Alfred Isaac Matthew Creese was born in Wellow, Somerset, in the summer of 1889, and was the youngest child to Jacob and Elizabeth Creese. Jacob was a wagon builder for the Somerset & Dorset Railway, working in the village’s station. When Alfred left school, however, he found employment as a farm labourer.
When war came to Europe, Alfred stepped up to play his part. Sadly, few of his military records remain, and those that do give little information away. He enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry as a Private and, as a result of his war service, he was awarded the Victory, British and Territorial Force War Medal.
Private Creese survived the conflict, but, according to his headstone, he passed away at the Rock House Hospital in Bath. While this does not appear to be a dedicated hospital, there are a number of locations called Rock House in the Bath area, and it is likely to have been a house used for convalescent purposes. Whatever the location, this is where Private Creese passed away on 18th April 1919, at the age of 29 years old.
Alfred Isaac Matthew Creese was brought back to Wellow for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the village’s peaceful cemetery, to be joined there by his mother in 1930, and his father in 1932, a family reunited once more.
Leonard Arthur Luke was born in the autumn of 1899 in Shepton Mallet, Somerset. He was the fifth of ten children to railway guard George Luke and his wife, Georgina.
By the time of the 1911 census, the family had moved north west, to the village of Wellow, where George continued his employment with the railway. The track and station have now since disappeared, but at the time, it was a busy stopping point for the mining village.
When Leonard left school, he found work as a porter with the Somerset & Dorset Railway, but by now war was raging across Europe, and he was keen to play his part. He initially enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry on 3rd January 1918, but moved to the Royal Flying Corps after a matter of weeks.
On 1st April 1918, Leonard transferred across to the Royal Air Force. Formally holding the rank of Air Mechanic 2nd Class, he was training to become a wireless operator in Winchester, Hampshire. He was admitted to the Red Cross Hospital in the city, having contracted rheumatic fever. Sadly, this was to take his life, and he passed away on 13th November 1918, two days after the Armistice. He was just 19 years of age.
Leonard Arthur Luke’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the quiet Wellow Cemetery.
Air Mechanic 2nd Class Leonard Luke (from britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)
While Wellow Station was a bustling place, it is highly likely that Leonard would have known Edward Bending, one of the clerks at the time he was there. Edward also went off to war, and his story can be found here.
Arthur Ernest Selway was born on 30th October 1898 in Wellow, Somerset. The oldest of six children, his parents were Frederick and Mary Selway. Frederick was a coal miner, and this is likely to have been the line of work for Arthur to follow, had war not intervened.
Arthur enlisted in the Machine Gun Corps on 19th April 1918 and was assigned to the 44th (Reserve) Battalion. Sent to the Rugeley Camp in Staffordshire for training, Private Selway’s time in the army was not to last long, however. While his service records are lost to time, he is recorded as having passed away while at the camp on 3rd October 1918.
Private Selway was just 19 years of age and, having been in the army for just five months and two weeks, this meant that his family were not eligible to receive a war gratuity from the army, as he had not completed six months’ service.
Arthur Ernest Selway’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful Wellow Cemetery.
William James Humphrys was born early in 1880, the fourth of seven children to Mark and Alice Humphrys. Mark was a gardener from Wellow in Somerset, but it was in nearby Norton St Philip that the family were born and raised.
Alice died in 1904, by which time William was working as a mason’s labourer. By the time of the 1911 census, he was living in the family home on Church Street, with his father and two older sisters, Annie and Mary.
On 17th April 1911, William married Annie Holcombe, a farmer’s daughter from the village. It is likely that they set up home with Mark, but those details are lost to time.
War came to Europe in the summer of 1914, and William was quick to step up and play his part. He enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry early in 1915, and was assigned to the regiment’s 6th Battalion as a Private.
William arrived in France in June 1915, and over the next eighteen months was caught up in some of the fiercest battles of the war. The 6th Battalion first saw fighting at the Action of Hooge, where it had the misfortune to be the first to be attacked by flamethrower. During 1916, Private Humphrys was firmly ensconced at the Somme, although full details of his service are lost to time.
In fact, the only other concrete information about Private Humphrys is that of his passing, which happed on 14th January 1917 at King George’s Hospital in London. The cause of his death is unknown, but he was 36 years old at the time.
William James Humphrys was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of Saints Philip & James’ Church, Norton St Philip, within sight of his family home.
On Wednesday 1st March, the relatives of Private Arthur Moore, formerly of Whatley, heard with great regret the sad news that he had passed away. Private Moore, who belonged to the 5th Battalion Australian Expeditionary Force, left Whatley about fourteen years ago for Australia, where he lived until last year. When war broke out he was among the first in Australia to respond to the call of the Motherland. After undergoing his training he was sent to the Dardanelles, and there with many other brave Anzac received what was to prove his death wound, being shot in the head last August by a Turkish sniper. He was brought to King George’s Hospital, London, where he remained for some time and was thence sent to a convalescent home at Isleworth. But three weeks ago his friends, who were expecting him home, were alarmed to hear that he had been sent to the hospital to be again operated on, the wound not having satisfactorily healed. The operation took place on February 28th, but was not successful, as he never rallied, and died the next day… So has passed away another who had tried to do his duty, another of Britain’s many sons who are dying that England may liv. May he rest in peace!
[Somerset Standard: Friday 17th March 1916]
Arthur Moore had been born in Warminster, Wiltshire, in around 1880, and was the son of Henry Albert and Elizabeth Thurzia Moore. Little further information about his early life is available, but some details can be gleaned from his service records.
Private Moore enlisted on 12th January 1915 in Colac, Victoria, around 150km west of Melbourne. His service records note that he was working as a barman, and that he had spent five years volunteering in the Yeoman Cavalry. Arthur’s medical report confirmed he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall and weighed 168lbs (76.2kg). He had fair hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.
Arthur gave his next-of-kin as Francis Moore, possibly his brother, but his service documents also noted that his father had died by the time he enlisted and recorded his mother’s details as well.
The Somerset Standard summarised Private Moore’s military career, cut tragically short when the Turkish sniper attacked. After he passed, Arthur’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest next to his father, in the quiet graveyard of Holy Trinity Church in Chantry, not far from the family home.
Edwin Joseph Fricker was born on 2nd June 1898 in Vobster, Somerset. The youngest of nine children, his parents were Frederick and Ann, both of whom had been born just over the Wiltshire border in Zeals. Frederick was an agricultural labourer and, based on the places of birth of their children, it would seem that the family moved where his work took him.
Frederick died in the spring of 1911, at the age of 58. The census return, which was taken just a few months later, found the now-widowed Ann living at Stone Ash Cottage in Mells, with four of her children: Edwin and three of his older siblings: Pollie, James and Fred. Edwin’s brothers were bringing money into the home – James as a stone quarrier, and Fred as a pony boy, working underground in the local mines.
When war came to Europe, Edwin stepped up to play his part. While his service records have been lost, it is clear that he enlisted in the Devonshire Regiment, and was attached to the 10th (Service) Battalion.
The death of Pte. Edwin Joseph Fricker, of the Somerset Light Infantry, has recently taken place at the early age of 20 years. Deceased was called up from Bristol and was sent to India and after the signing of the Armistice was demobilised to return to his work in the mine. The cause of death was ague and pneumonia.
[Somerset Standard: Friday 28th February 1919]
The newspaper report of Edwin’s passing includes some inconsistencies: Private Fricker was not assigned to the Somerset Light Infantry, nor is there any evidence that he spent any time overseas. He did die from pneumonia, however, passing away on 16th February 1919: he was 20 years of age.
Edwin Joseph Fricker was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Edmund’s Church, Vobster, not far from where his mother still lived.
William Ewart Badman, whose first names appear interchangeable, was born in the summer of 1888, the older of two children to Francis and Elizabeth Badman. Francis was a builder from Holcombe in Somerset, and this is where the family were born and raised.
Francis died in 1905 and, after William’s sister, Cristabelle moved to Cardiff to take up work as a milliner, he stayed to help support his mother. The 1911 census recorded Elizabeth and William living in Holcombe, where he had found employment as a carpenter.
On 14th November 1915, William married dressmaker Amy Talbot. The couple were living in a terraced house in St Leonard’s Road, Bristol, where he was still finding work as a carpenter.
War had come to Europe by this point, and William was soon to play his part. He enlisted as a Private in the 11th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry, in November 1916. Full details of his military service are lost to time, but a local newspaper report give a little information:
Mr Ewart Badman, who… had undergone a slight operation, had passed away.
Somerset Standard: Friday 13th July 1917
No detail of the need for William’s operation are evident, nor does the report expand on his condition any further. His entry in the Army Register of Soldiers’ Effects confirm that he died at the War Hospital in Bath. He passed away on 1st July 1917, at the age of 29 years old.
William Ewart Badman’s body was brought back to Holcombe for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Andrew’s Church in the village.
George William Taylor was born on 14th July 1884 in Holcombe, Somerset. He was one of ten children, and his parents were John and Martha Taylor. John was a coal miner and for a while after finishing school, George followed his father to the pit. But he wanted bigger and better things, and was drawn to a career in the army.
On 16th September 1901, George enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry. His service records confirm that he was 5ft 7ins (1.69m) tall, and weighed 131lbs (59.4kg). It was also noted that he had brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion, and that he had a scar on his right shin and another on his left arm.
Private Taylor was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, and spent the next ten months training on home soil. In July 1902, however, he set off on his first big adventure, travelling to South Africa with his troop. He returned home in the spring of 1903, and spent the remainder of his seven years’ term of service on British soil.
On Christmas Day 1906, George married Ellen Hitchcock. She was the daughter of a blacksmith from Bath, and their marriage certificate adds further details to George’s life. He was living in Plymouth, Devon, when they married, and he gave his trade as a Bugler in the Somerset Light Infantry.
During the rest of his army contract, George had a number of admissions to hospital, for recurring conjunctivitis, a sprained ankle in November 1905 and a bout of scabies in January 1908. That autumn, having served for seven years, he was stood down to reserve status.
By the time of the 1911 census, George had settled back into civilian life. The young couple set up home in Holcombe, and George took up work back in the colliery there, where he was employed as a carter. A boarder helped them bring in a bit more money, but the document shows evidence of tragedy as it notes that Ellen had given birth to two children, but that both had died.
When war came to Europe in 1914, George was called back into active service. Initially assigned to the 1st Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry, he arrived in France in July 1915. He only remained there for a matter of months, however, and, by October Private Taylor was back in Britain and reassigned to the 3rd Battalion.
It appears that his repatriation may have been for health reasons. On 31st January 1916, George was admitted to the 4th Southern General Hospital in Plymouth. The handwriting in the notes for this admission is difficult to read, but the basic headline is starkly clear: ‘bronchitis and subsequently mental’.
Private Taylor remained in hospital for a couple of weeks, before being moved to the Wells Asylum in Somerset. He was assessed by the military doctor after a couple of months’ treatment, and was declared unfit to continue in active service, due to ‘general paralysis of the insane’ or shellshock/PTSD as it is known today. His illness was wholly attributed to his military service, and sheds some light on what he must have gone through during his short time in France, compared to his previous seven years’ service. George’s last day in the army was on 13th April 1916, and he had served for a total of 14 years, 211 days.
George’s trail goes cold at this point. He passed away on 22nd December 1916, at the age of 32 years old. Although records do not confirm this, it seems likely that he died while he was still admitted to the asylum, as his death was recorded in Wells.
George William Taylor was brought back to Holcombe for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the graveyard of St Andrew’s Church.
Albert Warr was born in Chaffcombe, near Chard, Somerset, in the spring of 1900. He was the middle of three children to William and Edith. Edith, who was also known as Sophie or Sophia, was nine years older than her husband, and had been married previously. When her first husband passed away, she was left with three children under ten years old – half-siblings to Albert – and so married William to provide them and her a home.
William was an agricultural labourer, but by the time of the 1911 census, the family had moved east to Crewkerne, where both he and Edith took up work in a laundry. The household was complemented by the two older of Edith’s children – Edith, who helped with the laundry work, and Samuel, who was a fishmonger.
Little information is available for Albert’s military service, so his time in the army is a challenge to piece together. He enlisted no earlier than April 1918, and was assigned to the 5th Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. Private Warr’s troop fought in France and Italy, although it is unlikely that he saw any action overseas.
All that can be confirmed is that he was admitted to the 1st Northern General Hospital in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, although his condition is unknown. Private Warr passed away on 17th October 1918, aged just 18 years old.
The body of Albert Warr was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the Townsend Cemetery, within walking distance of the family home in Crewkerne.
Private Warr’s pension ledger notes that Edith had passed away, and that the beneficiary was to be William instead. As this document is not dated, it is not possible to determine when Albert’s mother died, but it is likely to have been between 1917 and 1919.
Albert Edward Taylor was born in the autumn of 1887 and was the fifth of eight children to John and Mary Taylor. John was a mason and both he and Mary came from Crewkerne, Somerset, which is where they raised their family.
Albert worked as an errand boy when he left school, but he sought a career and, enlisted in the Army Service Corps in July 1904. He lied about his age to join up, suggesting he was nearly 22, where he was actually just 17 years of age.
Driver Taylor’s service records confirm that he was 5ft 3ins (1.6m) tall and weighed 115lbs (52.2kg). He was noted as having brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He had a mole between his shoulder and the back of his neck, and his religion was recorded as Baptist.
Albert’s contract was for two years’ service, followed by ten years in the Army Reserve. While a military career was what he sought, he seems to have had a disregard for rules, and regularly had run ins with authority, as his Regimental Defaulter Sheet testifies.
On 19th December 1904, while based in Woolwich, Surrey, he was absent without a pass from 6am until 12:15am on 30th December. He was confined to barracks for eight days.
The following year, Driver Taylor had moved to Bordon in Hampshire. On 28th November 1905, he was absent without a pass, from midnight until 8:30am on 1st December. He was again confined to barracks, this time for ten days.
A third offence came on 29th May 1906, by which time Albert had moved to Aldershot, Hampshire. He was found in neglect of duty ‘in allowing dirty pudding cloths to be deposited in the cupboards of the cookhouse’ and being ‘absent from work from 1:30pm till found in his barrack room at 9:20pm.’ For these, he was confined to barracks again, this time for eight days.
Within a matter of weeks, he was found in neglect of duty again, having broken out ‘of barracks after tattoo and remaining absent till apprehended by the Military Police at about 10:50pm’ and being ‘drunk and improperly dressed.’ This time the punishment was more severe and he was detained in prison for 96 hours.
Unsurprisingly, Albert’s military career didn’t go much further than this. When his two-year contract came to an end, he returned to Somerset and found employment as a mason.
In July 1910, Albert married Mabel Wallbridge, the daughter of a carman, also from Crewkerne. The couple set up home on the outskirts of the town, and went on to have a son, Frederick, who was born later that year.
The 1911 census found the young family living in a cottage in Lye Water, with Albert listing himself as a ‘mason (army pensioner)’. While the military reference may have been added with a sense of pride, irony or bloody mindedness, Albert was not to fully leave his army career behind. When war came to Europe in 1914, he was still within his reserve status, and was called up to play his part.
Private Taylor was to leave his family behind: son Frederick had now been joined by daughters Kathleen and Joyce, and Mabel pregnant with another daughter, Rosaline, who was born in January 1915. Albert was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry and, in contrast to his previous tenure on the Home Front, he soon found himself in the thick of things.
Albert’s regiment was involved in some of the fiercest opening skirmishes of the First World War, and he would have been caught up on the Battles of Le Cateau, the Marne, the Aisne and Armentières. By the spring of 1915, the battalion was entrenched at Ypres, and it was here during the Battle of St. Julien that Private Taylor was injured.
Albert has received a gun shot wound to the left side of his skull and was medically evacuated to Britain for treatment. He was admitted to the Beechfield House Hospital in Southampton, but his wounds proved too severe, and he passed away on 14th May 1915, at the age of 27 years old.
The funeral of Private Albert Edward Taylor, of the Somerset Light Infantry… who died from wounds received at the Front, took place with military honours at the Cemetery [in Crewkerne] on Tuesday afternoon, and attracted a large attendance. As a mark of respect to the memory of the deceased soldier blinds were drawn at the private and business houses en route to the Cemetery, while the flag erected outside the Victoria Hall for the children’s Empire-day celebration was lowered to half-mast.
Rev. J Street (Unitarian Minister)… spoke of the painful circumstances and the heroic conduct of the deceased, who had sacrificed his life for others. Although death was attended with pain and sorrow, yet in after years deceased’s children would look back with pride to the part their father took in the present war.
Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 26th May 1915
Albert Edward Taylor was laid to rest in the cemetery of his home town, Crewkerne.
Private Albert Taylor (from findagrave.com)
Albert’s headstone gives his initials as AC Taylor. They should be AE Taylor.
Death and Service 