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Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Lance Corporal, photography, Private, Rifle Brigade, Somerset, story, war

Lance Corporal Francis Hawkins

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Lance Corporal Francis Hawkins

Francis Moreton Hawkins was born in Cottingham, Northamptonshire on 15th July 1895. He was the eldest of eight children to Francis and Louisa Hawkins. Francis Sr was a butcher and, by 1905, he had moved the family to Taunton, where he set up a ship on the main shopping street in the town.

When Francis left school, he became a clerk for the business; he went on to take civil service exams, gaining employment in the General Post Office and then Customs & Excise. War was looming, however, taking him in a different direction.

Sadly, a lot of Francis’ military records no longer exist. What the records do tell us, though, is that he initially enrolled with the Somerset Territorials in October 1914, transferring first to the Civil Service Rifles and then the Rifle Brigade. He served his term in the army, rising to the rank of Lance Corporal.

When the war came to a close, Lance Corporal Hawkins was placed on furlough while he waited to be demobbed, and returned home on 19th November 1918. Feeling unwell, he took straight to his bed, and, three days later, was admitted to the Military Hospital in Taunton with influenza and pneumonia.

Tragically, these were to get the better of him; Francis passed away at the hospital on 23rd November 1918. He was just 23 years old.

Francis Moreton Hawkins lies at rest in St Mary’s Cemetery in his home town of Taunton.

Coldstream Guards, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, injury, photography, Private, Somerset, story, Surrey, war

Private William Bellham

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Private William Bellham

William Harry David Bellham was born in September 1888, the only child to William and Rosina Bellham. William Sr was a foreman for a collar manufacturer, and the young family lived in Taunton, Somerset, in a house they shared with Rosina’s mother, Mary Hale.

Life continued pretty much unchanged. When William Jr left school, he became a stenographer for a coal merchant, and, when war erupted in 1914, he didn’t sign up as soon as you would expect for someone of his age.

William enlisted in February 1916 and was assigned to the Coldstream Guards – given he stood 5ft 11ins (1.8m) tall, this probably went in his favour. Initially placed on reserve duty, Private Bellham was eventually mobilised in January 1917, and sent to Caterham for training.

Within a matter of weeks, William had an accident. Slipping on some ice, he suffered an inguinal hernia, which subsequently became strangulated, causing him severe pain. After initial treatment in hospital, he was discharged, but was then admitted again five months later when the hernia returned. A further operation was ruled out by the medical examiner, and he was discharged from the army on medical grounds at the end of June 1917.

Once back in Taunton, it did become necessary for William to undergo an additional operation. This was carried out in the local hospital and, according to the records, was a success. Sadly, however, William subsequently contracted pneumonia, and he died on 10th December 1917. He was just 29 years old.

William Harry David Bellham was buried in St Mary’s Cemetery in his home town of Taunton.

Cruelly, the contemporary local media had a less sympathetic take on the incident that caused William’s troubles. The Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser [on Wednesday 26th December 1917] suggested that he “was not really strong enough to stand the strain and hardships of military training and was invalided out after some months’ service.” Not exactly the picture that his medical records had outlined.

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

Private Ernest Baker

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Private Ernest Baker

Ernest Baker’s early life is a bit of a muddle; Born in 1878 in Somerset, it’s a challenge to unpick specific details, as there are two Ernest Bakers, both of whom have parents of the same name – Henry and Sarah – and have siblings with similar names too. Was Ernest’s father, therefore, a thatcher from Meare near Glastonbury or a travelling draper from Taunton.

In fact, it was a newspaper article from April 1915 that helped unlock the confusion.

The Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser confirmed that Ernest’s full name was Ernest Bond Baker, and that his father – who had passed away by the time of Ernest’s death – was from Bishop’s Hull, a village near Taunton.

This would seem to confirm, therefore, that his father was a travelling draper.

Ernest was one of ten children. His father died when he was only fifteen years old, by which time Ernest had left school and found employment as a basket weaver, a trade which was prevalent on the Somerset Moors.

Sarah, a widow at only forty, took in laundry to make ends meet. Of Ernest’s two older brother, one had passed away as a teenager, while the other had gone on to have a wife and family of his own. It was left to Ernest, therefore, to remain at home and support his mother and younger siblings.

Ernest met and married local butcher’s daughter Bessie Glover in 1900, and the couple went on to have seven children. After a spell living in Wiltshire, the young family moved back to Somerset, settling in Bridgwater, where Ernest continued to ply his trade.

Ernest’s military service records are lost to time; he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, joining the 5th Battalion at some point early in the war (certainly before October 1914). Private Baker’s battalion seems to have been part of a territorial/reserve force, and he was based in his home town of Taunton.

In early April 1915, Ernest fell ill, and was admitted to the Voluntary Aid Detachment Red Cross Hospital in Yeovil, suffering from bronchitis and pneumonia. Sadly, the lung conditions were such that he was succumb to them, and he passed away on 16th April 1915. He was just 36 years old.

Ernest Bond Baker lies at rest in St Mary’s Cemetery in his home town of Taunton, Somerset, the same cemetery where his father and brother were buried.

Private Ernest Baker
Berkshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Royal Berkshire Regiment, Sergeant, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, Suffolk, war

Serjeant Ernest Stelling

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Serjeant Ernest Stelling

Ernest Leonard Stelling was born in the summer of 1881, the oldest of six children to Charles and Bertha Stelling. Charles was a tailor from London, and while Ernest was born in Suffolk, by the time of the 1891 census, the family had settled in Reading, Berkshire.

Ernest followed in his father’s footsteps, becoming a tailor and cutter in his own right. He met a woman from Reading called Lettie Eliza Mazey, and the couple married in 1904. The couple set up home with Lettie’s brother and his family in Tilehurst, but didn’t go on to have any children themselves.

Details of Ernest’s military service are a bit scarce. He initially enlisted in the Royal Berkshire Regiment, but quickly moved to the Somerset Light Infantry in the early stages of the First World War.

Sadly, no formal documents of Ernest’s time in the army are available, but a local newspaper gave a good insight into his Somerset service.

Death of a Master Tailor

After an illness of only seven days, the death took place at the military hospital on Monday afternoon of Sergeant EL Stelling, who has been master tailor of the Depot for the past two years. The cause of death was pneumonia, and the loss of so popular a member of the Depot staff is deeply regretted by all ranks.

Sergeant Stelling, who was 37 years of age, came to the Somersets from the Royal Berkshire Regiment, and succeeded the late Sergeant-Master-Tailor Chambers. He was a native of Reading, and one of four brothers serving their King and country. His father, Mr Charles Stelling, for many years carried on business as a master tailor in Reading.

Since he had been at Taunton barracks, Sergeant Stelling had made many friends, and actively identified himself with the social life of the sergeants’ mess, taking a prominent part in the arrangement of concerts, etc.

He was of a bright, generous disposition, and before his illness he was making a collection at the Depot on behalf of the Buffaloes’ Christmas treat to poor children of the town. He was a valued member of the local Lodge of the Royal Order of Buffaloes, and his death is greatly regretted by all the brethren.

He leaves a widow but no family. Much sympathy is felt for Mrs Stelling, who has for some years been a confirmed invalid.

The funeral took place with full military honours at St Mary’s Cemetery on Friday afternoon.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 27th December 1916

This gives a real insight into Ernest’s personal life. He was obviously very active socially, and committed to the community. Whether Lettie’s infirmity contributed to the couple’s lack of family will never be known, but, from his support of the poor children of Taunton, it seems evident that he would have been a good family man.

The next document relating to Serjeant Stelling is his pension record; this confirms the news article’s report that he contracted pneumonia and influenza, and he succumbed to the conditions on 18th December 1916. He had, in fact, just turned 38 years old.

Ernest Leonard Stelling lies at rest in St Mary’s Cemetery in his wartime adopted home town of Taunton, Somerset.

Serjeant Ernest Stelling (from Ancestry.co.uk)
Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Kent, photography, Sergeant, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war, Wiltshire

Serjeant Arthur Jones

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Serjeant Arthur Jones

Arthur Henry Jones was born in 1874, the oldest of five children to James and Kate Jones. James worked as a coachman, and travelling seems to have been his thing.

Born in Wiltshire, he met and married Kate in Somerset, and this is where Arthur was born; by 1879, the young family had moved to Hampshire, and within a year they had relocated again, this time to Folkestone in Kent. Three years later, by the time James and Kate’s youngest two children were born, they were back in Wiltshire again, having competed their tour of the south of England.

Sadly, tragedy was to strike the Jones family, when Kate passed away in 1888, at the tender age of 31 years old. James had a family of boys to bring up, however, and he married again, this time to a Miriam Millard. The couple went on to have two children, giving Arthur a half-brother and half-sister.

At this point, Arthur falls off the radar. It may well be that he chose to take up a military career early on – if he was serving overseas, it is possible that the census documentation no longer exists. Twelve years’ service would certainly seem to account for his absence between 1881 and the next time his name appears on records.

These records relate to Arthur’s marriage to Fanny Hill. The couple were married by Banns in May 1906, marrying in Westbury, Wiltshire. They went on to have four children – Arthur, Kathleen, Gladys and Percival – between 1907 and 1911.

Again, at this point, Arthur falls off the radar. His service records no longer exist, but what evidence remains confirms that he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry and was assigned to the 7th (Service) Battalion. Initially formed in Taunton, they shipped out to France in July 1915, although there is no documentation to confirm when or if Arthur was involved.

Sadly, the only other reference to Serjeant Jones is his final pension record. This confirms that he succumbed to a combination of influenza and pneumonia on 27th January 1919. He was 44 years old.

Arthur Henry Jones lies at rest in St Mary’s Cemetery in Taunton, Somerset.

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

Private Walter Selman

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Private Walter Selman

Walter Charles Selman was born on 7th June 1899, the youngest of four children to Walter and Annie Selman. Walter Sr was a gardener and, by the time of the 1911 census he had moved the family to the sleepy Somerset village of Burrington.

Sadly, there is little documentation surrounding Walter’s young life. His gravestone confirms that he enlisted in the Wiltshire Regiment; although there is no date to confirm when he enrolled, it is likely to have been in the second half of the conflict, given his age.

Private Selman was assigned to the 4th Battalion, but there is no clear confirmation of where he served. The 1/4th Battalion fought in India and Egypt; the 2/4th was also based in India but remained there for the duration. The 3/4th Battalion – the most likely to be Walter’s troop – was a reserve troop, based on home soil.

Where little is known about Private Selman’s military service, there is similarly little information about his passing. His pension records bluntly put his cause of death as ‘disease’; as with many other recruits towards the end of the war, it is likely that this was, in fact, either influenza or pneumonia.

Sadly, the mustering of the Allied armies – and the associated mixing of young men from across the country in crowded barracks – brought a real danger of disease, and lung complaints were commonplace. While there is no definite proof, it appears that Private Selman may have succumbed to one of these conditions; he passed away in a military hospital on Salisbury Plain on 7th April 1918, two months short of his 19th birthday.

Walter Charles Selman lies at rest in the graveyard of Holy Trinity Church in his home village of Burrington, Somerset.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Henry Venn

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Private Henry Venn

Henry John Venn was born in September 1900, the youngest of three children to Charles and Mary Venn. Charles was a gardener, and the family lived in the small Somerset village of Shipham.

Sadly, there is little information available about Henry’s life, although when war broke out, he enlisted as a Private in the Devonshire Regiment. There is no documentation to confirm exactly when he enrolled, although, given his age when the conflict began, it it unlikely to have been before 1918.

Indeed, later records show that his parents were refused a war gratuity. This was only usually the case where a soldier had completed less than six months’ service. It is likely, therefore, that Private Venn did not join up before he turned 18 years old in September 1918.

Henry joined the 53rd Training Reserve Battalion; they were based at the Rollestone Camp near Stonehenge, Wiltshire. It is here that he likely became unwell, as he was subsequently admitted to the Military Hospital on Salisbury Plain. He was suffering from influenza and pneumonia, and this is what he succumbed to. Private Venn passed away on 10th November 1918 – the day before the Armistice that ended the conflict. He was just 18 years old.

Henry John Venn lies at rest in the graveyard of St Leonard’s Church in his home village of Shipham in Somerset.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, photography, Royal Engineers, Sapper, Somerset, story, war

Sapper Percy Burleton

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Sapper Percy Burleton

Percy Edward Burleton was born on 24th July 1885, the youngest of seven children to George and Lucy Burleton. George was a quarryman, and the family lived in the village of Draycott, near Wells in Somerset.

Percy’s older brother Lewis worked for the railways, and this is a trade that his younger sibling followed. By the time of the 1911 census he was living with his brother in Glastonbury and worked as a carman, delivering goods to and from the local station.

In February 1914, Percy appeared as a witness in an inquest about the death of a colleague, George Gillett. George had gone missing one night after the two had met for a drink in a local pub. The alert was raised when George’s coat was found hanging on a branch on the banks of the River Brue, to the south of the town; the waters were dredged and George’s body found.

At the inquest, Percy confirmed that the two men had had a drink in a local pub, and that George had seemed a little strange, but not the worse for drink. He reported that the deceased man had been quieter than usual at the railway stables for a week or so. George had left the pub at 10:55 that evening, and that was the last time that Percy had seen him.

Part of a carman’s duty was to collect money for the goods they had delivered; this was then paid to the station clerk on a daily basis. In the week leading up to his death, the stationmaster had been advised of some financial discrepancies, and on the day he drowned, he had been spoken to and advised the matter would be reported to the police if the missing amount was not paid back.

The place where George’s coat was found was not on his way home from the pub, and he would have had to have gone out of his way to get there. When considering their findings, the jury returned a verdict of suicide during temporary insanity, citing that the financial situation George had apparently gotten himself into.

When war broke out, Percy seemed to have been keen to get involved. Initially joining the Devonshire Regiment in September 1914, his experience with his job saw him transferred to the Railway Operating Division of the Royal Engineers.

Shipped to France on 22nd September 1915, his service saw him awarded the Victory and British Medals and the 1915 Star. Sapper Burleton was moved to the Eastern Front and served in the Balkans for three years. According to the Central Somerset Gazette, which reported his passing, he contracted ‘a chill’ on the boat back to England and was admitted to Frensham Hill Hospital in Surrey.

Sadly, the chill seems to have been more severe than the report suggested, and Sapper Burleton passed away on 17th September 1918. He was 32 years old.

Percy Edward Burleton lies at rest in the graveyard of St Peter’s Church in his home village of Draycott, Somerset.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Machine Gun Corps, photography, Private, Somerset, Staffordshire, story, war

Private Walter Millard

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Private Walter Millard

Walter John Millard was born in the summer of 1887, the youngest of nine children to Robert and Elizabeth. Robert was a farmer, and brought his family up in the village of Wedmore, Somerset. Walter followed in his father’s footsteps, and by the time of the 1911 census, was listed as a farm labourer in Wedmore, working for a William Millard, who presumably was a cousin of the family.

In March 1915, Walter married Jessy Masters, daughter of a grocer in nearby Wells. The couple set up home in the neighbouring village of Wookey, but would later make their home in Westbury-sub-Mendip.

In December 1915, aged 28, Walter was called up, and assigned to the Reserve Machine Gun Corps. He was not formally mobilised for almost three years when, in October 1918, he was shipped to Rugeley, Staffordshire, for training.

During this time, Private Millard was taken ill, and was admitted to the Military Hospital at Cannock Chase within weeks with influenza. His health deteriorated and, on 7th November 1918, he died from pneumonia. He was 31 years of age.

Had it not been for the quirk of fate of having been mobilised a month before the war ended, tragically, this would likely not be a story that needed to be told.

Walter John Millard was brought back to Somerset, and lies at rest in the graveyard of St Lawrence Church in Westbury-sub-Mendip.

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

Private Thomas Lowes

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Private Thomas Lowes

TJ Lowes is another of those names that challenges you to find out more about their lives. A quick search against the surname and service number identified the full name of Thomas James Lowes, and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website confirms he was the husband of Mary Lowes.

There is enough circumstantial evidence available to suggest a particular set of records, but nothing to fully connect this gravestone to those records.

Based on that documentation, this is what I believe to be the Thomas James Lowes’ life.

Thomas James Lowes was born in Chatham, Kent, in 1863. One of eight children, his parents were Joseph and Jane Lowes, who came from Durham. Joseph was a shipwright, and moved the family to Hampshire in around 1860, before settling in Kent a year or so later. Given his trade, it the sea ports were an obvious draw, and he found work in the Naval Dockyard in Chatham.

When he left school, Thomas found work as a painter, and this was work that stood him in good stead all his life. He started decorating houses, but soon found employment in the dockyard.

Joseph died at some point in the 1880s, and by the 1891 census, Thomas was living at home with his mother and three of his younger siblings, all working to bring money in.

It was later that year that he got married, to a woman called Mary. The couple went on to have two children – Elsie (who was born in Sutton, Surrey) and Thomas Jr (who was born back in Kent). The young family came to live close to the dockyard again, as this is where Thomas was obviously earning his living.

War was on the horizon and, while Thomas’ full service records do not exist, it’s been possible to piece some bits together. He enlisted in the Royal Army Service Corps early on in the conflict, and worked as a farrier for No. 2 Company Depot. From here on in, however, Private Lowes’ documentation becomes confusing.

The Army Register of Soldier’s Effects confirms the service number documented elsewhere – T4/234931 – and that he passed away on 20th November 1916. It states that the the money was passed to his father, Thomas, which doesn’t tally up with the other records.

The other documentation available – the Pension Ledger and Index Cards – all include the Private Lowes’ service number, but give his widow , Mary Lowes, as his beneficiary.

Thomas contracted pneumonia while on active service; he was admitted to the Royal Herbert Hospital in Woolwich, but succumbed to the illness on 20th November 1916. He was 53 years old.

Thomas James Lowes was laid to rest in the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, Kent.

Private Thomas Lowes