Tag Archives: illness

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, Kent, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Christopher Hickey

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Stoker 1st Class Christopher Hickey

Christopher Hickey was born on Christmas Eve 1891, in Wicklow, Southern Ireland. Full details of his early life are not available, but his mother was called Mary and he had at least one sibling, a sister called Catherine.

When he left school, he worked as a gardener but, when the war broke out, he enlisted, joining the Royal Navy on 5th November 1915. His enlistment records show that he stood 5ft 6ins (1.67m) tall, had brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion.

Stoker 2nd Class Hickey received his initial training at HMS Pembroke, the shore establishment at the Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. In February 1916, he was assigned to HMS Champion, a cruiser that, during his time on board, served as a flagship during the Battle of Jutland that summer.

Christopher returned to HMS Pembroke in November 1916, having been promoted to Stoker 1st Class. He served there until the following March, when he was admitted to the local Naval hospital with pyaemia (or sepsis). Sadly, this proved too much for his body to take and he died on 20th March 1917 at the age of 25 years old.

Christopher’s body was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, Kent, not far from the base at which he had served.

Interestingly, the Irish Memorial Records for the Great War confirm Christopher’s passing, but give the cause of death as ‘died of wounds’, although I have been unable to find anything else to corroborate this. It may be that sepsis set after he was wounded, but it is reasonable to assume that full details will remain lost to time.

Bedfordshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, Royal Marines, story, war

Private John Lodge

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Private John Lodge

John Thomas Inskip Lodge was born in Shefford, Bedfordshire, on 31st January 1899, one of seven children to John and Florence Lodge (née Inskip). When his son was young, John Sr worked as a bead lace manufacturer, but by the time of the 1911 census, he had become the manager of a steam laundry.

Florence, by this time, had passed away, and in November 1911, John Sr married again, to Florence Yarnell. The couple would go on to have four children, John Jr’s half-siblings.

By this time, war was on the horizon, and John was eager to leave his laundry job and volunteer. He joined the Royal Marine Light Infantry on 4th September 1915, giving his date of birth as three years earlier in order to ensure he was accepted. His service record shows that he stood 5ft 4ins (1.62m) tall, had a fresh complexion, brown eyes and brown hair.

As a Private, John served with the Chatham Division of the regiment; he would have seen action in some of the key battles of the war, including at Gallipoli in 1915/16 and later on the Western Front. It was while he was fighting in France in September 1916 that he was injured, and he was medically evacuated back to England for treatment.

Private Lodge recovered, and served on in Chatham, Kent, where he was billeted at the naval barracks in the town. At the start of June 1917, he had some leave owing, and so visited his parents back in Bedfordshire. When he returned to Kent, he fell ill and was admitted to the Naval Hospital in the town. Sadly, John was not to recover; he passed away on 23rd June 1917, aged just 18 years old.

John Thomas Inskip Lodge was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, not far from the Chatham barracks at which he was based.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, Kent, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class James Duffy

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Stoker 1st Class James Duffy

James Albert Duffy was born on 21st May 1888 in the town of Monaghan, Ireland. The son of Francis and Elizabeth Duffy, he was one of ten children. Francis was a policeman, but James took up plastering when he left school; by the time of the 1911 census, the family had left Monaghan and moved to Belfast.

War was coming, and James received his call up in March 1916. He joined the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class; his service record shows that he stood 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall and had fair hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion.

After two months’ training at HMS Pembroke in Chatham, Kent, Stoker Duffy was assigned to HMS Chatham, a cruiser that served in the Mediterranean. He spent eighteen months on board, and was promoted to Stoker 1st Class for his service.

At the end of 1917, James returned to Chatham Dockyard. While there, he fell ill, and was admitted to the Naval Hospital in the town. Sadly, while in hospital he passed away, having suffered a cerebral abscess. He died on 29th January 1918, aged just 29 years old.

James Albert Duffy was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, not far from the dockyard at which he had been based.

Able Seaman, Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, Essex, Great War, history, illness, Kent, Leading Seaman, Ordinary Seaman, Petty Officer, photography, Royal Navy, story, war

Petty Officer 1st Class George Fawcett

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Petty Officer 1st Class George Fawcett

George Fawcett was born on 3rd February 1873, one of ten children to John and Maria (or Mary). John was a stonemason who raised his family in Essex, and it was in Stratford that George and most of his siblings were born.

When George left school, he was drawn to a life of adventure. He joined the Royal Navy on 5th May 1888, and was first assigned the role of Boy, as he was under age. He was formally enlisted on 3rd February 1891 – his 18th birthday. He had, by this point, been serving on HMS Hotspur for nine months, and was given the rank of Ordinary Seaman. His hard work must have held him in good stead, because he was promoted to Able Seamen just two months later.

Over the course of his initial twelve years’ service, Able Seaman Fawcett served on eight different ships, and continued to rise through the ranks. He mad made Leading Seaman by 1894 and Petty Officer 2nd Class five years later. By the time his first term of service had ended, he had been promoted again, this time to Petty Officer 1st Class.

George voluntarily renewed his service in 1903, and over the next few years, he served on a number of other vessels. His shore base was always HMS Pembroke, though, and his time at sea was interspersed with periods at the Naval Dockyard in Chatham.

Petty Officer Fawcett had been in the Royal Navy for 23 years by the time war was declared. He was still at sea in August 1914, but was transferred to a permanent shore role at the beginning of the following year. He spent three years fulfilling his duties at HMS Pembroke, but fell ill in the spring of 1918.

He was admitted to the Naval Hospital in Chatham with liver disease, and this was a condition he was not to recover from. Petty Officer Fawcett passed away on 12th April 1918, at the age of 45.

George Fawcett’s body was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham, not far from the naval base at which he was based.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Kent, London, photography, Royal Naval Reserve, story, Trimmer, war

Trimmer John Kelly

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Trimmer John Kelly

John Kelly was born in East London on 11th January 1871, the son of Charles and Jane. There is not a lot of concrete information about his early life, but he seems to have married an Isabella Coles in the late 1890s, and the couple went on to have at least one child – a daughter they called Lizzie.

On 13th May 1915, with the First World War raging, John enlisted. He joined the Royal Navy for the duration of the war as a Trimmer (or Stoker), His enlistment papers show that he stood at 5ft 6ins (1.67m tall), had a fair complexion and blue eyes. He is also noted as having a scar on his chin.

During his time at sea, Trimmer Kelly served on board a number of vessels; his primary base, however, remained HMS Pembroke, the shore-based establishment at the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent.

It was while he was on board HMS Hecla, a depot ship, that John fell ill with stomach problems. Returned to Chatham, he was admitted to the Naval Hospital in the town, but died of a carcinoma of the stomach on 17th November 1918. He was 47 years old.

John Kelly was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham, a short distance from the dockyard where he had been based.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, Kent, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class James Kilmartin

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Stoker 1st Class James Kilmartin

James Kilmartin was born on 24th June 1894, one of four children to James and Mary Kilmartin. James Sr was a farmer from Tobercurry in County Sligo, and this is where he raised his family.

When he left school, James Jr helped his father out on the farm, but by the time he was 22, war was raging in Europe and he received his call-up papers. He joined the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class on 11th April 1916 and was sent to England for training.

After initially being based at HMS Pembroke – the shore-based establishment at the Naval Dockyard in Chatham – Stoker Kilmartin was assigned to HMS Greenwich. He served on board for nine months, during which time he was promoted to Stoker 1st Class.

James’ next assignment was on board HMS Bacchante, where he spent two years, through the Armistice and beyond. Returning back to HMS Pembroke in February 1919, he fell ill, contracting bronchial pneumonia. Admitted to hospital, the condition sadly got the better of him, and he died on 24th February 1919, aged just 24 years of age.

James Kilmartin was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham, a short walk from the dockyard at which he had been based.

Tragically, less than two weeks after James died, his brother Michael, also passed away, at home in Tobercurry. While I have been unable to locate any specific documentation around military service, it seems likely that he too would have been in some way involved in the conflict.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, Kent, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 2nd Class William Bonham

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Stoker 2nd Class William Bonham

William Bonham was born in Abbeyleix, Queen’s County (now County Laois) on 6th September 1895. One of ten children, his parents were labourer John Bonham and his wife Mary.

Little information about William’s early life is available; when he left school, he found work as a railway porter, but when he was 23, with war having be raging across Europe, he received his enlistment papers.

William joined the Royal Navy on 13th October 1918, and set sail for England. Assigned the role of a Stoker, he was sent to HMS Pembroke – the shore-based establishment at the Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – for training. Less than eight weeks later, however, he was dead.

Stoker Bonham had contracted pneumonia that winter, and died at his home in Chatham on 12th December 1918. He was just 23 years old.

William was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery in nearby Gillingham.

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

Officer’s Cook 3rd Class Paolo Spiteri

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Officer’s Cook Paolo Spiteri

Paolo Spiteri was born in Valetta, Malta, on 25th January 1881, the son of Stephen Spiteri. Sadly there is very little further information on his early life, other than he worked as a cook when he left school.

Paolo saw a life at sea as a good career, and, in August 1901, aged 20, joined the Royal Navy. Over the next twenty years, he travelled the world, serving on more than twenty ships and working his way up from a domestic in the kitchen to an Officer’s Cook 3rd Class.

By 1921, Paolo was based at HMS Pembroke – the shore establishment at the Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – and contracted pneumonia there. Admitted to the Naval Hospital in the town, the condition sadly got the better of him, and he passed away on 5th April 1921. He was 42 years old.

Officer’s Cook Paolo Spiteri was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery, not far from the dockyard at which he was based.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Royal Navy, Somerset, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Arthur Smith

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Stoker 1st Class Arthur Smith

Arthur Edgar Smith was born in the Somerset village of Beckington on 12th January 1890. He was one of eight children to agricultural labourer and cowman George Smith and his wife Hester.

Arthur was after some adventure in his life, and didn’t want to be limited to Somerset. The Royal Navy offered this opportunity, and so, in December 1909, aged 19, he joined the service as a Stoker 2nd Class. His service records confirm that he stood at 5ft 7ins (1.7m) tall, had a fresh complexion, brown hair and hazel eyes. He signed up for the standard 12 years’ service.

After an initial five months’ training at HMS Vivid in Devonport, Stoker Smith was assigned to the battleship HMS Mars. During his two years’ service on board, he was promoted to Stoker 1st Class. In January 1912, he was reassigned, boarding HMS Orion, also a battleship.

Over the next two years, Stoker Smith served on board two further vessels, HMS Hercules and HMS Narcissus. In April 1916, Arthur was transferred back to HMS Vivid, suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis. This ultimately led to him being medically discharged from the Royal Navy, and he left service in June that year.

At this point, Arthur’s trail goes a bit cold. It would seem that his lung condition ultimately got the better of him, and he passed away back at home on 2nd December 1918. He was just 27 years of age.

Arthur Edgar Smith was laid to rest in the Dissenters’ Cemetery on Vallis Road in Frome, where his parents now lived.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Royal Navy, Somerset, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Herbert Rose

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Stoker 1st Class Herbert Rose

Herbert Hastings Rose was born on 19th August 1893 in the Somerset town of Frome. He was one of four children, all of whom were boys, to Hastings and Emily Rose. Hastings was employed as a labourer, but he died young, passing away in 1900, when Herbert was only seven years old.

Emily was left raising her four boys alone – the youngest of whom was a mere babe-in-arms – and found domestic char work to bring in some money. By 1905, however, local carter Enos Bainton had taken the family under his wing, and the couple married.

The census return six years later found the family living in a small cottage near the centre of Frome. Herbert and his older brother, who were in their late teens by this point, were working with their stepfather, carting coal for a local merchant.

Herbert’s job was to stand him in good stead when hostilities broke out. When the call came in November 1915, he enlisted in the Royal Navy, and was employed as a Stoker 2nd Class. After his initial training on board HMS Vivid – the shore-based establishment in Plymouth – he was assigned to the cruiser HMS Constance. He served on board the ship for two years, gaining a promotion to Stoker 1st Class in the process.

After a month back in Plymouth, Stoker Rose was transferred to HMS Cambrian, another cruiser, on board which he spent three months. He then returned to HMS Vivid. It was during this time that Herbert fell ill. Admitted to hospital in Plymouth with pneumonia, this was to get the better of him; he passed away on 31st October 1918, aged just 25 years old.

Herbert Hastings Rose’s body was brought back to Somerset; he was laid to rest in the Dissenters’ Cemetery in Vallis Road, Frome.