Tag Archives: 1921

Bandsman, Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, Kent, Lance Corporal, Lance Serjeant, photography, Private, Somerset, story, The Lancers, Trumpeter, Tyne & Wear, war, Wiltshire

Corporal John Ashton

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Corporal John Ashton

John Gordon Ashton was born at the start of 1885, and was one of at least two children to John and Elizabeth. Little information is available about his early life, although later records confirm that he was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and that the family were living on Elswick Road, leading west out of the city, by 1900.

John found work as a musician, but sought a bigger and better career for himself. On 3rd October 1900, he enlisted in the army, joining the 21st (Empress of India’s) Lancers. His service records show that, at not yet sixteen years of age, he was just 5ft 1in (1.55m) tall, and weighed 101lbs (46kg). He had brown hair, grey eyes and a dark complexion, and two moles on the front of his left shoulder.

Private Ashton joined up for a period of 12 years’ service, and spent most of it on home soil. The army seemed to suit him, and he steadily rose through the ranks. By August 1901, John was promoted to Bandsman; five years later, he took the rank of Trumpeter; the start of 1908 brought with it a promotion to Lance Corporal.

In September 1910, John’s unit was sent to Egypt: the move brought him a further promotion. Corporal Ashton spent two years in Cairo, before returning to Britain in the autumn of 1912. He had completed his contract of service with the 21st Lancers, and was formally discharged from service on 4th October.

Back on civvy street, John once again found work as a musician. Life outside of the army seemed not to suit him, however, and he joined the reserve forces in March 1913. The now Lance Sergeant’s service records show the man he had become: he now stood 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall, and bore a large oval scar on the underside of his right knee.

When war was declared the following summer, John was formally mobilised once more. He was attached to the 9th (Queen’s Royal) Lancers and, by 27th August 1914, was in France. Lance Sergeant Ashton’s time overseas was not to last long, however; he returned to Britain just before Christmas that year, and was based at Tidworth Camp in Wiltshire.

John’s military record was not without its hiccups. On 11th March 1910, while based in Canterbury, he was severely reprimanded for being in neglect of his duty whilst in charge of a barrack room. In 1915, however, he received a more severe punishment: on 23rd January, he was found guilty of using insubordinate language to his superior officer – in front of six ranking witnesses – and was demoted to Corporal.

It would seem that John’s health was beginning to suffer, and, after a career of nearly sixteen years, he was medically discharged from the army because of a heart condition.

At this point, his trail goes cold. He remained in the Wiltshire area, and seems to have been receiving ongoing medical treatment. At some point, he married a woman called Mary, although no other information is readily available for her.

Early in 1921, John was admitted to the Pensions Hospital in Bath, Somerset, having contracted pneumonia. He passed away there on 25th February following an aneurysm of the heart. He was 36 years of age.

John Gordon Ashton was laid to rest in the sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery in Bath.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, injury, Labour Corps, London Regiment, photography, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private Frank Gunney

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Private Frank Gunney

Frank Gunney was born in Brushford, Somerset, in the spring of 1890. The youngest of four children, with two sisters and a brother, his parents were William and Mary. William was a groom-turned-gardener, but when Frank left school, he found other employment: by the time of the 1911 census, he was recorded as being a tailor.

Frank’s older brother, James, followed his father’s trade, becoming a groom when he finished his schooling. His work took him to South Wales, where he met and married Emma Lewis. The couple went on to have two children: Hilda and Kenneth. When war came to Europe, James enlisted, joining the Royal Army Service Corps as a Private.

Frank followed his brother into the army, enlisting in the Somerset Light Infantry on 11th December 1915. This must have proved a tragic time for his mother, Mary, as, just ten days later, William died “after a long and painful illness.” [Western Times: Friday 24th December 1915]

Frank’s service records give little away about the man he had become, but do note that he was 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall. He was re-assigned to the 1st/21st Battalion of the London Regiment, and was sent to France in June 1916.

Private Gunney’s service papers suggest that he was injured on 9th September 1916, having received a gun shot wound to the head. He appears to have been treated on site, and there seems to be no notable break in his time on the front line.

James was killed in action on 7th April 1917: he was 33 years of age, and was laid to rest in the Warlincourt Halte British Cemetery in Saulty. Mary had lost a husband and a son within eighteen months, and James had left a widow and two children.

In March 1917, Private Frank Gunney had transferred to the Labour Corps, and aside from a six-month period on home soil, would remain in France until September 1919. He then returned to Britain, and was demobbed a month later.

Frank returned to Somerset, but his trail then goes cold. Two documents give an idea as to what happened next, however. The first is a newspaper report about his burial:

The funeral took place in All Saints’ Churchyard, Dulverton… of Mr F Gunney, only don of Mrs Gunney… who died on Tuesday last. Deceased served three years in France, and has been in failing health practically ever since demobilisation, although the end came rather suddenly.

Western Times: Tuesday 22nd March 1921

His army Pension Ledger Card, confirms that he had been discharged from the army because of a ‘septic wound to his left thumb’, which was due to his military service. It appears that this had festered over the ensuing years: Frank Gunney passed away on 15th March 1921, aged 30 years of age.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, injury, photography, Sergeant, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Serjeant Walter Hayes

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Serjeant Walter Hayes

Walter Hayes was born in Somerset in 1883. The oldest of seven children, his parents were William and Mary Hayes. William was an agricultural labourer, and the family lived and worked at Houndhill, to the south east of Stogumber.

Walter also fell into farm work and, in the spring of 1914, he married Emily Mary Tarr. The wedding took place in Tiverton, Devon, but the couple did not stay there for long as, just weeks after their wedding day, Emily gave birth to a daughter, Edith, over the Somerset border in Dulverton.

Storm clouds were brewing over European shores, and Walter was called upon to play his part. His service records are also sparse, but they confirm that he initially joined the Somerset Light Infantry, before moving across to the Devonshire Regiment.

Walter had either been in the army earlier in his life, or he worked his way up during the war, and at some point he reached the rank of Serjeant. He saw fighting overseas and, according to later documentation, was caught up in a gas attack. This was to have an impact on his health and he was discharged from army service sooner than he might otherwise have done. Officially stood down in March 1919, he returned home to his wife and family.

Emily and Walter had a second child, William, later that year, and the family were finally able to settle into a routine. Walter’s health, however, was severely impacted and, on 12th January 1921, he passed away from bronchitis. The lung condition was found to be directly attributable to his war service, and that gas attack, Walter was 38 years of age.

Walter Hayes was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of All Saints’ Church in Dulverton.

Emily was pregnant when her husband died: she gave birth to their third child, a son she named Walter, just a few months later. She did not re-marry, and, according to the 1939 Register, she was boarding in a house in Dulverton and carrying out unpaid domestic duties.

Emily lived on until the autumn of 1973, passing away in Taunton at the age of 85.

Serjeant Walter Hayes
(courtesy of Trevor Hayes)

The early life of Walter Hayes was a challenge to piece together, as his was not an uncommon name in the area at the time. My thanks go to his great nephew, Trevor Hayes, for his help in pulling together the story and for the image of his great uncle.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, King's (Liverpool Regiment), Labour Corps, photography, Private, Rifleman, Somerset, story, unknown, war

Private Joseph Curtis

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Private Joseph Curtis

In the war grave section of Locksbrook Cemetery in Bath, Somerset, is a headstone dedicated to a Private J Curtis, of the King’s Liverpool Regiment, who passed away on 3rd January 1921. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission confirms that Joseph Curtis had transferred to the 430th Company of the Labour Corps at some point.

Little additional information is available for Joseph Curtis. Only one service document remains, his Medal Roll Index Card. This gives the dates of his service – 22nd February 1915 to 17th October 1918 – but no other identifying details.

Without a year or place of birth, it is not possible to track down any census records. As Bath was the location of both a War Hospital and one for army pensioners, his burial in a cemetery nearby is no guarantee that the city was ever his home. There is also no report of Private Curtis’ passing or funeral in any available contemporary newspapers.

The life of James Curtis is destined to remain a mystery, therefore, taken with him when he was laid to rest.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorsetshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war, Yorkshire

Corporal Frank Crew

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Corporal Frank Crew

Frank George Crew was born in Twerton, Somerset, on 25th January 1886. The fourth of five children, his parents were nurseryman and market gardener William Crew and his laundress wife, Fanny.

When Frank finished his schooling, he followed his father into the nursery trade, and this is how he was employed when war was declared. He enlisted in the Dorsetshire Regiment on 19th July 1915, and was assigned to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion. Private Crew’s service records are limited, but his medical report shows that he was 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall, weighing around 10st (63.5kg).

On 6th October 1918, Frank, who had been promoted to Corporal by this point, was admitted to the Military Hospital in York with a bullet wound to his right forearm. Given that his battalion remained on home soil for the duration of the conflict, it is unclear whether this was an accidental injury at camp, or if he transferred to another troop when he recovered.

Little additional information for Frank remains. He remained in hospital until 8th November 1918 and it is unclear if he continued with his army service once he recovered – although given the Armistice was declared three days later, it is unlikely that he did.

On 11th November itself, Frank married Kate May, a mason’s daughter from Limpley Stoke, to the west of Bath. By this point he recorded his profession as gardener, so it seems his army career was indeed behind him. The couple went on to have a daughter, Peggy, who was born a year later.

William died in 1920, and by the time of the following year’s census, Frank, Kate and Peggy were living with Frank’s now-widowed mother. The extended family had a home on Padleigh Hill, to the south west of Bath city centre, and Frank seemed to be the main breadwinner, working as a labourer for Stothert & Pitts Ltd, a crane company on the River Avon.

Sadly, Frank was only to survive the census by a couple of months. He passed away on 21st August 1921, dying from a combination of influenza and epilepsy. He was 35 years of age.

Frank George Crew was laid to rest in the quiet Englishcombe Churchyard, close to the family home.

Commonwealth War Graves, Gloucestershire, Great War, history, Mid-Glamorgan, photography, Royal Engineers, Sapper, Somerset, story, suicide, war

Sapper Frank Gilbert

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Sapper Frank Gilbert

On Monday the body of a man was found.. neat Newton Bridge, commonly known as the “Skew” Bridge, having been killed by a passing train… The deceased was Frank Gilbert…

The inquest was held at the Globe Inn, Newton… by the Coroner for North Somerset (Dr S Craddock), who sat without a jury.

The first witness… said the previous morning he was walking along the railway when he saw the body of a man lying on the down side. The head was separated from the body…

PC Cornish said he found four cards in the pockets of the deceased’s coat. Two were National Insurance cards, and there was an unemployment book, the last payment being dated 15-8-21.

Written on the blotting paper of the book was the following:

“It is quite dark. You still take you neck oil, and my children outside waiting. Marry the man who gave you the watch. Don’t forget to have an extra one (Guinness) over my parting. It would be murder if I ever lived with you again.”

The man’s name, “Frank Gilbert, 44 Jubilee Road, Aberdare,” was on some of the cards. Deceased was wearing a discharged soldier’s badge.

Sarah Kate Gilbert, wife of the deceased, who lives at Bristol, said she had not known her husband’s address at Aberdare. They had been living apart since he went into the Army in 1915. She had, however, met him since that date.

Witness added that she saw him on Sunday night, and went on to say that she took out a summons for a maintenance order against him last February at Gloucester. He was then working as a carpenter in Cheltenham.

The Coroner: ‘Have you ever heard him threaten to commit suicide?’

‘Yes, sir.’ She added that he did so on Sunday night when she was with him at the bottom of Park Lane, Bath. “He was always threatening me when we lived together,” she stated, and also said she had a separation order in Bath in 1913. She had a letter from him on Saturday morning in which he said that when she got the letter he would be gone. In the letter was enclosed the ticket for his suit-case, and the key.

[The letter read] “I would never dream of making a home for you as you are worth only the Gloucester man. You have ruined my life, and you will be able to sleep with… for always now. I shall be gone.”

Witness said there was no reason for him to have made any such statements, as she had had nothing to do with any man except him. He was always using threats. When she left him on Sunday night she told him to try and get on and pull himself together.

The Coroner recorded a verdict that deceased committed suicide by placing himself in front of a passing train on the Midland Railway.

Somerset Guardian and Radstock Observer: Friday 2nd September 1921

Little additional concrete information is available for Frank Gilbert’s life. No marriage certificate remains for his wedding to Sarah, nor is there any evidence for the couple in the 1911 census.

Frank’s service records no longer exist in their entirety, although his pension record give hints as to his service. He enlisted in the Royal Engineers as a Sapper on 20th November 1915, although he never saw any action overseas. He was medically discharged because of rheumatism on 11th November 1917. The document confirm he was born in 1883, and lived in Cheltenham after his discharge.

An additional newspaper report of the inquest confirmed that Sarah had two children, and that they lived with her parents in Bath. When asked by the Coroner if she intended to bury her husband’s remains, she replied that “she had no money to do it with.” [Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette: Saturday 3rd September 1921]

And so Frank Gilbert was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of Holy Trinity Church in Newton St Loe, near Bath in Somerset. He was around 38 years of age when he took his life.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Gunner, history, injury, photography, Private, Royal Field Artillery, Scotland, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private Herbert Millard

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Private Herbert Millard

Herbert George Millard was born on 8th February 1897 in Wells, Somerset, and was the second of six children to John and Alice Millard. John was a cowman, and, as Herbert grew, the family moved with his father’s work.

By the time of the 1911 census, the family had set up home at the Castle of Comfort Public House in East Harptree, to the south of Bristol. John, by now, was recorded as being a farmer and inn keeper, while his three oldest sons, Herbert included, were all employed as farm hands.

When the war broke out, Herbert was keen to play his part. He enlisted on 8th February 1915, his eighteenth birthday, and was assigned to the Royal Field Artillery. Initially posted for training in Glasgow, within a couple of months, Gunner Millard had been transferred to the Somerset Light Infantry.

The now Private Millard was sent to France in July 1915, and ended up serving three separate periods on the Front Line: July 1915 to October 1916, May 1917 to August 1917 and March 1918 to June 1918.

At some point during his service, he received gunshot wounds to his chest and ‘upper extremities’. It is unclear when this happened, but it may have been what led to Private Millard’s ultimate discharge from service in August 1918.

At this point Herbert’s trail goes cold. He appears to have returned to Somerset, and was living with his family, who had now moved to Baltonsborough, to the south of Glastonbury. The next record for him is that of his passing: he died on 13th March 1921, aged just 24 years old.

Herbert George Millard was laid to rest in the quiet St Dunstan’s Churchyard in Baltonsborough.

Private Herbert Millard (from ancestry.co.uk)
Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Great War, history, illness, Lance Corporal, photography, Private, Royal Engineers, Royal Lancashire Regiment, Sapper, story, war

Sapper William Dove

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Sapper William Dove

William Henry Dove was born in the autumn of 1871 in Stafford, Staffordshire and was one of seven children to William and Louisa Dove. William Sr was a gardener by trade, but his son wanted bigger and better things.

On leaving school, he initially took up a post as a junior teacher, but military service was calling him and, on 21st February 1891 he enlisted in the Royal Lancaster Regiment. Private Dove’s service records show that he was 5ft 7ins (1.70cm) tall and 136lbs (61.8kg) in weight. He had sandy hair, grey eyes and a fair complexion. He also gave his age as 18 years and 3 months, although he was actually a year older.

Private Dove signed up for seven years’ service and completed this on home soil. In October 1891 he was promoted to Lance Corporal, and a year later he was promoted again, this time to Corporal.

In November 1894, William was found guilty of ‘conduct to the prejudice of good order and drunkenness‘ and was sentenced to be reduced in rank, so became a Private again. He learnt the error of his ways, though, and was reinstated to Lance Corporal in March 1897.

William’s service was completed in February 1898, and he was transferred across to the Army Reserve. This was intended to be for a further five years, but on 15th February 1900, he was discharged from future active service, having been found to be medically unfit. During his time in the army, William had been treated for a two bouts of gonorrhoea, as well as four further infections. The cause of his final medical discharge, however, is unclear.

While on reserve, William had found employment as a railway porter. His work took him to Llangollen, Denbighshire and, this is where he set up home. On 18th April 1899, he married Ellenor Roberts, a labourer’s daughter from the town: the young couple set up home in Ashfield House, Regent Street – now the busy A5.

The 1911 census records William as a porter: the couple had no children of their own, but had adopted a girl, Cissie, who was then eight years old. A live-in domestic servant – Esther Williams – was also recorded on the census.

War was coming to Europe by this point and, while details of his service are unclear, William stepped up to play his part once more. He enlisted in the Royal Engineers as a Sapper, at some point during the conflict, although exact details are lost to time.

Sapper Dove survived the war and returned to Llangollen. The 1921 census records him Ellenor and Cissie living at Bronhaul, and that William was working as a parcel’s porter for Great Western Railways. On 18th August 1921, he collapsed and died with a brain aneurysm. He was 39 years of age.

William Henry Dove was buried in the graveyard of St John’s Church in Llangollen, a short distance from the station at which he portered for so long.

Ellenor lived on until her late 70s. When she passed away, she was laid to rest in the family plot, reunited with her husband after 35 years.

Canada, Canadian Forestry Corps, Commonwealth War Graves, Denbighshire, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, story, Wales, war

Private Norman Roberts

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Private Norman Roberts

Norman David Roberts was born on 3rd November 1886 in the North Wales town of Llangollen. He was the youngest of three children to weaver John Roberts and his wife, Emma.

When he left school, Norman found work as a clerk on the railways and, by the time of the 1911 census, he had moved over the English border to Chester, and was boarding with an Emma Matheson.

The move to England may have spurred Norman on to other things. At some point after the census, he made the decision to seek a better life overseas. He emigrated to North America and settled in the town of Everett, to the north of Seattle. He continued his trade, however, and recorded himself as doing clerical work in transportation.

War was coming to Europe by this point and, in December 1917, Norman stood up to play his part. He made the crossing to Victoria, in the Canadian state of British Colombia, and enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force.

Private Roberts’ service records show that he was 5ft 11ins (1.80m) tall, had blue eyes, brown hair and a fair complexion. He had no distinguishing marks, but was recorded as having 20/20 vision. His religion was also recorded as Baptist/Congregationalist.

Norman was assigned to the 53rd Company of the Canadian Forestry Corps, and arrived back in Britain on 26th January 1918. Based in Shorncliffe, Kent, he was involved in felling and trimming trees and wood for the war effort.

Private Roberts was given a couple of periods of leave – five days in July 1918, and nine days in December that year. The latter leave was granted so that he could marry Claudia Griffiths back home in Wales.

While the Armistice had been declared, by January, Norman was back in Kent helping the post-war effort. Things were to take a turn, however, as he caught a severe cold, and a nagging cough. Unable to shake it, he grew progressively weaker and, over the next six months, lost 20lbs (9kg) in weight.

Admitted to the camp hospital in June 1919, Private Roberts was diagnosed with bronchitis. He was moved to another hospital in Orpington, Kent, where his diagnosis was upgraded to tuberculosis. Invalided back to Canada that August, within a matter of weeks he was medically discharged from service. His discharge papers noted that was weighed just 122lbs (55.3kg) and has a long flat chest with prominent clavicles. Norman’s once fair complexion was now dark (a combination of his work outside and his health).

Now out of the army, Norman made the journey back to North Wales, and settled in Llangollen with Claudia. The couple went on to have a daughter in 1920, but Norman’s health was deteriorating. He passed away at home on 23rd February 1921, at the age of 34 years old.

Norman David Roberts was laid to rest in Fron Cemetery in his home town of Llangollen. His was a family plot, and he was reunited with Claudia when she passed away.

Commonwealth War Graves, Denbighshire, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, South Lancashire Regiment, story, Wales, war

Rifleman Harold Dean

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Rifleman Harold Dean

Harold Dean was born in the spring of 1888 in Llangollen, Denbighshire. One of four children to John and Sarah Dean, his father was a waiter at the Hand Hotel in the town until his death in 1905. When Harold left school, he was taken on by the hotel, and, by the time of the 1911 census, was recorded as working as a billiard marker.

War was coming to Europe by this point and, on 24th October 1916, Harold enlisted. He joined the South Lancashire Regiment (also known as The Prince of Wales’s Volunteers) and was assigned to the 2nd/5th Battalion.

After an initial few months’ training, Private Dean was sent to France, and was soon ensconced on the Western Front. Caught up in the fighting, he received a gun shot wound to his left wrist on 7th June 1917 and, after some initial treatment in a camp hospital, he was evacuated to Britain for full recuperation.

Harold remained on home soil for the remainder of the year, He contracted tuberculosis that winter and was medically discharged from the army because of it on 5th December 1917.

At this point, Harold’s trail goes cold. He returned to Llangollen, and remained there after his mother passed away in 1919. It appears that his lung condition continued to dog him, however, and this was probably the cause of his untimely passing. He died on 16th March 1921, at the age of 33 years old.

Harold Dean was laid to rest in Fron Cemetery, in his home town of Llangollen.