Tag Archives: 1919

Commonwealth War Graves, Essex, Great War, history, illness, Kent, Officer's Steward, photography, Royal Navy, story, war

Officer’s Steward Sidney Gordon

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Officer’s Steward Sidney Gordon

Hidden away above the busy A371 to the north of Axbridge, Somerset is an unassuming graveyard. Overgrown and haunting, with headstones lining the boundary of the copse, this is the cemetery for the former St Michael’s Sanatorium, now the St Michael’s Cheshire Home. In the middle of the plot, next to the central memorial, is a headstone dedicated to Sidney Gordon, notably buried somewhere else in the grounds.

Sidney Vincent Gordon was born in Upton Park, Essex, on 7th May 1897. There is little information about his early life, other than his mother’s name, May.

The 1911 census recorded Sidney as being an inmate at the Scattered Home for the West Ham Union, the workhouse that covered the area. At 13 years of age, he was one of the older of the thirteen students boarding in the home, which was overseen by Emma Caroline Simpson, the House Mother.

When Sidney completed his schooling, he managed to find employment as an undertaker’s boy. But he sought out bigger things and, on 8th June 1914, he enlisted in the Royal Navy. His service records note that he was 5ft 6ins (1.68m) tall, with brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion.

Being under-age when he enlisted, Sidney was given the rank of Boy. He was first sent to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, for training, and remained there for a couple of months. In August 1914, Boy Gordon was moved down the coast to HMS Actaeon, a torpedo school based in Sheerness, Kent.

After five months, he moved to HMS Wildfire, another part of the Sheerness base, and it was while there he turned 18, and could formally join the Royal Navy. He was given the rank of Officer’s Steward 3rd Class and remained at Wildfire until the end of 1915. After a short stint back in Chatham, Sidney was given a new posting on board the supply ship HMS Tyne, where he remained until the following May.

Officer’s Steward Gordon returned to HMS Pembroke once more, and was assigned to his final sea-going ship, the newly launched monitor, HMS Erebus. She was to be his home until June 1917, when, having become unwell, he was posted back to HMS Pembroke.

Sidney had contracted pulmonary tuberculosis, which led to him being invalided out of the Navy on 1st August 1917. At this point his trail goes cold once more, but it is likely that, by the start of 1919, his condition had led to his admission to St Michael’s.

When he died there, on 5th March 1919, Sidney was just 21 years old. Given his background, it seems probable that his mother, if she was still alive, would not have been able to afford for his remains to be brought back to Essex. Sidney Vincent Gordon was laid to rest in the sanatorium’s cemetery, in the foothills of the Mendips, finally at peace.

accident, Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Egypt, Great War, history, Lance Corporal, photography, Private, Royal Engineers, Somerset, story, war

Corporal John Parker

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Corporal John Parker

John Burge Parker was born in the spring of 1887, the second of eight children to George and Ann Parker. The family were raised in Huntspill, Somerset, where George was employed as a labourer in the local railway works.

When he finished his schooling, John found work on a farm and this is how he was employed when, on 30th April 1907, he married Alice Jane Grove in the parish church in Pawlett. The sleepiness of the area is underlined by the fact that this was both the only wedding to take part in the church that year, and for more than a year. John and Alice went on to have three children, Audrey, who was born in 1907, Elsie, who came along two years later, and Clifford, born in 1915.

With a growing family to support, John sought out more of a career. Indeed, by the time of the 1911 census, he was employed as a police constable, and the Parkers had moved to Bristol. When war came to Europe, however, John stepped up to play his part.

John enlisted on 17th November 1915, joining the Railway Troops Depot of the Royal Engineers. His service records show the kind of figure he must have cut in the police, and he was noted as being 6ft 1in (1.85m) tall, weighing 176lbs (79.8kg). Initially give the rank of Private, he was promoted to Lance Corporal in May 1916, just four months after being officially mobilised.

In October 1916, Lance Corporal Parker’s troop set sail from Southampton, their final destination being Alexandria in Egypt. He spent more than two years in North Africa, wand was promoted to full Corporal during this time.

John returned to Britain early in 1919. In February, John was visiting his brother in Highbridge, Somerset, and, on the evening of the 6th, he left to visit his father in Huntspill. He set off to Highbridge Station first, with the intention of checking the train times to return to Bristol, but that was the last time he was seen alive.

A painful sensation was created in Highbridge and neighbourhood… when it became known than on the previous evening.. the mutilated body of a soldier was found on the Great Western Railway metals, about a quarter of a mile below the Highbridge Station… The body was subsequently identified as that of John Parker… a corporal in the Royal Engineers, whose home it at Bristol and who leaves a wife and three children.

Central Somerset Gazette: Friday 14th February 1919

Nothing untoward was confirmed in the accident that killed John on the night of the 6th February 1919, and at the inquest the jury reached the conclusion that he had died through a tragic accident. He was 32 years of age.

The newspaper report gave more insight into the character of Corporal Parker: “He was a splendid specimen of manhood, standing over 6ft, and of proportionately fine physique… [He] was of a most genial temperament [and] was held in the highest respect both in the Highbridge district and at Bristol.”

The body of John Burge Parker was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Peter’s Church in his home village of Huntspill.

Bombardier, Commonwealth War Graves, Egypt, Great War, Gunner, history, illness, photography, Royal Field Artillery, Somerset, story, war

Bombardier Charles Hookins

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Bombardier Charles Hookins

Charles Hookins was born on 15th October 1895 in Pawlett, Somerset. The eighth of nine children, his parents were William and Susan Hookins. William was a labourer in a brickyard, but when he finished his schooling, Charles went to work on his cousin’s farm in neighbouring Huntspill.

Farming was not what Charles had in his mind as a career, however, and on 7th April 1913, he joined the Great Western Railway. Initially employed as an engine cleaner, he was sent to work at the Duffryn Yard, South Wales. He soon moved on again, however, and by October 1913, he was living in Tondu, to the north of Bridgend, where he worked as an engine fireman.

War came to Europe in 1914, and, within weeks of hostilities being declared, Charles volunteered for service. He enlisted on 1st September 1914 in Bridgend, joining the Royal Field Artillery. His service records confirm that he was 19 years of age, stood 5ft 7.5ins (1.71m) tall, and weighed 135lbs (61.2kg). He was noted as having brown eyes, brown hair and a fresh complexion.

Gunner Hookins spent most of the next year on home soil training and became attached to the 57th Brigade. On 2nd August 1915 he set off for the Mediterranean, his troop unusually making their way across mainland France, rather than sailing around Spain and Portugal. They left European shores from Marseille on 7th August, and arrived at Suvla Bay on the Gallipoli peninsula just nine days later.

The 57th Brigade remained at Gallipoli for the next five months, and during this time, in November 1915, the now Acting Bombardier Hookins spent a week in the local field ambulance, through causes unknown.

Charles’ health seemed to be suffering by this point. On 17th January 1916, he was moved to Alexandria, Egypt, where he spent another week admitted to a field hospital. After a couple of months’ grace, he was transferred back to France, again disembarking at Marseille. After another week’s admission to hospital, he was invalided back to England, eventually arriving back home at the end of April.

Acting Bombardier Hookins had contracted pulmonary tuberculosis, and the risk to others, as well as his own health, led to him being discharged from military service on 15th July 1916, having served for just under two years.

Charles’ trail goes cold at this point. He returned home, but his medical condition was ultimately to get the better of him. He passed away on 9th January 1919, at the age of just 23 years old.

Charles Hookins was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St John the Baptist Church in his home village of Pawlett, Somerset.

Bombardier Charles Hookins
(from ancestry.co.uk)
Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Drummer, Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment), Great War, history, illness, India, Indian Supply & Transport Corps, Lancashire, Lance Corporal, photography, Private, Royal Irish Rifles, Sergeant, Somerset, story, war

Serjeant Frederick Reid

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Serjeant Frederick Reid

Frederick William Reid was born in January 1876 in Liverpool, Lancashire. Little information is available for his early life, and his trail only really becomes traceable when he joined the Royal Irish Regiment at the age of 16 years old.

Frederick’s service records confirm that his mother was called Elizabeth, who lived in Bedminster, near Bristol. He was already volunteering for the regiment when he enlisted, and was working as a musician when he joined up. His papers confirm that he was 5ft 4ins (1.63m) tall, and weighed 112lbs (60.8kg). He had brown hair, hazel eyes and a fresh complexion.

Frederick was given the rank of Drummer when he joined up and was attached to the Royal Irish Regiment’s 3rd Depot. He spent more than seven years on home soil, rising to the rank of Corporal in May 1898. The following January he reverted to the rank of Private at his own request, but his superiors obviously saw something in him, and he was supported in a new role – Lance Corporal – just a month later.

In October 1899, however, Frederick’s life was to take a new turn, when he was sent to India with his troop.

Corporal Reid was based in Lahore, and had found the life that he was seeking. Over the next forty months, he successfully took on a variety of clerical roles. He was promoted to Lance Sergeant in October 1901 and given oversight of the Officers’ Room.

In March 1903, Frederick returned to Britain. With the move came a further promotion, to the rank of full Sergeant, again, overseeing the Officer’s Room. He seems to have been based in Gloucestershire by this point, as, on 18th November 1903, he married Isabella Jane Parke at a Registry Office in Bristol. There is no further record for the young couple, however, so the new Mrs Reid is destined to remain a mystery.

Frederick was destined to return to India, and in January 1905, that is exactly what he did. His regiment returned to Lahore, and he was given the role of Clerk Steward at one of the Lawrence Memorial Asylum. The name is misleading, as the asylums were a series of four military-style boarding schools across India. Sergeant Reid’s records do not confirm which of the four he was attached to, but it would have been Sanawar, Mount Abu, Lovedale or Ghora Gali.

Given his military background, it seems that the role of clerk was something Frederick settled into quite happily. He was recalled back to army service in November 1909, and, within seven months, he requested a discharge from the army. This was granted, as he had, by this point, completed more than eighteen years’ service.

Frederick remained in India, however, and on 28th September 1913, he married Elizabeth Marshall in Lahore. They had two children, Florence, who was born in Quetta on 2nd September 1914, and Lily, who was born on 1st January 1916 in Lahore.

War had come to the world by this point, and in spite of his age – he was 39 by now – Frederick felt it only right to step up and play his part again. On 28th October 1914, he enlisted again, and was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding Regiment). His new medical noted that he was 5ft 7ins (1.7m) tall, and weighed in at 9st (57.2kg). His complexion was recorded as pale, while he had a number of tattoos on his left forearm: the crossed swords, harp and crown of the Royal Irish Regiment, along with the initials VR.

While part of the West Riding Regiment, Sergeant Reid was attached to the 3rd Mule Corps of the Indian Supply & Transport Corps. He was involved in arranging provisions for the various battalions who needed them.

By March 1916, his battalion had been sent to Salonika, and it was here that Frederick contracted tuberculosis. Medically evacuated to Britain, he was admitted to the Southwark Military Hospital. He was confirmed as no longer being medically fit for army service and was discharged on 16th August 1916. His medical report noted that he “is anxious to have sanatorium treatment, but is not an insured man, owing to having been stationed in India.”

On his discharge, Frederick moved to Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, which is where his mother was by now living. His wife and children also came to live in England and, the family settled in Pawlett, near Bridgwater.

After leaving the army, Frederick’s trail goes cold. The next confirmation of his life is that of his passing. He died on 12th October 1919, presumably from his lung condition. He was 43 years of age.

Frederick William Reid, who had been born in Liverpool, who had had two separate careers in the army, and who had lived and married in India, was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St John the Baptist’s Church in Pawlett, Somerset.

Bedfordshire Regiment, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Norfolk, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war

Private Eric Grant

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Private Eric Grant

Eric William Grant was born at the start of 1901, the middle of three children to Ernest and Annie Grant. Ernest was a carpenter from Bath, Somerset, and it was here they he and Annie raised their young family.

Little information is available about Eric’s young life. When war came to Europe, his father joined up, enlisting in the Royal Engineers as a Sapper. Keen not to miss out, Eric also signed up, lying about his age to ensure he was accepted.

When he joined in February 1916, Private Grant was assigned to the 52nd (Graduated) Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment. Full details of his service are lost to time, but towards the end of the war, Eric was based in East Anglia.

It was here, in early 1919, that Private Grant fell ill. He was admitted to the Norfolk War Hospital, but whatever his condition, it proved fatal. He passed away on 2nd March, aged just 18 years old.

Eric William Grant’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Michael’s Church, Monkton Combe, where the family now living.

Despite her understandable concern at seeing her husband and son go off to war, and for Eric to die because of it, Annie was to be reunited with Ernest. Again, full details of his service are lost, but the 1939 Register found him and Annie living with their daughter and Ernest’s brother in Bathavon, Somerset.

Annie passed away in 1947, at the age of 73. Ernest lived on until 1952, having lived to 76 years old. Both were buried in St Michael’s Churchyard, reunited with their son at last.

Boy, Buckinghamshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, photography, Royal Air Force, Somerset, story, war, Wiltshire

Boy Edwin Hiscock

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Boy Edwin Hiscock

Edwin Sydney Hiscock was born in Corsham, Wiltshire, 11th November 1902. The older of two children, his parents were quarry manager Edwin Hiscock and his wife, Helen.

When he finished his schooling, Edwin Jr found work as a clerk, but as a young teenager, the thrill and excitement of the war going on around him, drew him to a life in the Royal Air Force. He enlisted on 27th March 1919, and was dispatched to the School of Technical Training at Halton Camp near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. Boy Hiscock’s service records note that he was 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall, with dark hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion.

Edwin’s life in the military was to be cut tragically short. He had lived a cosseted life in rural Somerset – the family having moved to Monkton Combe, near Bath. At the RAF base, he was surrounded by men and women from across the country, and was suddenly exposed to illnesses that he would not have encountered had he remained at home. It is unclear what he contracted but in the months after the First World War, influenza swept Europe, so this is a likely suspect. Edwin passed away at the base on 23rd April 1919, having completed 27 days’ service. He was just 16 years of age.

The body of Edwin Sydney Hiscock was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Michael’s Church, Monkton Combe.

Edwin’s headstone includes the epitaph “With Christ which is much better”, a bitter pill to swallow.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Gunner, Hampshire, history, illness, photography, Royal Garrison Artillery, Somerset, story, Sussex, war

Gunner Valentine Wilkinson

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Gunner Valentine Wilkinson

Valentine Burnett Wilkinson was born early in 1889 in Combe Down, Somerset. One of eight children, his parents were Harry and Eliza Wilkinson, Harry was from nearby Bath and worked as a gardener, and this is the trade into which Valentine also went when he finished school.

In the spring of 1913, Valentine married Florence Moody. She was the daughter of a stone mason and, at the time of the 1911 census, she was employed as a live-in sewing maid at Monkton Combe Junior School.

Gardening seems to have been a footstep to something bigger for Valentine, and he soon found other employment, as a police constable. He and Florence moved to Street, near Glastonbury, and this is where they were living when war broke out.

Keen to play his part, Valentine enlisted in the Royal Garrison Artillery on 11th December 1915. He was placed on reserve, possibly because of his occupation, and was not formally mobilised until the end of June 1917, just six weeks after Florence had given birth to their first and only child, Joan.

Gunner Wilkinson’s service records note that he was 5ft 11ins (1.8m) tall, and had a scar on his right wrist. He spent five months training, split between No. 3 Depot in Plymouth, Devon, 473 Siege Battery and No. 1 Reinforcing Depot in Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex. On 3rd November 1917, however, he was sent to France, and was attached to the 234th Siege Battery.

Gunner Wilkinson’s time overseas was to be brief, however. He was caught up in a gas attack in December, and evacuated back to Britain for treatment. His health was now impacted and, during the summer of 1918, he was admitted to hospital having contracted pleurisy. After two months in hospital, Valentine was sent to the Military Convalescent Hospital in Ashton-in-Makerfield, near Wigan.

The war was in its closing stages by this point, and in November 1918 Gunner Wilkinson resumed some of his duties, albeit on home soil. His health was still suffering, and he contracted tuberculosis on the lung and throat. He was formally discharged from the army on 27th February 1919, no longer physically fit to serve.

Valentine returned home to Somerset, and it was here, on 1st April 1919, that his body finally succumbed to the lung conditions that had dogged him for nearly eighteen months. He was just 30 years of age.

Valentine Burnett Wilkinson was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Michael’s Church in the parish of his childhood home, Monkton Combe.

Captain, China, Commander, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, India, Kircudbrightshire, Lieutenant, London, Middlesex, Midshipman, photography, Royal Navy, Scotland, Somerset, South Africa, story, Sub Lieutenant, war

Captain Frederick Walker

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Captain Frederick Walker

Frederick Murray Walker was born on 29th July 1862 in the village of Terregles, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland. The fifth of eleven children, his parents were Colonel Sir George Gustavus Walker, Member of Parliament for Dumfries & Galloway, and his wife, Anne. Sir George owned the Crawfordton Estate, and this is where Frederick was raised, with a retinue of fourteen staff to help the family.

Following his father’s military career, Frederick felt a draw to serve. On 15th July 1875, he entered the Royal Navy as a Midshipman. He set out to build a dedicated career, visiting most parts of the world in the process.

While Frederick’s initial service took him to the Mediterranean – where he received the Egyptian Medal and Alexandria Clasp – by 1883 he was out in China, but he also spent time in India and South Africa. In 1882 he was promoted to Sub Lieutenant, three years later he rose to the rank of Lieutenant. By 1899, Frederick had become a Commander.

By his own request, Frederick retired from the Royal Navy on 1st August 1909. He was now 47 years old, and had spent 34 years in service and was given the rank of Captain as a mark of his career.

On 19th June 1891, Frederick had married Lucy Scriven in St Saviour’s Church, Paddington, London. They would go on to have seven children, and to begin with, the life of a Naval Captain took Lucy around the coastal ports of Southern England. When Frederick retired, however, the family settled in a large house in Milford-on-Sea, Hampshire, where they were supported by a governess, cook, parlour maid and housemaid.

When war broke out in 1914, Captain Walker stepped up once more to serve his King and Country. He remained in territorial waters and was given successive command of the yachts James, Zaria and Albion III. By 1917, Frederick’s health was beginning to suffer, and he was placed on HMS Victory’s reserve books, ready should Portsmouth’s Royal Naval Dockyard need his service.

Frederick was not to be called to action again. By the time the Armistice was declared Frederick’s condition was worsening. He had developed cancer of the tongue, and it was having a real impact. He was admitted to the Haslar Hospital in Portsmouth, and passed away there on 7th February 1919, at the age of 46 years old.

By this point the family had relocated to Bath, Somerset, and this is where Frederick Murray Walker’s body was brought for burial. He was laid to rest in the prestigious Lansdown Cemetery, overlooking the city.

Captain Frederick Walker
(from ancestry.co.uk)
Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, India, Kent, Mesopotamia, photography, Private, Royal West Kent Regiment, Somerset, story, Sussex, war

Private Walter Lane

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Private Walter Lane

Walter Frederick Lane was born in Sidcup, Kent, in the early part of 1893. The younger of two children, his parents were Frederick and Caroline Lane. Frederick was a carman and the transient nature of his work meant that the family moved on a regular basis.

The 1901 census found them in Eltham, Kent, while ten years later the family of three – Walter’s older sister having moved on – were boarding in Harton Street, Deptford. By this point, Walter was 17 years of age, and he was also working as a carman. (It is interesting to note that the earlier census recorded Walter’s parents by their first names, while the 1911 document used their middle names – Walter and Kate: transient work allowing for reinvention, perhaps?)

Walter sought a more permanent career, and, on 17th March 1913, he enlisted in the army. Full details of his military career have been lost to time and, in fact, most of his service details come from his discharge papers.

Walter enlisted in the Queen’s Own (Royal West Kent Regiment), although, as Private Lane, he was not formally mobilised until March 1914. When war broke out, his battalion, the 1st/5th, was sent to India, and he remained there for the duration of the war.

Private Lane’s time in the army was not without incident. He contracted malaria in 1915, and while he initially recovered, the condition was to continue to dog him over the following years.

By 1917 Walter’s troop was based in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, but in December that year, the battalion set sail from Bombay for Basra, Mesopotamia.

While in Iraq, he had a couple of run-ins with his superiors. On 22nd December 1917 he was stopped a week’s pay for ‘disobeying an order: putting his equipment on a transport waggon’ and ‘losing by neglect his equipment.’ On 18th February 1918, a further 28 days’ pay was deducted for ‘making away with regimental necessaries (1 towel)’ and ‘neglecting to obey an order.’

During this time, though, Walter’s health was regularly impacted when malaria caught up with him. His discharge documents recorded that he had an attack about once a month, which lasted four or five days each time. In the end, he was released from active service, and left the army on 19th February 1919.

Walter had been discharged while admitted to the Dispersal Hospital in Brighton. His health did not improve, however, and he was soon moved to Somerset for respite care. It was here that he passed away on 7th August 1919. He was 26 years of age.

Walter Frederick Lane was laid to rest in the Holy Trinity Churchyard, Newton St Loe, Somerset.

My thanks go to Liz at the local parish office for her help in unpicking the details of Walter’s passing.

Thanks also go to Tim Hill, who has been researching the graves in the Newton St Loe churchyard.

Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Leading Signalman, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, Scotland, Signalman, Somerset, story, war, Yeoman of Signals

Yeoman of Signals Alfred Collins

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Yeoman of Signals Alfred Collins

Alfred Henry Collins was born on 22nd August 1886, in the Gloucestershire village of Wotton-under-Edge. One of five children, his parents were cowman and farm labourer Samuel George Collins and his wife, Jane. Samuel’s work took the family south, and by the time of the 1901 census, the Collinses had settled in Whitchurch, near Bristol.

When Alfred finished his schooling, he also found employment labouring on a farm, but he was drawn to a more reliable career and a life at sea. On 9th March 1903, Alfred enlisted in the Royal Navy. His service records show the young man he was becoming. He was 5ft 4ins tall, with brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion.

Alfred was still underage in the navy’s eyes, and so he was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class. He was assigned to HMS Northampton, a training ship, and must have shown some promise, as within three months he had been promoted.

In June 1903, Boy 1st Class Collins was assigned to HMS Victory, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth, Hampshire, and his trajectory was still upwards. When he turned seventeen on 22nd August, Alfred was formally enrolled in the Royal Navy, and was given the rank of Ordinary Seaman. However, his training in Portsmouth continued, and by November he had become a Signalman.

In December 1903 he was posted to the cruiser HMS Isis and, over the next decade he served on ten different ships, returning to HMS Vivid, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Devonport, in between voyages. During this time he was promoted to Leading Signalman, and his annual reviews showed him as having a very good character and a superior ability.

With war now brewing across Europe, the role of the navy intensified. When conflict was declared, Leading Signalman Collins was serving on board the cruiser HMS Pomone and, after nine months back at HMS Vivid, possibly in a training role, Alfred was assigned to the newly-refitted battleship HMS Bellerophon, on board which he would serve for more than two years.

Bellerophon served at the Battle of Jutland, and remained patrolling the southern part of the North Sea for the rest of the war. In July 1917, Alfred was promoted again, to Yeoman of the Signals, and transferred to HMS King George. He remained in the North Sea, but his new ship was there to protect the convoys transporting good between the UK and Norway, so he was based in Scotland.

Yeoman of the Signals Collins survived the war, but in February 1919 he was admitted to the Royal Naval Hospital in Granton, near Edinburgh, suffering from pneumonia. Sadly, the condition was to get the better of him and he died on 14th February 1919, at the age of 32 years old. He had served for just short of sixteen years.

The body of Alfred Henry Collins was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Nicholas’ Church in Whitchurch.