William Charles Shallis Lock was born in the spring of 1894, the eldest child to Harriet Lock. Born out of wedlock, Harriet went on to marry William’s father, Charles Shallis, in 1897. The couple would go on to have two more children – Walter and Lilian – before Harriet’s untimely death in 1900.
The 1901 census recorded William living with his maternal grandparents, Daniel and Ellen Lock, in the family’s home village of Bishops Lydeard, Somerset. Daniel was a farm labourer and, by the time of the 1911 census, William was making his own way in the world, boarding at Rainbow Wood Farm in Claverton, to the east of Bath. The document seems to indicate that William had ditched his first name, and was now using Charles as his preference.
War came to Europe in the summer of 1914, and Charles stepped up to play his part. Sadly, full service records are no longer available for him, but it is clear that he had enlisted in the opening months of the conflict, and that he joined the Bedfordshire Regiment.
Assigned to the 7th (Service) Battalion, Private Lock found himself in France by the end of August 1915. Charles would have found himself in the thick of the fighting, and was entrenched at both the Somme in 1916 and Passchendaele the following year.
It seems likely that Private Lock’s luck ran out at either the Battle of St Quentin in March 1918, or at the Battle of the Avre, just a few weeks later. That he was wounded is certain, as he was medically evacuated back to Britain, and admitted to Liverpool Infirmary. Charles’ injuries were to prove too severe, however, and he died while admitted on 5th April 1918. He was just 24 years of age.
The body of William Charles Shallis Lock was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest towards the front of the graveyard of St Mary’s Church, in his home village, Bishops Lydeard.
George Rawle was born on 26th April 1867 in the Somerset village of Milverton. One of nine children, his parents were William and Ann. William was a shepherd turned general labourer and, when he first finished his schooling, George was sent north to Nether Stowey, where he worked as a stable boy at Castle Hill House.
The 1891 census found George back living with his parents, who had moved to Milverton, presumably following William’s work. George, by this time, was employed as a domestic groom, although the next census found both him and William – now 74 years of age – working as general labourers.
William died in 1902, and Ann passed away seven years later. By 1911, George had moved just up the road to Wiveliscombe. He was living in a four-roomed cottage and employed as a jobbing gardener. He shared his home with two of his sisters: Jane was 46 years old and working as a housemaid; Alice, 33 years of age, was a housekeeper.
When war came to European shores, George felt the need to step up and play his part. He joined up at an enlistment drive at the brewery in Wiveliscombe, and was assigned to the Royal Army Service Corps as a Private. While waiting for his medical he returned to the home he shared with his sisters. It was here, just five days later, that he ended his life.
A painful sensation was caused in Wiveliscombe on Wednesday morning, through the action of Priv. George Rawle, of the E Squadron, Somerset Mule Depot, who took his own life under distressing circumstances at his residence at Higher Nunnington.
Deceased… had been restless through the night, and about five o’clock in the morning he told his sister he was going to get up to write a letter. The sister begged him to put his clothes on, but he would not do so, and went downstairs. She followed him in her nightdress. He picked up a gun in the hall, and she tried to take it away from him, but failed. Rawle went out to the path in front of the door of the house. His sister took hold of his arm, but he wrenched himself away, put the muzzle of the gun in his mouth, pulled the trigger, and fell down beside her, having blown out his brains.
Dr WH Randolph was in attendance shortly after, but could only pronounce life extinct.
The inquest took place on Friday, before Mr Foster Barham, coroner for West Somerset.
Jane Rawle, deceased’s sister, said her brother had suffered from nervous depression for many years, and seventeen years ago was a patient at Cotford Asylum. Lately he had been worried about the house in which he lived.
Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 29th September 1915
The jury at the inquest returned a verdict of suicide while of unsound mind. George was 48 years of age.
George Rawle was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Andrew’s Church, Wiveliscombe. His estate was shared between two of his sisters, Jane and Hannah.
The short life of Thomas Besley is a challenge to unpick. He was born in Bampton, Devon, early in 1896, one of ten children to farm labourer Steven Besley and his wife, Fanny.
Steven’s work took the family around the region, and the 1901 census found the Besleys living on Cordings Farm in Wiveliscombe, Somerset. The document records Thomas as being 5 years of age, sharing the accommodation with his parents and six of his siblings.
The 1911 census records Thomas working as a live-in labourer at Manor Farm in Huish Champflower, a village just three miles outside of Wiveliscombe.
Meanwhile, his family are still recorded as living in Wiveliscombe itself, Steven and Fanny residing with four of their children. Now, however, another Thomas is listed with them: seven years old, he is the only child of their oldest son, William and his late wife, Elizabeth. She had died in 1904, around the same time as young Thomas’ birth, and it would appear that Steven and Fanny adopted their grandson (he is listed on the census as their ‘son’). William went on to marry again, but his new wife, a widow called Hannah, had seven children from her first marriage. The couple would go on to have a son of their own, but it was a crowded house, and so Thomas lived permanently with his grandparents.
The older Thomas Besley signed up almost as soon as war was declared in 1914. While his service records are sparse, he joined the 3rd/5th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry.
What can be determined from the records is that Private Besley drowned. His death certificate – which mistakenly records his surname as Beasley – confirms that Thomas’ body was found in the River Tone in Taunton on 16th February 1915, and the cause of death noted as ‘found drowned’.
While research for Besley draws a number of blanks about the circumstances of his death, the misspelled surname featured in a contemporary newspaper report:
On Tuesday afternoon, around four o’clock, MJ Chapman… while passing the Locks at Firepool, Priory, Taunton, observed what appeared to be the body of a man floating in the swirl caused by the overflow of the Locks into the pool. The police were immediately informed… and proceeded to the spot with the ambulance and recovered the body of a man, dressed in khaki uniform. The body had evidently been in the water for a considerable time and was much decomposed. The deceased was subsequently identified as Thomas Beasley, son of Mr Stephen Beasley, of Langley Marsh, Wiveliscombe. He was a private in the 5th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry, and was 40 years of age. He had been in ill-health for a considerable period, and latterly had been depressed. He disappeared on January 16th, and despite all enquiries his whereabouts remained a mystery until Tuesday…
[At the inquest] Stephen Beasley, a farm labourer… gave evidence of [Thomas’] identification. He said that his son had lately been ill. Three months ago he was taken from Salisbury Plain to Bristol Hospital, where he remained for about a month. After his discharge from Hospital he went home, where he remained about a fortnight, and for the last two months he had been quartered at Taunton. In this time witness had seen his son twice, but he could not say that he had been well since he came out of Hospital. He was low-spirited, but never told witness that anything troubled him.
Florence Beasley… sister of deceased, said she last saw her brother about a month ago in Taunton. He seemed very strange and low and would not speak unless spoken to first. He seemed to be troubled, and would not shake hands with her when she left him. He seemed to be always ‘studying.’ There was no suicidal tendency in the family…
Captain Burridge stated that deceased was sent to hospital from the Plain about September. About the middle of October he had a wire from Bristol Infirmary informing him that he was dangerously ill and dying. However, he got over that, and he was discharged on October 28th. He was sent for 22 days’ furlough to his home and returned to duty on November 22nd. Ever since that time he had not been in the best of health, but nothing had been noticed of his mental condition. He believed at one time there was a talk of his being discharged as medically unfit. He disappeared on January 16th.
The Coroner asked [how] long deceased had been in the service, and witness answered that he joined on June 1st, 1913. His complaint when removed to Bristol Hospital was double pneumonia.
On the suggestion of the Coroner, the jury returned an open verdict.
Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 24th February 1915
In addition to the Besley/Beasley surname, the report features a couple more discrepancies. Thomas’ father’s name is given as Stephen, when it was Steven. The deceased is also recorded as being 40 years old when he died, when he was actually half that age.
Thomas Besley was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Andrew’s Church in Wiveliscombe. It gives his age as 17 years old and the date of his death as 16th February 1917.
Amos Vickery was born in the autumn of 1886 in Bishops Lydeard, Somerset. He was the youngest of six children to William and Annie Vickery. William was a farm labourer, but when he finished his schooling, his son found work as a groom.
On 23rd February 1909, Amos married Alice Gratton. She was the daughter of a farm labourer from Halse, Somerset, who had taken up domestic duties in Bishops Lydeard. Not long after they were married, Amos took up new employment as publican of the Tynte Arms Inn in Enmore, and this is where he and Alice brought up their two children, Evelyn and William.
Amos’ time as a landlord seems not to have lasted long. By the time war broke out, the family had moved to Wiveliscombe, where he was working as a postman. Amos stepped up to play his part for King and Country, but was initially rejected. There are no longer any documents to confirm why this was the case, but it may have been based on any medical carried out.
Amos was finally accepted for armed service in June 1917, and was assigned to the Royal Army Service Corps. Private Vickery was attached to the Remounts Unit, and seems to have been posted around Bristol, Gloucestershire.
On Monday afternoon last the funeral took place… of the late Private Amos Vickery, ASC, who died somewhat suddenly from paralysis… at No 2 General Hospital, Bristol, at the age of 31, after a few days’ illness.
Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 12th September 1917
Private Vickery’s service documents gave an official cause of death as hemiplegia and cerebral thrombosis: in effect, a stroke. He had been in the army for just ten weeks.
Amos Vickery was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Mary’s Church, Bishop’s Lydeard.
William Daniel Yandell was born in 1884 in Bishops Lydeard, Somerset. The second of four children, his parents were Samuel and Jane Yandell. Samuel was a farm labourer, and this is work that William and his younger brothers, wins Sam and Walter, also went into.
The 1911 census found William living with Walter, who had found employment as a labourer at Cotford Asylum, not far from the village. The brothers also had a boarder, Samuel Chaffey, a carter, who brought in some more money to the household. Samuel Sr and Jane were all that remained in the family home. Samuel Jr had married three years before, and was living in a small cottage with his wife, Rosina, and their two children. The oldest of the Yandell siblings, Alice, had been married for ten years by the time of the census, and was living with her husband and son in Minehead.
Samuel Sr died in the spring of 1914. By the summer, war had been declared, and the three Yandell brother enlisted to serve their king and heir country.
William, by this point, had found work at the Goodlands Coal Yard and volunteered for the local fire brigade. He did not enlist immediately but joined the Royal Fusiliers in the spring of 1916. Attached to the 3rd Battalion, Private Yandell found himself in France that summer.
On 1st October 1916, he was badly wounded in the right arm and shoulder, and was medically evacuated to the 2nd Western General Hospital in Manchester for treatment. This proved to be long-term support, and on 21st January 1917, he underwent an operation on the injury. Private Yandell was not to come round from the surgery: he passed away the following day at the age of 33 years of age.
William Daniel Yandell was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Mary’s Church in his home village of Bishops Lydeard.
The deepest sympathy is felt for [William’s] widowed mother and relatives, as the widow has another son a prisoner of war in Turkey, who was taken with General Townshend’s force at Kut, and no news has been heard since they were taken prisoner. Another son is somewhere in Salonica, from whom no news has been heard for some weeks past.
Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 31st January 1917
Walter was the son being held in Turkey. He had joined the Somerset Light Infantry as a Private, and was assigned to the 1st/5th Battalion. His troop was caught up in the Siege of Kut in the spring of 1916. He died on 31st May 1916, soon after being taken prisoner, a fact his mother would not be made away of for at least nine months, based on the newspaper report. Private Walter Yandell is commemorated on the Basra Memorial in Iraq.
Sam Jr was the son who was based in Salonika. Full details of his military service are not available, but later records confirm that he survived the war. By the time of the 1939 England and Wales Register, he was living back in Bishops Lydeard with Rosina, and was working as a Mess Orderly at a military camp. Sam died in January 1951, at the age of 63.
John Pole was born in Halse, Somerset, early in 1897. He was one of eleven children to Robert and Martha Pole. Robert was a basket weaver, and the family had moved to nearby Fitzhead by the time of the 1901 census.
Martha died in 1911, at the age of 51. John had finished his schooling by this point, and had found employment as a gardener. When war came to Europe, he gave that up to serve his King and Country. Details are scarce, but it is clear that he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, and was attached to the 5th Battalion.
Private Pole was sent to Taunton for training, but his time in the army was not to be a lengthy one. His unit was sent to Southampton in September 1914, but it seems that he did not go with them. John contracted pneumonia, and seems to have been admitted to a military hospital in the town – possibly connected to his barracks. He died from the condition on 18th December 1914, aged just 17 years old.
John Pole’s body was brought back to Fitzhead for burial. He was laid to rest in the tranquil surroundings of St James’ Churchyard, close to where his father and siblings still lived.
Herbert Snook was born in the spring of 1895 in the village of Thurlbear, Somerset. The fourth of nine children, he was the second son of Henry and Clara Snook. Henry was employed as a stockman and cowman and by the time of the 1911 census, the family had moved to Bishop’s Lydeard, to the west of Taunton.
When Herbert completed his schooling, he found work as a postman. When war broke out, Herbert stepped up to play his part. Sadly, full details of his time in the army are no longer available, but the documents that remain give an indication about what he did.
Private Snook enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, and was assigned to the 8th (Service) Battalion. His unit served in France, but there is no evidence that Herbert went with them. During his time with the regiment, however, he was promoted, reaching the rank of Corporal.
In the summer of 1918, Herbert married Alice Webber. There is little information about her, but the wedding took place in Taunton. That winter, Herbert fell ill, contracting a combination of influenza and pneumonia. His health deteriorated quickly, and he passed away at his in-laws’ home on 3rd March 1919. He was just 24 years of age.
Herbert Snook’s body was taken to Ash Priors, near Bishop’s Lydeard, for burial. He was laid to rest in the tranquil graveyard of Holy Trinity Church, not far from where his family were living.
Robert Snow was born at the end of 1890 and was the fourth of six children. His parents were Somerset-born Henry and Elizabeth Snow, and the family were raised in the village of Combe Florey, near Taunton.
When Robert completed his schooling, he also found work as a farm labourer. On 10th September 1914, he married Mabel Trebble in the local parish church: the couple went on to have a daughter, Clarice, who was born in December.
By this point, war had consumed Europe. Robert was called upon to play his part and he joined the Devonshire Regiment as a Private. Little information about his military service survives, but it is clear that he was attached to the 10th (Service) Battalion, and was sent to France in September 1915.
Private Snow did not spend much time in France, however, as, just a couple of months later, his unit was transferred to Salonika in the Eastern Mediterranean. He appears to have spent most of the rest of the conflict there, as the next records relating to him show that he survived the war, and was back in Britain by March 1919.
An inquest was held at Bath War Hospital on Pte. Robert Snow, 28… who died on Tuesday evening just as he had been put under an anaesthetic prior to an operation for lumbar abscess, the man having tubercular spinal complaint. He had been at the hospital since March 29th, when he was transferred from the 2nd General Hospital Bristol. The coroner entered an inquisition of death from cardiac failure while under an anaesthetic. This was the first death of the kind at the hospital, through nearly 3,000 patients have been given anaesthetics.
Langport & Somerton Herald: Saturday 7th June 1919
Robert Snow died on 3rd June 1919. His body was taken back to Combe Florey for burial. He was laid to rest in the village’s cemetery, to be reunited with his widow, when she passed away in 1958, at the age of 71 years old.
Herbert Griffith was born in the summer of 1883 in the Somerset village of Crowcombe. One of eight children, his parents were coachman James Griffith and his wife, Selina.
Herbert’s early life is a challenge to piece together. The 1901 census recorded him as living at Weacombe House, West Quantoxhead, where he was employed as a footman.
On 16th December 1909, Herbert married Selina May Davies. Also born in Crowcombe, she was the daughter of a tailor. The couple’s marriage certificate confirms the wedding was conducted at the village church. The couple went on to have two children, Dorothy in 1912, and Geoffrey four years later.
Herbert, at this point, was living in Farnborough, Warwickshire, where he was employed as a valet. (While no document remains to confirm this, it seems possible that this was actually Farnborough Hall, home to generations of the Holbech family.)
When war broke out, Herbert seemed keen to serve his country. He enlisted in the Royal Army Medical Corps, although his full service records no longer remain, so it is not possible to confirm whether he served on home soil or overseas.
The next record relating to Private Griffith is that of his passing. He died in Southampton, Hampshire, on 22nd February 1916, as a result of a combination of bronchitis, asthma and cardiac failure. He was 32 years of age, and would never get to meet his son, who was born two weeks later.
The body of Herbert Griffith was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful surroundings of the Church of the Holy Ghost in his home village, Crowcombe.
Herbert Perry was born in Sampford Brett, Somerset, on 2nd July 1887. One of fifteen children, his parents were Henry and Mary Perry. Henry was a groom and gardener, and the family were raised in a small cottage in the centre of the village.
Herbert and his siblings attended the local Church of England school, but once he finished his education his own trail goes cold. The next records relate to his military service, although they are also a bit scarce.
What is clear is that Herbert enlisted early in the war. He joined the 1st Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment, and was in France as soon as January 1915. Private Perry found himself at Ypres, and it was here, in July, that he was badly injured.
Private Perry was medically evacuated to Britain for treatment, and he was admitted to the 5th Northern General Hospital in Leicester. Sadly, this was to be where he would breathe his last: his wounds were to prove too severe, and he succumbed to them on 1st August 1915. He had not long turned 28 years of age.
Herbert Perry’s body was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the peaceful graveyard of St George’s Church. There he was reunited with his mother, Mary, who had died three years before.
Herbert’s older brother, William, joined the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry when war broke out. Assigned to the 1st Battalion, he rose to the rank of Lance Corporal. William fought at the Somme, and was killed there. He is commemorated at the Thiepval Memorial, and remembered on the family headstone in Sampford Brett.
Death and Service 