Tag Archives: Kent

Commonwealth War Graves, County Durham, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Naval Reserve, Stoker, story, war

Stoker George Bell

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Stoker George Bell

George Joseph Bell was born on 9th October 1890 in South Shields, County Durham. He was one of four children – all boys – to George and Eleanor Bell. George Sr was from Chatham in Kent and worked as a boilermaker for a shipbuilder.

Both of George Jr’s parents died when he and his siblings were in their teens. Times were definitely harsh for them: George’s older brother Robert was a coal teemer – unloading the carts at the Tyneside docks. His younger brother, Matthew, was a pit pony driver for the Bolden Colliery. George himself was a pressed glass manufacturer.

The 1911 census recorded Robert, George and Matthew boarding with the Easter family; renting a room in a three-bedroomed house on Commercial Road, South Shields, within spitting distance of the docks and river.

George was, by this point, courting a young lady a few doors down from him. Harriet Shield was the daughter of one of the dock labourers; the couple married at St Hilda’s Parish Church on 30th November 1912.

War was coming to Europe, and on 18th December 1914, George enlisted to play his part. His service records show that he stood 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall, had blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He was also noted as having tattoos of a heart and his initials on his left forearm.

George joined the Royal Naval Reserve – this suggests that he had previously had some sea-going experience, although there is no specific evidence of this. He was given the role of Stoker, and was sent to HMS Pembroke – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – for training.

Stoker Bell’s first posting – and where he spent to most of 1915 – was on board the seaplane tender HMS Engadine. He returned to Chatham that November, before being assigned to the minesweeper HMS Gentian two months later.

After five months patrolling the North Sea, Stoker Bell returned to HMS Pembroke in June 1917. The Dockyard was a busy place that summer, and temporary accommodation was needed quickly. Chatham Drill Hall was brought into service, and George found himself billeted there.

On the 3rd September 1917, the German Air Force carried out its first night air raid: Chatham was heavily bombed and the Drill Hall received a direct hit; Stoker Bell was among those killed instantly. He was just 27 years of age.

George Joseph Bell was laid to rest alongside the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Buckinghamshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Henry Hill

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Stoker 1st Class Henry Hill

Henry Charles Hill was born in Eton Wick, Berkshire, on 16th December 1894. He was the son of Alfred and Sarah Hill and was one of seven children – tragically only he and his younger sister survived childhood. Arthur was a wheelwright and, while Henry worked as a jobbing gardener when he left school, by the time he was eighteen, he had found employment as a cycle fitter.

Storm clouds were brewing over Europe and, on 14th April 1913, Henry enlisted in the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class. His service records show that he was 5ft 4ins (1.63m) tall, had brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion; it was also noted that he had a scar under his left eye.

Henry was sent to HMS Pembroke – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – for his training, but was given his first posting on HMS St George on 22nd November 1913. After five months on board, he was promoted to Stoker 1st Class and transferred to the battleship HMS King George V.

Stoker Hill spent more than three years at sea, before returning to HMS Pembroke in July 1917. The Dockyard was particularly busy that summer, and the large number of extra servicemen meant that Henry was billeted in temporary accommodation in Chatham Drill Hall.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force bombarded the town, and scored a direct hit on the Drill Hall; Stoker Hill was among those killed instantly. He was just 22 years of age.

Henry Charles Hill was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Hertfordshire, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Leonard Fish

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Stoker 1st Class Leonard Fish

Leonard Fish was born on 24th November 1893, one of eleven children to Arthur and Elizabeth. Arthur was a maltser (brewer) from Hertfordshire and is was in Ware that Leonard was born.

While Leonard’s older brothers followed in their father’s brewing footsteps, he worked as a farm labourer after leaving school. He wanted bigger things, however, and, on 25th February 1913, he enlisted in the Royal Navy.

Leonard’s service records show that he stood 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall, had brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He enlisted as a Stoker 2nd Class, and was sent to HMS Pembroke – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent – for training.

Over the next four years, Stoker Fish travelled far and wide. His initial sea posting was on board the battleship HMS King Edward VII; he served on board for nearly two-and-a-half years, gaining a promotion to Stoker 1st Class in the process.

After a brief spell back in Chatham, Leonard was sent to HMS Vivid – a similar shore-based establishment in Devonport – and from there he was assigned to the newly fitted out battleship HMS Royal Oak. Within the month she was at the heart of the Battle of Jutland, and continued to protect the North Sea convoys.

Stoker Fish returned to HMS Pembroke in August 1917. The Dockyard was particularly busy that summer, and the large number of extra servicemen meant that Leonard was billeted in temporary accommodation in Chatham Drill Hall.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force bombarded the town, and scored a direct hit on the Drill Hall; Stoker Fish was among those killed. He was just 23 years of age.

Leonard Fish was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Stoker Leonard Fish
(from ancestry.co.uk)

Leonard’s older brother Frederick Fish also fought in the First World War.

Frederick was born three years before Leonard, and enlisted in the Royal West Kent Regiment in 1915. He was sent to France at the end of July, and gained the rank of Corporal.

He was killed in the fighting at the Somme on 13th July 1916. He was just 26 years of age, and left a widow, Ellen.

Corporal Frederick Fish was laid to rest in the Serre Road Cemetery No 2 in Beaumont-Hamel.

Corporal Frederick Fish
(from ancestry.co.uk)
Able Seaman, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, story, Wales, war

Able Seaman Raymond Ellis

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Able Seaman Raymond Ellis

Raymond Ellis was born on 10th August 1898, the youngest of eleven children to Thomas and Elizabeth. Thomas was a former army officer from North Wales. He had met and married Elizabeth Moseley while living in Worcestershire in the 1870s, before moving the family to Oxfordshire ten years later. By the time Raymond was born, the family had moved back to Wales again, and were living in Llandygai, not far from Bangor in Caernarvonshire, where Thomas was working as slate quarry inspector.

By the time of the 1911 census, Thomas had found other employment, and was working as the caretaker for a telephone exchange. This is where one of his daughters was employed, and was also where Raymond himself found work when he left school.

War was coming to Europe by this point, however, and, on 23rd September 1915, Raymond enlisted in the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve for a period of three years. His service records show that he was 5ft 4.5ins (1.64) tall, had red hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He was given the rank of Able Seaman and, after a month at HMS Victory – the Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth, Hampshire – was given his first posting, on board HMS Wallington.

Able Seaman Ellis came on shore at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, on 17th July 1917. The base was a particularly busy place at that point in the war and additional accommodation was desperately needed. Raymond found himself billeted at Chatham Drill Hall, away from the main barracks.

On the night of 3rd September 1917, Chatham suddenly found itself in the firing line, as the German Air Force launched a bombing raid. One of the bombs landed squarely on the Drill Hall, and Able Seaman Ellis was killed. He was just 18 years old.

Ninety-eight servicemen perished during the Chatham Air Raid that night. They were buried in a mass funeral at the Woodlands Cemetery in nearby Gillingham. This, too, is where Raymond Ellis was laid to rest.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, Norfolk, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 2nd Class Harry Barker

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Stoker 2nd Class Harry Barker

Harry Barker is one of those people whose lives are likely to remain lost to time as very little information remains that can be directly connected to him.

The only document that can be directly attributed to him is his Royal Navy service record. This confirms Harry’s date and place of birth as 5th January 1896 in West Dereham, Norfolk and confirms that he was a farm labourer before enlisting.

Census records confirm that, in 1901 there was a Harry Barker living in that village. He was residing with his grandparents – Robert and Elisabeth Barker – their son, Cornelius, and five more of their grandchildren.

One of the Barkers’ grandsons, Sidney, appears next to a Harry Barker on the 1911 census. Both were inmates at the Downham Union Workhouse, as does a Cornelius Barker. It seems likely, therefore, that the three are connected, and that this is the Harry Barker who appears on the service records five years later.

Harry’s records show that he enlisted in the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class on 27th October 1916. He was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall, had brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion.

Stoker Barker was initially stationed at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. After six months he received his first ocean-going post, aboard the dreadnought battleship HMS Hibernia. He spent five months on board, before returning to Chatham.

He was billeted in the Drill Hall, which had been set up with temporary accommodation during 1917, when the barracks themselves became overcrowded.

On the 3rd September 1917, the German Air Force carried out one of its first night-time air raids on England: Chatham was heavily bombed and the Drill Hall received a direct hit. Stoker Barker was amongst those killed instantly. He was just 20 years of age.

Harry Barker was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, Middlesex, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, story, war

Ordinary Seaman George Butler

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Ordinary Seaman George Butler

George Butler was born in Willesden, Middlesex, on 16th January 1899 and was the oldest of three children. His father, George Sr, was a bricklayer, while his mother, Sarah, worked as a laundress to help bring in some extra money.

Sadly, because of his age, there is little concrete information on George Jr’s early life. What can be confirmed is that, on 21st March 1917, having not long turned 18 years of age, and with the Great War well under way, he was keen to play his part for King and Country. He joined the Royal Navy for the duration of the conflict and was given the rank of Ordinary Seaman.

George’s service records show that he was 5ft 10ins (1.78m) tall, had brown hair, grey eyes and a fair complexion. It was also noted that he had a scar on his left leg. The document also confirms that he was employed as a bus washer.

Ordinary Seaman Butler was based at HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent. It was a busy place that summer, and temporary accommodation was needed quickly. Chatham Drill Hall was brought into service, and George found himself billeted there.

On the 3rd September 1917, the German Air Force carried out its first night air raid: Chatham was heavily bombed and the Drill Hall received a direct hit; Ordinary Seaman Butler was among those killed instantly. He was just 18 years of age.

George Butler was laid to rest, alongside the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

George’s headstone gives the incorrect initial, but the location is correct.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, Kent, killed in action, Leading Stoker, London, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Joseph Jackson

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Stoker 1st Class Joseph Jackson

Joseph Charles Sackett Jackson was born in Rotherhithe, Surrey, on 4th May 1884, and was on of seven children. His father – post office worker Joseph Jackson Sr – died in 1895, leaving his mother, Eliza, to raise the family.

She soon married Matthew Newton, a widower himself, and the 1901 census found the couple living in Asylum Road, Peckham with eleven of their children and step-children. Joseph, who was 17 years old by this point, was one of only four of the household to be working, and was employed as a brass turner.

Keen to better himself, Joseph looked to a longer career and, in September 1901, he enlisted in the Royal Navy. His service records show that he was 5ft 3ins (1.6m) tall, had dark brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion.

Initially underage, he served on the home front, Joseph was based at the shore establishments around the country – HMS President (London), HMS Pembroke (Chatham Dockyard, Kent) and HMS Victory (Portsmouth, Hampshire). In 1906, when he turned 23, he formally enlisted in the Royal Navy, and was given the rank of Stoker 2nd Class.

Over the next year, Joseph served on three vessels – HMS Hawke, HMS Dido and HMS Pathfinder – and was promoted to Stoker 1st Class. He continued his work at sea, but returned to HMS Pembroke in between voyages.

In the summer of 1913, Stoker Jackson was assigned to the battleship HMS Dominion, and it was here that he spent the next four years. He was promoted again, this time to Leading Stoker. He returned to HMS Pembroke in August 1917, although he was again given the rank of Stoker 1st Class.

Chatham Dockyard was particularly busy that summer, and the large number of extra servicemen meant that Joseph was billeted in temporary accommodation in Chatham Drill Hall.

On the 3rd September 1917, the first night air raid carried out by the German Air Force bombarded the town, and scored a direct hit on the Drill Hall; Stoker 1st Class Jackson was among those killed instantly. He was 33 years old.

Joseph Charles Sackett Jackson was laid to rest, along with the other victims of the Chatham Air Raid, in the Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Kent, London, London Regiment, photography, Private, Somerset, story, Sussex, war

Private John Lake

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Private John Lake

John Walker Lake was born in Eastbourne, East Sussex, in the spring of 1892, the only child of estate manager and auctioneer Percy Lake and his wife Elizabeth.

John’s mother passed away in 1900, when he was only eight years old, and details of his early life are hard to come by. However, by the time of the 1911 census, he had left school and enrolled in a mining college in Guston, near Dover, Kent.

When war broke out, John was quick to enlist. He joined the London Regiment on 18th September 1914, and was assigned to the 2nd/23rd Battalion. His service records show that he stood 5ft 8ins (1.72m) tall, had light hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Private Lake was not to remain in the army for long. Within weeks of joining, he contracted tuberculosis and, on 22nd February 1915, after just 158 days, he was discharged from service as being no longer medically fit for duty.

At this point, John’s trail goes cold. He initially returned to live with his father in Eastbourne. By the autumn of 1918, however, he was in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, probably for health reasons.

The tuberculosis got the better of John Walker Lake, however; he passed away on 20th October 1918, at the age of 26 years old. He was laid to rest in the Milton Road Cemetery in Weston-super-Mare.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private William Talbot

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Private William Talbot

William Talbot’s early life is destined to remain a mystery. He was born in Street, Somerset, in around 1869, although there is no concrete information about his family. When he left school, he found work in the local shoe factory – as did the majority of Street residents – and he appears to have married at some point in the late 1890s.

By the time of the 1911 census – the first that can be directly connected to him – William had moved to Frome. He was widowed by this point, and was living in a small cottage with his two sons – Edward, who was sixteen, was labouring in the local flour mill; Albert, who was a year younger, was working as a hairdresser.

William seems to have married again, this time to a widow called Alice; she had four children, and the two of them went on to have another child together.

When war broke out, William joined the National Reserves. He subsequently transferred to the Somerset Light Infantry, and was assigned to the 4th (Reserve) Battalion as a Private. He served on guard duty on the Kent coast, although specific details are not available.

Reporting on Private Talbot’s passing, the Somerset Standard stated that he “did not enjoy good health, and had been several times in hospital” [Friday 29th September 1916]. He had been admitted to the military hospital in Herne Bay, but passed away from ‘disease‘ on 21st September 1916. He was 47 years of age.

William Talbot’s body was brought back to Frome for burial. He lies at rest in the graveyard of the town’s Holy Trinity Church.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, Suffolk, war

Private Bertie Stent

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Private Bertie Stent

Bertie Reginald Stent was born early in 1892, one of fifteen children to Henry and Emily. Henry was a painter – initially for the railways, and then a house painter – from Frome, Somerset, and the family were raised on The Mint in town.

When he left school, Bertie also left an overcrowded home. He found work as a carter, and moved to Wellow, near Bath, where he boarded with stonemason Albert Barnes and his family. War was coming to Europe, however, and things were about to change.

Bertie enlisted in the 85th Provisional Battalion of the Territorial Force early on in the conflict. He was initially based on home soil, serving in Herne Bay in Kent and Wrentham in Suffolk. His troop became the 11th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry at the start of 1917 and, by the spring of the following year, he found himself in Northern France.

By this point, Bertie had met and married a woman called Ethel May. Sadly, little further information about the wedding is available, but the couple set up home in the same road as his parents and went on to have two children.

Private Stent was involved in some of the final battles of the war – the Battle of Albert and the advances in Artois and Flanders. When the Armistice was signed, he remained in France, returning home in the following spring.

Tragically, he had contracted influenza while waiting to be demobbed and, on 29th March 1919, he passed away at home from pneumonia. He was just 27 years old and had been back in Frome for just a week.

Bertie Reginald Stent was laid to rest in the churchyard of Holy Trinity Church in Frome, within sight of his family home.

While there is little information about Bertie and Ethel’s marriage, there is some detail about her life after her husband’s death. Ethel continued to live in Frome, on the same road as her marital home. The 1939 Register lists her as an unpaid domestic worker – in effect, a housewife – and she is living with Reginald, her and Bertie’s second child, who was a land worker.

Bertie’s sister, Annie, married Albert Withey, who also died after coming home from war. Read his story here.