Tag Archives: Sergeant

Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Great War, history, illness, Lance Corporal, photography, Royal Engineers, Sapper, Sergeant, Somerset, story, war, Wiltshire

Serjeant Herbert Fleming

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Serjeant Herbert Fleming

Herbert Gordon Maurice Fleming was born in Stockton, Wiltshire, on 24th March 1888. An only child, his parents were carpenter and wheelwright George Fleming and his wife, Annie.

Little further information is available about Herbert’s early life. On 25th June 1910 he married Ethel Young, a shepherd’s daughter from Wiltshire: they would go on to have four children, Herbert Jr, Ivy, George and Harold.

Herbert’s marriage certificate noted that he was employed as an engine driver. In his spare time, he also volunteered for the Wiltshire Regiment. When war broke out in the summer of 1914, he was called upon to play his part, and was formally mobilised in July 1916.

Sapper Fleming joined the Royal Engineers. His service records show that, at 28 years of age, he stood 5ft 7.5ins (1.71m) tall, and weighed 159lbs (72kg). He was of good physical development, although his medical report noted that some dental attention was required, and he had a pendulous mole on his back.

After his initial training, Herbert was sent to France. He was to remain part of the British Expeditionary Force for the next three years. While details of his service are scarce, his commitment to the army was clear: he was promoted to Lance Corporal in December 1918; full Corporal in June 1919; and Serjeant just three months later.

In October 1919, Herbert arrived back in Britain and the following month he was formally demobbed. He returned to his family, who were now living in Bath, Somerset. Back on civvy street, Herbert took up work as a motor waggon driver in the city, but his post-army life was to be short-lived.

The enquiry into the death on Saturday of Herbert John Maurice Fleming… was held at Bath Guildhall… Medical evidence proved that the cause of death was heart failure, due to an unexpected attack of pneumonia.

The widow said her husband did not complain of illness until Friday evening, when he returned from a journey to Reading. He then said he ached all over, and would go to bed at once. On Saturday evening he said he felt better, and sent her to the chemist for a tonic. He told her not to send for a doctor, as he expected to be quite well on Monday. On Sunday he still appeared fairly well, and was quite cheerful: but in the afternoon he complained of sickness, and the end came very suddenly.

[Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette: Saturday 27th March 1920]

Herbert John Morris Fleming was just three days short of his 32nd birthday when he died. He was laid to rest in Bath’s sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery.

The spelling of Herbert’s second middle name is variously noted as Maurice and Morris. For consistency, I have used the spelling noted on his birth certificate.

Bombardier, Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Great War, Gunner, Hampshire, history, illness, photography, Royal Field Artillery, Sergeant, Somerset, story, war

Serjeant William Dutch

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Serjeant William Dutch

DUTCH, WILLIAM BENJAMIN, Sergt., No. 83812, 47th Brigade, Royal Field Artillery, [son] of William Dutch, of Bladud House, Bath, Accountant, by his wife, Alice, [daughter] of Alderman Alfred Taylor, of The Red House, Bath; b. Lower Weston, Bath, 21 April 1894; educ. Bathforum, and Bath City Secondary School 93 years’ Scholarship), and was employed in the engineering works of Stothert and Pitt Ltd., of Bath. He joined the Army, 17th Aug. 1914; was made Bombardier, 1 November 1914; Corpl., 14 November 1914; and Sergt., 1 January 1915; and died at the Thornhill Isolation Hospital, Aldershot, 11 April 1915, of septic scarlet fever; [unmarried]. He was buried at Locksbrook Cemetery, Bath, will full military honours. His Capt. wrote: “I cannot exaggerate the loss he is to me personally and to the whole battery, had picked up a wonderful knowledge of gunnery and his work in general was out and out the best sergeant I had, and would have gone far in the service.” He was a keen sportsman and a popular football player.

[De Ruvigny’s Roll of Honour, 1914-1919]

William Benjamin Dutch was the second of five children to William and Alice. His father initially worked as a grocer and wine and spirit shopkeeper, and the 1901 census found the family living above the shop on the corner of Chelsea Road and Park Road, Bath.

By the time of the 1911 census, however, things had changed. The Dutches had moved to Walcot, nearer the centre of Bath, and William was working as a tramway clerk. Alice was running the family home – 3 Bladud Buildings – as a boarding house, and employed a housemaid and kitchen maid to help look after the lodgings.

William’s dedication to his army role – and his rapid rise through the ranks – is outlined in the article above. He seems, however, to have spent his time on home soil, remaining at his Hampshire base from his enlistment to his passing. His service records give an insight into his physical nature: he stood 5ft 6.5ins (1.69m) tall, and weighed 153lbs (69.4kg). He had light brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion.

Serjeant Dutch’s illness seems to have come on him quickly:

On Sunday a telegram reached [his parents] saying that their son… was seriously ill in hospital at Aldershot. Mr Dutch went thither at once, only to find that his son had passed away. He was attacked last week with bronchial pneumonia, and tracheotomy was performed in the hope of saving his life, but in vain. The deceased was… a young soldier of rare promise and fine physique.

[Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette – Saturday 17 April 1915]

William Benjamin Dutch was just 20 years old when he passed away. His body was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in Bath’s sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery, within sight of William Sr’s former shop on Chelsea Road.

Serjeant William Dutch
(from findagrave.com)
Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, Lance Serjeant, Middlesex, Northern Ireland, photography, Scotland, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, Surrey, war

Serjeant John Chambers

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Serjeant John Chambers

John Dwelly Chambers was born on 21st August 1846, in Holborn, Middlesex. The second of four children, his parents were John and Sarah Chambers. John Sr was a tailor, and this was a trade into which his oldest son followed.

Unusually, John Jr travelled widely with his work and, by the late 1860s, he was based in Devon. It was here that he met and, on 5th March 1870, married Isabella Smith. She was born in Exeter, and couple initially made a life for themselves there.

The 1881 census return shows just how far the family moved in the coming years. John and Isabella were to have nine children: their first, Louise, was born in Exeter a hear after their marriage. The second child, son John, was born in Armagh, Ireland, though; their third, Emily, was born in Glasgow; while their fourth, George, was born in Surrey. It was only by the time their fifth and sixth children, Thomas and Charles, were born that they family returned to Devon. Their youngest three children – Percy, Victoria and Ivor, were all born in Somerset, when the family had settled in Taunton.

The reason for these moves seem to have been because his tailoring work was for the army. The 1891 census found the family living in army barracks, where John was listed as being a soldier. Ten years on, and John was recorded as being a Lance Sergeant in the Somerset Light Infantry, the Chambers’ still being billeted in barrack accommodation in Taunton.

By this point, Percy, now 17 years of age, was employed as a gunsmith, and a later photo suggests that all six of John’s sons went into the army.

Isabella died in 1906, at the age of 58: the following year, John married Elizabeth Dunning, a widow with her own children to raise. The 1911 census found the extended family living in the barracks: John, Elizabeth, Ivor and Elizabeth’s two daughters, Kate and Beatrice. John, by now, was listed as being a master tailor (military), Ivor was now a gunsmith, and the two girls were employed as a book binder and dressmaker respectively.

John had officially been discharged from the army by this point, but it seems likely that the outbreak of war brought him back into service. His life over the next few years is largely undocumented, but it is fair to assume that Serjeant Chambers was called back to the army, possibly to train newer recruits in the trade he had been working in for decades.

John Dwelly Chambers died of a heart attack on 2nd August 1915: he was just short of his 69th birthday. John was laid to rest in the sprawling St Mary’s Cemetery in Taunton, not far from the barracks to which he had devoted his life.

Serjeant John Chambers (seated middle, with his sons)
(from ancestry.co.uk)
Australia, Australian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Driver, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, photography, story, war

Driver John McClymont

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Driver John McClymont

John McClymont was born in Cowra, New South Wales, Australia, in 1865. Full details of his early life are lost to time, but later documents confirm that his mother was called Sophia.

Most of the information relating to John’s life comes from his army service records. These confirm that he enlisted on 13th September 1915, and that he was assigned to the 8th/20th unit of the 5th Australian Infantry Brigade. He was noted as being a labourer when he joined up, with brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. The record confirms that he stood 5ft 10ins (1.78m) tall, and weighed 169lbs (76.7kg).

Private McClymont arrived in Egypt in February 1916, and transferred to the 2nd Battalion of the Australian Imperial Force. He was initially based at Tel-el-Kebir camp, close to Cairo. From here on in, he seems to have been beset with poor health, and had numerous hospital admissions for heart ailments and haemorrhoids.

By April 1916, John’s unit had arrived in France, and his commitment to the job was not to go unrewarded. On 13th July 1916, he was appointed to the role of Acting Sergeant, and just three months later, he was reassigned to the 1st Australian Infantry Brigade Headquarters, where he was mustered as a Driver.

He was still battling health issues, however, and, in 18th August 1917, he was admitted to a hospital in Boulogne with heart disease. Within a month, Driver McClymont had been medically evacuated to Britain for treatment, and he was taken to Bath War Hospital in Somerset. It was here that he was diagnosed with diabetes, and, having slipped into a diabetic coma, it was here that he passed away, on 9th October 1917. He was 42 years of age.

With all of his family on the other side of the world, John McClymont was laid to rest in the military section of Bath’s Locksbrook Cemetery.

Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, Hampshire, Hampshire Regiment, history, illness, India, Lance Corporal, Lance Serjeant, photography, Private, Sergeant, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Serjeant Alfred Pollard

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Serjeant Alfred Pollard

Alfred Pollard was born in the spring of 1869 in Hinton Charterhouse, Somerset. His early life seems to have been a little disjointed. The son of Harriett Pollard, who had him out of wedlock, his baptism record gives no details of his father.

The 1871 census found him living with his mother and her widowed father, Thomas Pollard. Ten years later, Harriett is living with her husband, Walter Hayden, and four children, including Alfred – who has also taken the name of Hayden. Thomas is also recorded as living with the family.

Alfred is missing from the 1891 census return. Harriett, however, is now listed as married and the head of the household. She and Walter had a further three children – their youngest, Percy, being just three months old. Times must have been tough for her: the same census recorded Walter as being an inmate of the Somerset and Bath Asylum, where he is listed as being a lunatic.

Harriett died at the start of 1892, aged just 46 years old: Walter died three years later, at the age of 55. Both are buried in the graveyard of St John the Baptist Church, Hinton Charterhouse.

The passing of his mother and the diminishing health of his stepfather seems to have spurred Alfred into building a career to support his siblings. Having been working as an engine driver, on 7th December 1892, he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry.

Alfred’s service records give his height as 5ft 7ins (1.7m) and his weight as 137lbs (62kg). He was noted as having black hair, bark eyes and a coarse complexion. He also had a number of tattoos, including a cross on his right forearm; a circle of dots on his right wrist; crossed flags, an anchor and Jubilee 1887 VR and crown on his left forearm; and a bracelet on his left wrist. The records also noted the loss part of the middle finger on his right hand.

Private Pollard quickly became a career soldier. Over 21 years, he rose through the ranks to Lance Corporal (July 1902), Corporal (April 1906), Lance Sergeant (November 1907) and Serjeant (June 1911). He spent more than 14 years in India, and was involved in the Mohmand Campaign of 1897. He was formally discharged on 6th December 1913, having served as a signaller for eleven years, and a Provost Sergeant for three. His discharge papers confirmed his exemplary character, and that he was “thoroughly hardworking, sober and reliable.“

Back on civvy street, Alfred found work as a labourer in an iron foundry. This was not to last long, however, as he stepped up once more when war was declared in the summer of 1914. Joining the Somerset Light Infantry on 12th October, he retook his previous rank of Serjeant.

Alfred served on home soil during this second period in the army. Initially attached to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, his unit was based in Devonport, Devon. In September 1916, Sergeant Pollard was transferred to the 2nd Garrison Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment, which was based in nearby Plymouth. In January 1917, he moved again, to the Hampshire Regiment. He spent most of the year with 18th (Home Service) Battalion in Aldershot, Hampshire, and by December had moved to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, which was based in Gosport.

Sergeant Pollard remained on active service until the end of February 1919, when he was formally demobbed. At this point, his trail goes cold, although he seems to have settled in Bath, Somerset. He went on to marry, although details of his wife are limited to the name Mrs AE Pollard and her date of birth, 15th March 1879.

Alfred Pollard died of cardiac failure on 7th March 1921: he was 52 years of age. He was laid to rest in the army section of Bath’s Locksbrook Cemetery.

Army Veterinary Corps, Commonwealth War Graves, County Durham, Glamorganshire, Great War, history, Midlothian, photography, Private, Royal Army Service Corps, Scotland, Sergeant, Somerset, story, unknown, Wales, war

Serjeant Robert Dodds

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Serjeant Robert Dodds

Robert Frederic Dodds was born in 1874 in Darlington, Country Durham. The third of nine children, his parents were Robert and Elizabeth Dodds. Robert Sr was a carter and furniture remover and, when he finished his schooling, Robert Jr joined his father in his work.

Robert Sr died in 1898, at the age of 61. Whether this was a catalyst for his son to move on is unclear, but by the following year, Robert Jr was working as a labourer in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. On 16th September 1899, he married Elizabeth Counsell, a fisherman’s daughter from the town.

It seems that Robert was keen to build a life for his new wife: the next census, taken in 1901, found the couple living in Cardiff, Glamorgan, where he was employed as a stone mason. The Dodds remained in Wales for the next decade, having three children – Lily, William and Rosie – there. By the spring of 1911, however, they were back in Somerset, living in a three-roomed cottage in Castle Street. Elizabeth had had a fourth child just a month before the census, with a second son, Bertie, adding to the family.

When war came to Britain, Robert stepped up to play his part. He initially joined the Royal Army Veterinary Corps as a Private, and found himself in France on 6th March 1915. Elizabeth, meanwhile, remained at home in Somerset, seeking support from her family. With four children to look after, her workload was to increase again when, just a week after Robert arrived on the Western Front, she gave birth to their fifth child, the patriotically named Frederick Gordon Kitchener Dodds.

Robert remained in the Royal Army Veterinary Corps for the next four years, rising to the rank of Serjeant. Details of his time in the service are unclear, but he survived the war and, on 11th July 1919, he transferred to the Royal Army Service Corps.

Little further information is available about Robert’s life. By the winter of 1919/1920, he was based in Midlothian, Scotland. He was admitted to the 2nd Scottish General Hospital, Edinburgh, although his condition is unclear. Whatever it was, it was to be fatal: he passed away on 6th January 1920, at the age of 45 years old.

Robert Frederic Dodds’ body was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in Highbridge Cemetery.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, injury, photography, Sergeant, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Serjeant Robert Oborne

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Serjeant Robert Oborne

Robert Oborne and his twin, William, were born in the summer of 1880, two of ten children to John and Elizabeth Oborne. John was an agricultural labourer, and the family were raised in Bishop’s Lydeard, Somerset.

Death was to surround Elizabeth Oborne: William died when he was only three years old and John also passed away in 1886. This was around the time that she gave birth to their last child, who she also named William. The 1891 census recorded Elizabeth as living in the centre of Bishops Lydeard with four of her children: John, who was a farm labourer, Elizabeth, an errand girl, and Robert and William, both of whom were still at school.

When he completed his schooling, Robert found work as a coal hewer. He moved to South Wales, and boarded with the Hampshire family, in Ystradyfodwg, Glamorganshire. Further details of his life before the outbreak of war are scarce, although it seems that he changed career, taking up work as a groom. Known as Bobbie, later reports suggest that he was a genial young man, and had a large number of friends.

1915 proved a pivotal year for Robert: that summer he married Amy Lyons in Taunton. Elizabeth died in October, and his next oldest sibling, a sister also called Elizabeth, passed away just weeks later.

“Just before the war he joined the Somerset Light Infantry [Territorial] and went through the Gallipoli campaign, and then went to Egypt… he acted [in the capacity of a groom] to his officer commanding, and whilst in Egypt had the misfortune to get thrown from his horse, which caused internal trouble.” [Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 14th April 1920]

The now-Serjeant Oborne was medically discharged from 3rd/4th Battalion on 21st August 1916, and returned to Somerset. He took up employment with Colonel Dennis Boles MP, acting as his groom from him from Watts House, on the outskirts of Bishops Lydeard.

Robert appears to have continued with this life for the next few years, but his wartime injuries continued to dog him.

…on Tuesday, March 2nd [1920], he gave up work and went to the doctor, who advised his removal to the hospital, where he was taken the following Friday, and underwent an operation the same evening. Hopes were held out for his recover, and he lingered until 1:30 on Wednesday morning [7th April], when he passed away.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 14th April 1920

Robert Oborne was 39 years old when he died. He was laid to rest in the grounds of St Mary’s Church in his home village, Bishops Lydeard.

Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Egypt, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Lance Corporal, London, photography, Royal Engineers, Sapper, Sergeant, Somerset, Sri Lanka, story, Surrey, war

Serjeant George Bartraham

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Serjeant George Bartraham

George Bartraham was born in the autumn of 1868 in the Somerset village of Sampford Brett. One of seven children, his parents were George and Sarah Bartraham. George Sr was a farm labourer and, while his son initially followed suit, he sought a life of adventure in the wilder world.

George Jr had found work as a tailor, and was apprenticed to a Charles Taylor, who lived in the village. That bigger and better life was niggling away, however, and, on 11th June 1888, he enlisted in the Royal Engineers. His service records show that he was 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall, with black hair, dark eyes and a fair complexion. Sapper Bartraham was also noted as having a scar on his left foot.

George initially signed up for seven years’ service, with an additional 5 years on reserve status once that was completed. The 1891 census recorded him as being based at Fort Blockhorse in Alverstoke, Hampshire. Early in 1894, he married Mary Bowden, in Portsmouth: the couple would go on to have two children, George and Albert. The following year, Sapper Bartraham opted to remain on full service with the Royal Engineers, partially, it is fair to assume, as the pay would be better to support his family than on reserve.

By 1901, George had been moved to barracks in Pembroke Docks, Wales. Mary and the children remained in Hampshire, living with her parents in Unicorn Street, close to the town’s naval base. Wales was not to be the last stop for George, however, and in October 1902, he was sent to Ceylon, where he remained for the next three years.

During his time in the army, George did not sit on his laurels. He received a certificate as a master tailor, became skilled in submarine mining, and also received a qualification in signalling. He was promoted to Lance Corporal in 1899, and full Corporal four years later.

George returned to Britain in January 1906, and seems to have returned to a base in Hampshire. It was here, on 28th December 1908, that an altercation led to him being convicted of assault. He was charged with ‘unlawfully and maliciously wounding one Albert Edward Bartraham, by stabbing him with a pair of scissors, at Aldershot… and counts for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and common assault’ [Calendar of Prisoners, 1868-1929]

Albert was George’s older brother, and he was convicted to six months’ hard labour for the assault. Corporal Bartraham returned to base on 6th June 1909, and was discharged a few days later, having completed 21 years’ service in the Royal Engineers.

The next census record, taken in 1911, found a family divided by work or circumstance. Mary and the children remained firmly ensconced in Portsmouth with her parents, while George was living in Aldershot, where he was employed as a tailor. His employer is noted as being the Government, so it seems likely that he was still connected to the army camp there.

When war came to Europe, George was called upon to play his part once more. Promoted to the rank of Serjeant, he was attached to the 136th Fortress Company of the Royal Engineers. He arrived in Egypt in June 1915, although it is unclear how long he remained overseas.

By the start of 1916, Serjeant Bartraham was back in Britain, primarily because of ill health. He had come down with nephritis, or inflamed kidneys. Admitted to hospital in South London, he died from the condition on 14th January 1916, at the age of 47 years old.

Brought back to Somerset, George Bartraham was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St George’s Church in the village of his birth, Sampford Brett.

This was a time of tragedy for the Bartraham family.

George’s father, George, had died around the same time as his son, and was buried near him.

George and Mary’s son, George, had enlisted in the Hampshire Regiment when war was declared and, by the summer of 1916, was based in Iraq. He died on 23rd September 1916, through causes unclear, and was laid to rest in Baghdad War Cemetery.

Three generations of Bartrahams, all called George, had passed away within nine months.

In the summer of 1917, Sarah Bartraham also passed away. She was laid to rest with her husband and son in St George’s Churchyard.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, injury, photography, Sergeant, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Serjeant Walter Hayes

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Serjeant Walter Hayes

Walter Hayes was born in Somerset in 1883. The oldest of seven children, his parents were William and Mary Hayes. William was an agricultural labourer, and the family lived and worked at Houndhill, to the south east of Stogumber.

Walter also fell into farm work and, in the spring of 1914, he married Emily Mary Tarr. The wedding took place in Tiverton, Devon, but the couple did not stay there for long as, just weeks after their wedding day, Emily gave birth to a daughter, Edith, over the Somerset border in Dulverton.

Storm clouds were brewing over European shores, and Walter was called upon to play his part. His service records are also sparse, but they confirm that he initially joined the Somerset Light Infantry, before moving across to the Devonshire Regiment.

Walter had either been in the army earlier in his life, or he worked his way up during the war, and at some point he reached the rank of Serjeant. He saw fighting overseas and, according to later documentation, was caught up in a gas attack. This was to have an impact on his health and he was discharged from army service sooner than he might otherwise have done. Officially stood down in March 1919, he returned home to his wife and family.

Emily and Walter had a second child, William, later that year, and the family were finally able to settle into a routine. Walter’s health, however, was severely impacted and, on 12th January 1921, he passed away from bronchitis. The lung condition was found to be directly attributable to his war service, and that gas attack, Walter was 38 years of age.

Walter Hayes was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of All Saints’ Church in Dulverton.

Emily was pregnant when her husband died: she gave birth to their third child, a son she named Walter, just a few months later. She did not re-marry, and, according to the 1939 Register, she was boarding in a house in Dulverton and carrying out unpaid domestic duties.

Emily lived on until the autumn of 1973, passing away in Taunton at the age of 85.

Serjeant Walter Hayes
(courtesy of Trevor Hayes)

The early life of Walter Hayes was a challenge to piece together, as his was not an uncommon name in the area at the time. My thanks go to his great nephew, Trevor Hayes, for his help in pulling together the story and for the image of his great uncle.

Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, County Kildare, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Jersey, Lancashire, Lance Corporal, Lance Serjeant, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, South Africa, South Lancashire Regiment, story, war

Serjeant Andrew Fox

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Serjeant Andrew Fox

Andrew Michael Fox was born on 25th May 1871, the oldest of six children, to Michael and Eliza Fox. Michael was a Private in the 40th Regiment of Foot, and was based in Curragh Camp, Kildare, Ireland, when Andrew was born.

The family travelled where Michael’s work took him: Andrew’s oldest siblings were born in Uttar Pradesh, India, and the family were in England by the time of the 1881 census.

Given Michael’s military connections, it is no surprise that Andrew followed him into the army. He enlisted in August 1884, joining the South Lancashire Regiment. His service records give his age as 14 – he was, in fact, just 13 years old – and note his height as 4ft 9ins (1.44cm) and his weight as 73lbs (32.7kg). Andrew was recorded as having hazel eyes, brown hair and a fair complexion: his religion was also confirmed as Roman Catholic.

Andrew’s service records have become damaged over time, and a lot of his details are illegible. Because of his age when he enlisted, he was initially given the rank of Boy. In July 1887, he was formally mobilised, with the rank of Private. He remained on home soil for the next ten years, with the 1891 census listing him as being barracked in Fort Regent, Jersey.

It was in the Channel Islands that Andrew met Kathleen Dooling. The couple married on 7th January 1892, and went on to have ten children. Over the next couple of years, Andrew progressed through the ranks, achieving Lance Corporal in September 1892, Corporal in June 1894 and Lance Serjeant in August 1897.

In 1899, the Second Boer War led to the newly-promoted Serjeant Fox being posted overseas. He remained in South Africa for six months, while the conflict raged on. Andrew returned to Britain in April 1900, and was officially stood down from the army on 31st December that year, as he was deemed no longer fit for military service.

The 1901 census found Andrew and Kathleen still living in family barracks in Aldershot with their three eldest children, Andrew Margaret and Edith. Andrew was recorded as being an officer’s valet, likely now in a civilian role. The family remained in Aldershot until 1910, with five more of their children being born there.

Another change came at that point, however, as the following year’s census found the family living in Brighton Street, Warrington, Lancashire. Andrew was, by this point, working as a salesman for the Singer Sewing Machine Company, and the family were cramped into a four-roomed end-of-terrace house.

War came to Europe in the summer of 1914, and Andrew stepped up to play his part once more. Again, full details have been lost to time, but he took up the rank of Serjeant once more, and was attached to the Somerset Light Infantry. This necessitated another relocation for the family, and they moved to Cannington, near Taunton, Somerset.

Serjeant Fox was assigned to the 7th (Service) Battalion, but was not to remain in his role for long. He contracted phthisis, or tuberculosis, and passed away from the condition on 20th April 1915, just weeks before his regiment departed for the Western Front. He was 43 years of age.

Andrew Michael Fox was laid to rest in the peaceful Cannington Cemetery, not far from the family home.

Private Andrew M Fox

In the plot next to Serjeant Andrew Fox is another, similar headstone. Not quite having the same form as the Commonwealth War Grave Commission headstone that Serjeant Fox has, this is dedicated to a Private Andrew M Fox, of the 2nd South Lancashire Regiment.

Andrew Moyse Fox was the eldest son of Andrew and Kathleen. Born on 31st March 1894 in Ireland, he wanted to follow his father and grandfather into the army.

Andrew Jr enlisted in the South Lancashire Regiment in August 1908. His service records confirmed that he was just 14 years of age, standing 5ft (1.52m) tall, and weighing 5st 2lbs (32.7kg). He was noted as having dark brown hair, hazel eyes and a fresh complexion, and that he has a scar on his right buttock.

As is the case with his father, there is limited information about Andrew Jr’s army career. He spent just under six years serving with the regiment, and was formally mobilised when he came of age in 1912. On 27th March 1914, however, Private Fox was discharged from the army on medical grounds, for reasons unclear. The next record available for him is that of his passing, just nine days after his father. He was 21 years of age.

Andrew Fox Jr was laid to rest next to his father in Cannington Cemetery. The heartbreak for Kathleen, to have lost husband and oldest boy within two weeks, must have been indescribable. While her son’s headstone is similar in design to her husband’s, he was not subsequently entitled to an official Commonwealth War Grave, as he had left the army before the outbreak of war: the Commission’s qualification dates (4th August 1914 to 31st August 1921).