchford was born in Bath, Somerset, on the 20th November 1897. The younger of two children, his parents were William and Kate Blatchford.

William was a draper, and the family lived in the bustling city centre, above the shop he and Kate ran. By the time of the 1911 census, the family were registered as living in 12 rooms at 52 & 53 Southgate Street. As well as the Blatchfords, four other people made up the household: draper’s assistants Edith Letts and Nellie Harris, milliner Florence Carke, and general domestic servant Ellen Heskins.

War came to Europe in the summer of 1914, and Victor was called upon to play his part. Full details of his military service have been lost to time, but a later newspaper report suggest he had enlisted early in 1916. William had died in October 1914, but it is unclear whether his son’s decision to enlist was related to his father’s passing.

Private Blatchford joined the Royal Army Service Corps, and was attached to the Mechanical Transport Depot in Norwood, Surrey. While information about his time in the regiment is no longer available, the same newspaper report hints at time spent overseas:

Private Victor WH Blatchford, ASC, MT, only son of Mrs William Blatchford, Okehampton Lodge, Kipling Avenue, died on May 20th, at Manor War Hospital, Epsom, from pneumonia, contracted in East Africa, after two years and three months’ active service. The funeral will be at Locksbrook Cemetery, and it is asked that no flowers be sent.

[Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette: Saturday 25th May 1918]

Victor William Haydon Blatchford died on 20th May 1918: he was just 20 years of age. He was laid to rest in Locksbrook Cemetery, Bath, alongside his father. When Kate passed away in 1941, she was also interred in the family plot.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Second Lieutenant, story, Tyne & Wear, war, Worcestershire Regiment

Second Lieutenant Clement Edwards

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Second Lieutenant Clement Edwards

Clement Edward Arthur Edwards was born in the summer of 1898, and was the oldest of six children to Clement and Caroline Edwards. Clement Sr was a colonel in the army, and had been born in Dublin, Ireland. His wife hailed from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, but it is clear that the family travelled as it grew, as each of the Edwards children were born in a different location. Clement Jr was born in Devon, while Caroline had given birth to his younger siblings in locations as distant as Sussex, Hampshire and the West Indies.

By the time of the 1911 census, Clement Sr had retired from duty. The family had settled back in Devon, and were living in the 12-roomed North Grange in the village of North Lew. Clement and Caroline employed five staff, including a cook, a nurse, a housemaid, a kitchen/parlour maid and a stable boy.

It seemed inevitable that Clement Jr would have followed his father into the army. Sadly his service records are lost to time, but a later newspaper report gives an insight into this time in the army:

Colonel and Mrs Edwards of Townsend House, Halberton, have the sympathy of all their friends and neighbours in the loss they have sustained by the death of their eldest son, 2nd-Lieut. Clement Edwards Alexander Edwards, of the Worcestershire Regiment, from pneumonia, following influenza, at the Northern General Hospital, Newcastle-on-Tyne [sic]. Edwards was formerly at Blundell’s School. He joined up at the earliest possible opportunity, obtaining a commission in his father’s regiment. He was a great favourite with all who knew him.

[Tiverton Gazette: Tuesday 10th December 1918]

Clement Edward Alexander Edwards died on 5th December 1918: he was just 20 years of age. His body was taken back to Devon for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Andrew’s Church in Halberton.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Royal Warwickshire Regiment, story, Tyne & Wear, war

Private George Babb

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Private George Babb

George Henry Babb was born on 6th October 1900 in the village of Halberton, Devon. One of ten children, his parents were stonemason Clem Babb and his wife, Emily.

There is little documented about George’s life. The 1911 census records that he was still at school, and there is nothing to confirm the work he found when he completed his education.

George was not yet 14 years old when was was declared, and the Army Register of Soldiers’ Effects suggests that he didn’t enlist until the late spring of 1918. He was assigned to the Royal Warwickshire Regiment and was attached to the 5th Battalion.

Private Babb was sent to the north east for training, and it seems that he became unwell while there. He was admitted to the 1st Northern General Hospital in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, suffering from a combination of influenza and pneumonia. The conditions were to prove fatal: Private Babb passed away on 8th November 1918, a month after his eighteenth birthday.

George Henry Babb was taken back to Devon for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Andrew’s Church in his home village of Halberton.

Bedfordshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, injury, photography, Royal Engineers, Sapper, story, war

Sapper William Harris

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Sapper William Harris

William Arthur Edward Harris was born in the spring of 1896 in Uffculme, Devon. The second of four children, his parents were William and Louisa. William Sr was a ganger on the railways, and by the time of the 1911 census, the family has moved to Halberton, near Tiverton, as that was where the work had moved to.

The same census return confirmed the work that William Jr had taken up, noting that he was an apprentice to an agricultural implement maker. This was not to last for long, however, as storm clouds were brewing over Europe.

When war broke out in the summer of 1914, William Jr was keen to play his part. He enlisted the following year, and his apprenticeship seems to have stood him in good stead. He joined the Royal Engineers as a Sapper, and was attached to the 77th Field Coy. His unit arrived in France on 15th July 1915.

Details of William’s time in the army is lost to time, but a newspaper report of his funeral sheds a little light on his time overseas: “Sapper Harris was among the first from Halberton to join up, and had seen much active service in France, being wounded at Arras on Sept. 16, 1917.” [Tiverton Gazette: Tuesday 25th June 1918]

Sapper Harris seems to have returned to Britain by the summer of 1918, although it is unclear whether he was on leave, based back in the UK or was being medically treated here. “At the early age of 22, [William] passed away in Kempston Military Hospital after a brief illness” [Tiverton Gazette: Tuesday 25th June 1918]

William Arthur Edward Harris had died in hospital in Bedfordshire on 13th June 1918. His body was taken back to Devon for burial, and he was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Andrew’s Church, Halberton.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Dorsetshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire Regiment

Private Reginald Lane

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Private Reginald Lane

Reginald William Lane was born in the autumn of 1886, the eighth of ten children to Joseph and Sarah. Joseph was an agricultural labourer and he and his wife raised their family in their home village of Thornford in Dorset.

When he finished his schooling, he found work as a gardener’s boy. He went on to make a career out of this and was employed as a gardener when he married Evelyn Sharp on 15th April 1914. The couple exchanged vows in St Swithun’s Church, Hinton Parva, Dorset, the marriage certificate noting that the groom’s father was now employed as a woodsman.

War came to Europe later that year, and Reginald enlisted to serve the King and Empire. Little information is available about his military career: he joined the Dorsetshire Regiment, but there is no confirmation that he spent any time overseas. Private Lane transferred over to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion of the Wiltshire Regiment, his new unit serving on home soil. Based in Kent, Reginald was part of the Thames & Medway Garrison.

Joseph died at the end of August 1915, and was laid to rest in the St Mary Magdalene Churchyard. Just weeks later, Reginald’s younger brother, Gilbert, a Private in the 3rd Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment, was killed during the Battle of Loos. He was commemorated on the Loos Memorial in Dud Corner Cemetery in France.

Private Reginald William Lane survived the war, but only by eleven days. While based in Kent, he contracted influenza and pneumonia. He died on 22nd November 1918, aged 32 years. His body was brought back to Dorset, and was laid to rest alongside his father.

There is no further information available for Evelyn.

Reginald’s mother, Sarah, however, only lived for another couple of months. She passed away on 25th February 1919, at the age of 69 years old. She was reunited with her husband and son in St Mary Magdalene Churchyard, the family headstone commemorating Private Gilbert Lane as well.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Dorsetshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, story, war, Wiltshire Regiment

Private Ernest Brister

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Private Ernest Brister

The early life of Ernest Brister is a challenge to piece together. His baptism record – at St Mary Magdalene Church in Thornford, Dorset – suggests that he was born in the summer of 1891, but gives only the name of his mother, Rosina Brister.

The 1901 census identifies the 9-year-old Ernest as a visitor to the house of Eliza Brister, a 65-year-old widow working as a laundress. There are several other Bristers in the village – including Eliza’s own to children – but Rosina is nowhere to be seen.

The next census, taken in 1911, sheds a little more light on the situation. Ernest is still living with Eliza, but he is now recorded as being her grandson. Aged 75, she was still taking in laundry, but Ernest was employed as a mason.

In the autumn of 1913, Ernest married Beatrice Chalker. She was a shepherd’s daughter from Dewlish in Dorset. The couple wed in Dorchester and went on to have two children, Doris and Edwin.

When war broke out, Ernest stepped up to play his part. He enlisted in the Dorsetshire Regiment, and found himself in France by the summer of 1915.

There is little information about Ernest’s time in the army, but later in the war, he seems to have transferred over to the Wiltshire Regiment. Attached to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, his new unit served on home soil and, based in Kent, was part of the Thames & Medway Garrison.

Private Brister was based in Maidstone in the autumn of 1918, when he contracted influenza and pneumonia. He was admitted to the military hospital in Aylesford, but the conditions were to prove to severe. He passed away on 24th November 1918, aged 27 years old.

Ernest Brister’s body was taken back to Dorset for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Mary Magdalene Church. His grandmother, Eliza, passed away just a month later, at the age of 82. She was laid to rest close to her beloved grandson.

The 1910s were harsh for Ernest’s widow, Beatrice. Her youngest son was born in March 1915, her mother dying a couple of months later. She lost her brother, Edwin, to the war – he was serving with the 1st Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment, when he was killed on 28th August 1916. He was just 19 years of age. Two years later, she was widowed when Ernest passed away.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Dorsetshire Regiment, Great War, history, photography, Private, story, unknown, war

Private Mark Lane

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Private Mark Lane

Mark Lane was born in the summer of 1900 in Thornford, Dorset. One of ten children, his parents were estate drainer Albert Lane and his wife, Sarah. Sadly. there is little concrete information about Mark’s life.

When war broke out, his eldest brother, Gilbert, served in the 5th Battalion of the Dorsetshire Regiment, rising to the rank of Serjeant. Having fought at, and survived, Gallipoli. his unit moved to France in July 1916. Involved in the Battle of the Somme, Gilbert was killed and was laid to rest at Bulls Road Cemetery in France.

His oldest brother dead, Mark seems to have wanted to serve his country and do Gilbert’s memory proud. He did not turn 18 until the summer of 1918, and he seems to have used this as an opportunity to enlist. He also enlisted in the Dorsetshire Regiment and, as part of the 4th (Reserve) Battalion was sent off to do his training.

Unfortunately, details of what happened to Private Lane are lost in the mists of time. He was admitted to a military hospital in the autumn of 1918, and died there on 22nd Octover. He was just 18 years of age.

The body of Mark Lane was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Mary Magdalene Church in his home village of Thornford.

Australia, Australian Tunnellers, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, photography, Sapper, Somerset, story, war

Sapper Rupert Whicker

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Sapper Rupert Whicker

Rupert Gilchrist Whicker was born in Derby, Derbyshire, on 6th February 1873, one of eight children to Walter and Susannah Whicker. There is little information about the family’s early life, and it appears than one of both of Rupert’s parents had died by the time he was 14 years of age.

The Whicker siblings seemed to have gone their own ways at this point, emigrating to the United States and Australia, and it was to Ballarat in Victoria, Australia, that Rupert sailed in 1896. His trail goes cold for then nine years, at which point he married the Australian-born Ellen Ward. The couple would go on to have six children, eventually setting up home in Melbourne.

It is only Rupert’s military records – from when he enlisted on 21st September 1917 – that we discover more about what he had been doing. He gave his trade as miner, and the document suggests that he had tried to join up earlier in the war, but had been rejected as being under height: he was just 5ft 1.5in (1.56m) tall. Rupert’s medical also confirmed that he was 107lbs (48.5kg) in weight, and had auburn hair, hazel eyes and a fair complexion. He was noted as having a birth mark on the side of his left foot and two scars on his left cheek, between the eye and the bone.

Sapper Whicker was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the Australian Tunnellers. He left Australia on board the SS Indarra on 26th November 1917, bound for Europe. After leaving Port Said, Egypt, on 9th January 1918, Rupert’s unit landed in the south of France eleven days later. They travelled to Cherbourg by train, and finally landed in Southampton, Hampshire, on 2nd February 1918.

Rupert would remain on British soil until the beginning of April. His unit arrived in Caëstre in the middle of the month, and he then found himself on the Western Front. Sapper Whicker would serve there for the next four months, and it was only because of illness – a bout of gastritis – that he was brought back from the Front Line.

The stomach condition was severe enough to warrant Rupert’s medical evacuation to Britain for treatment, and he was admitted to Bath War Hospital in Somerset. What was initially thought to be an infection turned out to be far more serious. Sapper Whicker was diagnosed as having stomach cancer, and it has quickly taken hold. Sadly, it would prove fatal, and Rupert passed away on 14th September 1918: he was 45 years of age.

Rupert Gilchrist Whicker had died thousands of miles from his home. He was laid to rest in the military section of Bath’s Locksbrook Cemetery, not far from the hospital in which he had breathed his last.

Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Great War, history, injury, Lance Corporal, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war, Wiltshire

Corporal John Wetzlar

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Corporal John Wetzlar

John Albert Wetzlar was born in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia, in the spring of 1895. One of four children, his parents were Ernest and Annie Wetzlar.

Little information about John’s life is available, and most of the detail that can be pieced together comes from his First World War service records. These confirm that he was working as a clerk when he enlisted on 14th July 1915. John’s medical record shows that he was 5ft 4.5ins (1.63m) and weighed 8st 5lbs (53kg). He had brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion.

Private Wetzlar set sail for Europe on 8th February 1916, arriving with his unit in Alexandria, Egypt, six weeks later and landing in Marseille, France, on 31st March. Attached to the 23rd Battalion of the Australian Infantry, by the end of June, he found himself on the front line.

On 22nd August 1916, John’s unit was caught up in fighting, and he was wounded by shrapnel in his right leg. He was admitted to the 4th Australian Field Ambulance unit, before being transferred to the No 1. Canadian General Hospital in Etaples. His injuries required more care, however, and he was medically evacuated to Britain, and was sent to the 2nd General Hospital in Manchester.

Private Wetzlar spent the next six months recuperating, only re-joining his unit back in France on 10th March 1917. Back on the Western Front, he was promoted to Lance Corporal on 9th June, and to full Corporal four months later.

In January 1918, John was transferred back to Britain. Details are sketchy, but it may be that his experience was used to help train new recruits, as he was billeted at Tidworth Camp in Wiltshire. He remained on British soil until May, when he was sent to the Western Front for a third time.

Corporal Wetzlar’s time in France was to be fated. On 1st September 1918, John was wounded a second time, when he received a gun shot injury to his right leg once more. Medically evacuated back to Britain, he was admitted to Bath War Hospital in Somerset. The injury was severe enough to warrant an operation, and the damaged limb was amputated.

During his recovery, Corporal Wetzlar contracted influenza and pneumonia and, tragically, given what he had been through, these were to prove fatal. John died on 23rd October 1918: he was 22 years of age.

Thousands of miles from the home he had left nearly three years before, John Albert Wetzlar was laid to rest in the military section of Bath’s sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery, alongside other from his homeland.