TOPIC:

On 3 February 1900 the Bromsgrove & Droitwich Messenger published a list of Bromsgrove & district men either already serving in South Africa or about to leave for the Cape. The list occupied over a column of page 8 and started with 6 officers. Home addresses were given for all the NCO’s & men.

According to the article six lived in “Sagebury Terrace, Stoke Works” & two in “British Row, Stoke Works”. Stoke Works referred to the Stoke Prior Salt Works which at the time was one of the largest producers of salt in the British Isles. The southern half of the works along with British Row & Sagebury Terrace can be seen on this 1884 OS map:



British Row & Sagebury Terrace were rows of terrace cottages built by the salt works owner, James Corbett (known locally as the “Salt King) for his workers and their families to live in. British Row first appears on the 1861 Census and seems to have consisted of about 10 dwellings. Sagebury Terrace first appeared on the 1881 Census and consisted of 55 dwellings.



This undated photograph is looking north up Sagebury Terrace towards the salt works (looks a bit like Smethwick!). Note on the map the railway tracks to the west and the canal to the immediate east of Sagebury Terrace. By the 1960’s the saltworks were owned by ICI who demolished the chimneys and repurposed the site to latex production (when the author unsuccessfully applied for a job), today it is a modern business park. The cottages were demolished in the 1960’s but the appropriately named Boat & Railway Inn seems to be still functioning with a covered veranda alongside the canal where these days customers can wave to the waterborne passing holidaymakers.

Closer examination of the records of the 8 men listed show the newspaper got it slightly wrong and only one lived in British Row while seven lived in Sagebury Terrace including a pair of brothers.

Largely quoting from the article:

No. 1 British Row = Corpl William Nash, 2nd Worcestershire
No. 10 Sagebury Terrace = Pte Edwin James, 2nd Worcestershire & Pte Thomas James, Reservist, 2nd Warwickshire
No. 16 Sagebury Terrace = Srgt Edwin Busk, 1st Battalion Yorkshire Regiment
No. 36 Sagebury Terrace = Corpl James Penny, Royal Engineers
No. 39 Sagebury Terrace = Pte Thomas Henry Harrison, 1st Worcestershire Mounted Infantry
No. 50 Sagebury Terrace = Pte George Simmonds, 2nd Coldstream Guards
No. 52 Sagebury Crescent = Private Edwin Wright, 2nd Worcestershire Mounted Infantry
The life and times of the eight residents of Stoke Works who fought the Boers 7,000 miles away:

PART 1.

3198 Corporal William Nash.

William was born in Stoke Prior, the village immediately to the north of the salt works, on 30 May 1874 and was baptised in the parish church of St Michael’s on 26 July 1874. By the time of the 1881 Census the family had moved to No.8 British Row and his father Thomas was a labourer at the salt works. The 1891 Census for the same address lists William, now also a labourer at the salt works, his parents and nine siblings, ranging in age from 11 months to 20 years of age.

The family must have moved to No.1 within a year after the 18891 Census as when William enlisted in the Worcestershire Regiment on 21st March 1892 he gave No.1 as his father’s address. After service in Malta & Bermuda, William stepped foot on the soil of South Africa on 12 January 1900 as a member of the 2nd Battalion. This letter he wrote home on 27 January 1900 tells how the first fortnight went:

“Slingersfontein, January 27th – I write these few lines to tell you I am quite well. We arrived at Capetown on the 8th, and entrained on the 12th for Rensburg. I enjoyed the voyage out, and had a nice ride in the train, as we were travelling night and day, only stopping for meals at different stations. We detrained on the 14th, stopped at Rensburg two days and then came up here. We are close to the enemy, and they are firing at us every day, but they can’t hit us yet. We were within 100 yards of them one day, and the bullets were flying round us like hail stones, but did not hit us; that was on the 24th; they may hit us, however, the next time. You will see by the papers how we got on with General French’s Division. We shall be advancing on Colesberg and Norval’s Point and then Bloemfontein, so you know where to look to see anything about us. We are not however, doing much yet, but I expect we shall be at it before you get this; we are all anxious to get there and I hope I shall go through all right. We have plenty of cavalry up here – the New Zealand Mounted Rifles, 1st Life Guards, 6th Dragoon Guards and others. It is very hot during the day and then it is cold at night, and we have a little trouble to get water as it is scarce, but we have not suffered yet from want of anything. We get rum every other day; we can’t get beer, so I have a good chance of being teatotal.”

William was not to “go through all right” – on 12 February 1900 he was a member of one of the three companies of the 2nd Worcesters outposted on the Worcester Hill kopjes, near their camp on Slingersfontein Farm from where he had written his letter, when they were attacked by a large number of Boers. Although they held firm, 22 of their number were killed or fatally wounded and 30 were wounded – William was amongst the wounded, suffering a gunshot wound to his left thigh. The next we definitely know about William is his arrival in England on 10 August 1900. Later he was awarded the Queen’s South Africa medal with the Cape Colony and Orange Free State clasps which indicates he did rejoin his unit before returning home. He was mentioned in Lord Roberts report of September 1901.

The 1901 Census found William, now a Sergeant, residing in Ramilles Barracks in Farnbrough. On 29 January 1902 he married Cornish born Maud Martin in the church he had been baptised in and just over a fortnight later he was on his way back to Bermuda but this time with the 4th Battalion. Nearly two years later the 4th moved to Barbados. Whether Maud accompanied him to Bermuda is not known but she was definitely in Barbados with him as that is where their first child was born. On 22 September 1904 sixteen day old Maud Elizabeth Nash, along with her parents, started the journey to England.

By the time of the 1911 Census, Colour Sergeant William and Maud had another daughter and the family were living in married quarters in the Worcestershire Regiment’s Norton Barracks and that is where their third daughter was born about 10 days after the census.

William was discharged to the Army Reserve on 20 March 1913 having completed 21 years of active service. He was re-engaged when the Great War started and was posted to France on 22 September 1915, aged 41 but his service records for his time in France are not to be found. However, his index medal roll card shows he was awarded the 1915 British Star, British War and Allied Victory medals and that he started the war as a Company Sergeant Major and ended it as a Warrant Officer Class II.

After the Great War he found employment as a Commissionaire and at the time of the June 1921 Census was working at the offices of Stewart’s & Lloyds in Halesowen, Worcestershire. Sixteen year old Maud Elizabeth was working at the Cadbury’s factory in Bournville, packing chocolates, and the family were living in the Small Heath area of Birmingham. By the time of the 1939 Register his wife Maud had passed away and William had remarried, he and Nellie were living in Birmingham and William was still working as a Commissionaire. William passed away in July 1942 aged 68.

The James Brothers.

Thomas, the eldest, enlisted in the Warwickshire Regiment in November 1891, regimental number 3512. He gave his age as 19 years 10 months, an exaggeration of about 2 years, and his place of birth and his father Thomas’s address as Stoke Works, Bromsgrove. Edwin enlisted in the Worcestershire Regiment in September 1896 giving his age correctly as 18 years 10 months, his place of birth as Dodderhill, Bromsgrove and his father’s address as 10 Sagebury Crescent. His regimental number was 4666.

Their paternal grandfather, Henry was a Cheshire salt worker who brought his young family down to Stoke Works in the 1850’s where, the owner John Corbett was reputedly a benevolent (for the times) employer, so the move was presumably for better working conditions and a better life. The 1881 Census found Thomas (age 7) & Edwin (age 4) with their father and mother (Emma), living in Imperial Row, Stoke Works. Although not named on the map Imperial Row seems to have been the parallel row of cottages to British Row. By the time of the 1891 Census Emma had died and 17 year old Thomas junior had apparently left home, possibly for Birmingham in seek of work because that is where he attested as a “blacksmith”. Meanwhile Thomas senior and Edwin were still living in Imperial Row but must have moved to Sagebury Terrace in the next few years.

Edwin gave his occupation as “labourer” when he attested and his service in the 2nd Worcesters mirrored that of William Nash exactly to the extent that he arrived back in England on the same day, 10th August 1900. We know he was not wounded on the 12th February 1900, and may not even have been involved in the action, so he presumably developed some sort of sickness to apparently be invalided home. However after 6 months he returned to South Africa and did not leave until June 1904. As a result he was awarded the Queen’s Medal with the Cape Colony, Orange Free State & Transvaal clasps and the King’s Medal with both date clasps.

Edwin was discharged to the Army Reserve on 30 June 1904. Whilst in the Army Reserve Edwin seriously blotted his copybook which caused the following addition to his Statement of Services sheet:

2.4.06 Convicted by Civil Power at Worcester Sessions for detaining post letter. Sentenced to 6 months imprisonment with hard labour. Imprisonment expires 1.10.06. Forfeited one GC Badge.

The case did not seem to make the Worcestershire newspapers but the Birmingham Mail of 30 March 1906 gave it a paragraph:

CHARGE AGAINST A WORCESTER POSTMAN AT WORCESTER.

At Worcester today, Edwin James, rural postman, was charged with unlawfully detaining two letters. Mr Tree prosecuted for the Postmaster-General. The evidence showed that Miss Loxley, Sale Green, gave prisoner 9 shillings to purchase a postal order and enclose it in a letter to Mr Elt, bookmaker. Not receiving the money, Mr Elt sent a bill for the boots to Miss Loxley, which the prisoner did not deliver. Both were found on him. He had spent the money, committed to Sessions.

Sale Green was a few miles south west of Stoke Works. By not destroying the evidence he does seem to have been an amateurish criminal and perhaps we should give him the benefit of the doubt that he acted under impulse whilst under severe financial pressure, or we could ……….

Edwin was fully discharged from the army on 7 September 1908 by when he was considered to have completed the 12 years of service he had signed on for, just under 8 of them active and just over 4 of them in Reserve.

I can find no definite evidence Edwin served in the Great War although he should have been caught by conscription if he had not already volunteered. In fact I cannot find anything about his life after his 1906 civilian imprisonment. Whether he live up to the soubriquet of “Salt of the Earth” I will leave readers to decide.

Before going to South Africa, Thomas also served abroad, in Ceylon for three and quarter years, before being discharged to the army reserve in late January 1897 by when he had only completed just over 5 years of active service. He was recalled to the Colours on 22 November 1899 and according to his records set sail for South Africa two days later. Other sources say the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment left another two days later and arrived at Cape Town, aboard the Gaul, on 16th December. Thomas arrived back home only 7½months later and 5 days before his brother. No reason is given for his premature return and it did not stir the local newspapers into action. So presumably he was another victim off illness/disease. He continued to serve at home in the army until about 10 days before the conflict ended when he was posted to Bermuda, possibly to deal with Boer PoWs? He returned home another 6 months later when he spent another year on home service before being fully discharged on 18 November 1903, by when he had completed 12 years of service of which less than 2 were in reserve.

The 2nd Warwicks don’t seem to have done anything spectacular in South Africa during Edwin’s 7 months with them, mainly being involved in maintaining “the lines of communication”. For his South African service Thomas was awarded the Queen’s Medal with the Cape Colony & Orange Free State clasps.

Like his brother I can find no definite evidence Thomas served in the Great War but he would have been 40 when it started and may just have escaped conscription. Also I can find nothing definite about his post ABW civilian life except the creator of a public family tree thinks he was married with a family by 1911, had a larger family in 1921 but died the following year but I am not totally convinced it is the same Thomas James.

3233 Sergeant Edwin George Busk

Edwin George Busk was born in the late summer of 1870 in what is now the Selly Oak area of Birmingham but back then was part of the County of Worcestershire. His father John was a “Borough” Policeman. By the time of the 1881 Census the family had moved to 16 Sagebury Crescent and his father had undergone a major job transformation to “bricklayer” – presumably the salt works with all those buildings & chimneys kept more than one bricklayer busy. John and his wife Caroline were not typical Victorians as they limited the size of their family to 4 of which George was the eldest.

The 1891 census enumerator for Sagebury Crescent had a bad day by including George when he was not there and getting all the ages and places of birth wrong. George had enlisted in the army the previous October when he gave his age correctly as 20 and his occupation as “painter”, presumably of woodwork and walls and probably those of the salt works buildings. He attested in Birmingham and the recruiting officer appears to have been a member of the Royal Warwicks, so why he joined the Yorkshire Regiment is anybody’s guess.

With the 1st Battalion, also known as “The Princess of Wales’ Own”, he spent nine years on home service during which he married Irish born Esther Annie Lawlor on 23 June 1894 in Richmond, Yorkshire. Esther was 3 years George’s senior and their first and only child arrived 11 months later when they were stationed in Jersey. So George went to war in South Africa on 24 November 1899, a Sergeant of 4½ years standing, a married man and father of a 4½ year old daughter. The latter two may account for his out of character behaviour towards the end of his time in south Africa.

As none of “my” Smethwickians served in the Yorkshire Regiment I have to refer you to the relevant unit information on this site but they do appear to have been in the thick of it at times as shown by the claps eventually attached to George’s Queen’s Medal – Paardeburg, Driefontein & Relief of Kimberley. Although, he does seem to have missed out on the Johannesburg, Diamond Hill & Belfast clasps so possibly out of action for the summer of 1900.

Whilst still in South Africa, on 21 April 1902 Sergeant George Busk deserted! On 30 September 1902 he rejoined. On 18 October he was tried, convicted of desertion and reduced to the ranks. He suffered no imprisonment but did forfeit his service prior to his desertion.

Having missed the original ship booked for his home journey George arrived back in England on 26 November 1902 and continued his service with the army.

As a result of his desertion there are a lot of crossings out on his service dates and added notes on the battalion QSA Medal Rolls including “No Medal”. He warranted a page to himself on the Battalion KSA Medal Roll which shows everything had been amicably resolved on 16 April 1906 when he was belatedly awarded both his QSA & KSA and his full service was restored. The restoration of his rank was more drawn out.

The lack of imprisonment and the sorting out of April 1906 suggest the army felt there were mitigating factors in play and I wonder if they had something to do with a wife and child back home and a misguided attempt to get home early – very misguided as it actually had the opposite effect!

George was posted to Egypt in January 1908 by when he had regained the rank of Sergeant. Whether Esther & Kathryn went with him is not known. He returned home during October 1901 and was fully discharged from the army at York on 21 June 1910 after 18 years of service.

His discharge papers contain the following comment for Conduct & Character: “Good – Smart, clean and temperate”. For Special Qualifications for Civil Employment: “Would make a very good instructor for a School. Formerly Gymnasium instructor. Desires employment as Canteen Manager”. He gave 16 Carlyle Road, Aston Fields, Bromsgrove as his future residence and the 1911 Census reveals this was the home of his still alive parents (aged 65 & 68).

In the event the 1911 Census found George, Esther and Kathryn in Leeds living and working at The Hostel of the Resurrection, Spring Fields Mountain. At the time it was a very high church, and hence slightly controversial, training college for Anglican Ministers. George gave his name as Edwin George and signed it similarly, so perhaps I have been misnaming him. He gave his occupation as “Caretaker”, Esther’s as “Housekeeper” and Kathryn’s as “Maid”. Today it is a hall of residence for students at Leeds University.

George was 43 when the Great War started and there is no record of him serving. In any case the following Death notice appeared in the Bromsgrove & District Messenger of 3 June 1916:

BUSK – On May 24th, at Leeds, Edwin George Busk (Ted), late Sergeant in the Princess of Wales’ Own Yorkshire Regiment (The Green Howards), aged 45 years.

As you can see I have definitely been misnaming him!

Esther passed away in 1943, Kathryn became Mrs Jones the year after her father died and passed away in 1993.


Halfway through and we have already accumulated 61 years of service of which 55 were active. From humble Victorian workers’ cottages in Worcestershire, besides South Africa, we have vicariously visited Malta, Bermuda, Barbados, Egypt, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), Jersey and almost certainly Ireland.


Part 2 will about double the service total, add at least one more country, report on the only one of the eight to perish in South Africa and include three letters home.

"On 3 February 1900 the Bromsgrove & Droitwich Messenger published a list of Bromsgrove & district men either already serving in South Africa or about to leave for the Cape".

It would be greatly appreciated if you could reproduce the list from the messenger. I have 1 man from Bromsgrove and research indicates that he worked in another relatively large industry in Bromsgrove being the Fussell and Drury Boot manufacturers. I was not aware of the salt works, but these 2 are most likely to be to the biggest employers in the district. I visited Bromsgrove late last year and was fortunate to locate my WW1 chaps grave. Regrettably, my RHA (ABW) chap appears to have been buried in Walsall but spent his life making boots in Bromsgrove (apart from his time in the ABW).
I would be interested in finding out exactly how many from Fussell and Drury answered the call.

Regards

Simon

Simon - all I know about Fussell & Drury is that their factory was afflicted by a major fire in 1908 and a postcard of the fire damaged building can currently be purchased on a certain on-line auction site.

I have done a massive electronic shrinkage on the whole article and it is still readable on my computer screen. Will post separately under title of Men of Bromsgrove. From the ones I have looked at in any detail I don't recall any bootmakers or sons of bootmakers.

David.

PS They by no means only served in the Worcestershire Regiment and there is one 2nd Wiltshire amongst them, that based on a recent post, somebody else might be interested in.

Part 2 – Originally this was going to cover 4 men but the more I looked into James Penny the more interesting he became and as a result I decided to reproduce the whole of his long letter home rather than just quote from it. So here he is:

27905 Corporal James Perry, 29th Company Royal Engineers.

His rank above is the one he held at the time his service ended in South Africa.

James “Jim” Penny considered himself born in the parish of Dodderhill which lay immediately to the south west of Stoke Works. Based on the 1921 Census return, which he completed, he was born in December 1873, give or take a month, other census records fit with this but strangely his attestation papers make him born 3 years later.

By the time of the 1881 Census the family had moved to 36 Sagebury Crescent, Stoke Works which is the address Jim gave for his father, also James and a “Saltmaker”, when he attested in Worcester on 2 January 1894 for service in the Royal Engineers. James gave his occupation as “Blacksmith” which agreed with his occupation on the 1891 Census.

Jim spent 3 years and 4 months on home service before being posted to South Africa on 24 April 1897. When he arrived in South Africa he was still a Sapper, but a year later he was promoted to Lance-Corporal.

On 5 January 1900 James wrote home to his parents and a month later the long paragraph-less letter was published in the Bromsgrove & Droitwich Messenger under the headlines “ANOTHER LETTER FROM THE FRONT. A STOKE WORKS ENGINEER”:

Orange River, Cape Colony, Jan 5th 1900

Dear father and mother,

Again I have the opportunity of sending a few lines to you under the present hostilities in South Africa. It is very trying to all those who are now taking part, and will be for some time to come, as of course it is, as Lord Methuen says, “One of the biggest and hardest fights in the annals of English history”, and will never be forgotten. I received your letter, with the paragraph cut from the Weekly Messenger, which I found very interesting. I can’t give you anything later than the fight at Magersfontein, on the 10th and 11th of December. I was present with my Company (the 29th R.E.). We advanced thinking to drive the Boers from their position with our artillery, which opened fire about 3 a.m. on the 10th, and that salute woke up the Boers, and the duel commenced, and lasted until 7 p.m., about 16 hours. We only ceased for a few hours rest, which I can assure you was well needed and deserved. We slept on the open veldt till daybreak next morn, and the firing opened again with the Highland Brigade on our right and the Lancers on our left flank, with lots of others too numerous to mention. Our Company was in the centre of the column, and on the 11th we had to advance in front of our artillery to cut down brushwood to clear the line of fire. Our artillery covered us, so we took very little notice, as we were out of rifle range, although in easy reach of the Boer Artillery, who dropped several shells near us, but fortunately only one or two burst, and none of us were hurt. After our successful work we retired behind the artillery, and had biscuits and corned beef. Our artillery and naval brigade could not get through as we had hoped, so Lord Methuen gave the order to retire on the Modder River. This was after the Highland Brigade suffered so much. We had 24 hours allowed for the burial of the dead, the sight and stench of which I cannot go into details, only that I shall never forget it as long as I live. It is better imagined than explained, as some of the bodies had been four days on the open veldt in a broiling sun. When we returned to camp after burying upwards of fifty , the doctor recommended us an extra drop of rum, which we much enjoyed, although we did not get so much as we could have done with. Since this reverse we have been working from 4.30 a.m. till 7 p.m. making redoubts, breast works and gun pits, the use of which are better known to ourselves. We left the Modder on the 22nd, and came on here, where we have been at work on water supply for troops to come from England. Now we are preparing for the siege train which has arrived at De Aar, and is awaiting orders for the front. It is a marvellous train; it can be unloaded and a double-decked platform erected and put into action in eight hours. It fires all lyddite shells each one of which weighs 119lbs, and which is certain death to any horses and men within a radius of 500 yards, from where it explodes, and very dangerous at 1000 yards. If we can’t move the Boers without moving the range of kopjes they now hold, we will shift the kopjes as well. We are anxiously waiting to hear of the siege of Pretoria, and then I hope there will be a general parade to show the Boers what the British Empire consists of, and how many can be spared for them. I have the honour of saying I was one of the first on active service out here for this war, as we were sent from Cape Town three weeks or a month before war was declared to Naauwpoort, and I expect I shall be one of the last away if I am spared to return. We all hope for the best. I may tell you that we engineers are not for the firing line except in a case of necessity, but are for hard work, such as at Modder River. After firing for ten hours and driving the Boers back, we had to put a bridge over for the troops to cross and 300 of us were engaged at that, and then over the troops went. Since then the Royal Engineers have been repairing the Modder River bridge, which the Boers destroyed, besides putting over a temporary bridge for all trains and traffic, and two pontoon bridges. We mean to keep up the credit of the corps, as we are now the backbone of the British Army, and can prove ourselves as such in any way they test us for work, drill or earthworks. I say it myself, “I am proud to belong to such a gallant corps”. Our motto is “Everywhere where duty calls us”. Well I am orderly corporal this week, and am pretty busy. You must excuse the scribble in pencil, as can’t possibly get pen and ink. Since the 30th September I have been in Naauwpoort, De Aar, Beaufort West, Orange River, Modder River, Belmont, Klockfontein, Gra Pan and Enslin. I hope soon to have chance to write again. Meanwhile remember me to all enquiring friends, and to Mr Williams and Bill Vaughan. Tell the latter I have not had time to write to him. With best wishes and fondest love to all the home circle, believe me to remain your most affectionate son, JIM. (All’s well).

On 26 May 1900 Jim featured again in the Messenger having been promoted to Corporal on 1 April 1900:

STOKE WORKS

THE QUEEEN’S CHOCOLATE – Corporal Penny, Royal Engineers, has forwarded his Queen’s box of chocolate intact to his father for safe keeping until his return home. It is now on view, (together with a silver cup he won at Curragh Camp for shooting), at No. 36, Sagebury Terrace.

And for a third time on 24 November 1900:

A STOKE WORKS MAN IN GRIQUALAND WEST.

Mr James Penny, of Stoke Works, has received a letter from his son, Corporal J. Penny, of the Royal Engineers, who in the early summer formed one of the forces under Sir Charles Warren in Griqualand West. The letter states that Corporal Penny had been in bed for seventeen days, but was at the time of writing very much better, and hoped soon to be out of hospital. He says the weather is getting much warmer, and expresses a hope that he will return home in the summer. The writer encloses an interesting account of a fight that took place at Faber’s Puts, where Sir Charles Warren’s force included the water detachment of the Royal Engineers, under Corpl. Penny. There were altogether about 700 men engaged, and during the night of May 29th, the enemy planned a most daring and well-formulated attack on the British camp, taking positions on the left, front and right. About 6 a.m. on the 30th they opened fire on the camps, their positions enabling them to concentrate a heavy fire at short range on the Yeomanry and Canadians, several being killed in their blankets. In the course of the engagement Corporal Penny, with eight men under Col. Hughes, of Warren’s Scouts, attacked about 150 rebels as they were retiring round the British right flank. On the following morning Corpl. Penny and two sappers were commended for their shooting by Sir Charles Warren. In the battle there were 23 British killed and 34 wounded, and among the Boers 34 killed and 39 wounded.

In this last article we have an unofficial short account of the Battle of Faber’s Put based on a letter written by somebody who took part. As Jim’s account indicates the Canadians and the Imperial Yeomanry suffered the most heavily. The Canadian War Museum are rather scathing about it pointing out that Sir Charles Warren had chosen a defensively poor spot to overnight because there was a comfortable farmhouse for him to spend the night in, it was British outposts that allowed the Boers to approach too close undetected, the Canadians never received full recognition for the part they played and although Sir Charles Warren considered it a victory it was in reality a defeat. Other accounts are not scathing and Conan Doyle considered it “crushed the rebellion in Griqualand”. Although a member of Warren’s Scouts, Colonel Hughes was a Canadian who became Canada’s Minister for Militia and Defence between 1911 and 1916. All commentators report he fought well but he was not mentioned in dispatches along with 9 others (6 DEOVR, 2 Canadians, 1 Paget’s Horse), and he allegedly felt he should have been awarded the VC for the part he played. Needless to say none of the reports mentioned James Penny or even the presence of any Royal Engineers.

Jim arrived back in England on Christmas Day 1901 by when he was a couple of weeks short of 8 years of active service. However he was not discharged to the army reserve and continued to serve in the army with his records stating that in July 1902 his service was extended to “12 years with the colours”.

An August 1901 medal roll shows Jim was awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal with a single clasp - Cape Colony. A medal roll dated February 1903 shows a second clasp went his way – South Africa 1901 but he did not qualify for the King’s Medal. Thus, although he had helped build bridges across the Modder River those in authority did not consider he qualified for an Orange Free State clasp and because his continuous wartime South African service of just over 25 months years failed to stretch into 1902 by a few weeks he did not qualify for the King’s Medal. No comment.

In early 1903 he married Annie McLaughlin who was born in Chatham, Kent.

On 26 November 1903 the army posted Jim to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada after agreeing to extend his service even further to 21 years making him due for discharge in January 1915 by when he would be 42 years old. However, if the army were working on the age he gave when he attested they would have thought he would only be 39 in January 1915.

During March 1906 Jim returned to home service and a year later he was promoted to Sergeant. By 1909 Jim & Annie were in married quarters in Curragh Camp, Ireland and their second son was born there. Two years later as shown by the 1911 Census they were still at Curragh Camp and just two months after the census in May 1911 he was promoted to Company Sergeant Major whilst serving in the 59th Company, Royal Engineers

Jim’s service records show that on 11 September 1915, 8 months after he had completed 21 years of service, he was promoted to Quartermaster Sergeant serving in L Company, Royal Engineers. Three months later, dated 6 December 1915, this statement appears on his service records – “Hereby agrees to continue as a solider of the Regular Forces until the end of the war, in the same manner in all aspects as if his term of office were still unexpired, provided that on termination of the war he shall be discharged with all convenient speed.”

Then dated 12 February 1918: “elected under army order of 1918 to draw pension while still serving.”

Jim’s service records give no indication of what he did during the Great War and when he was finally discharged. As no WW1 Medal Roll Index Card can be found for him we can probably assume all his war service was home based and based on the December 1915 statement he was fully discharged soon after 11 November 1918.

Thus it would appear that Jim spent nearly 24 years in the army, all on active service.

The 1921 Census found Jim and Annie and family living at 22 Trinity Road, Gillingham. Jim’s occupation was given as “Clerk” and his place of work “RE Records Office”.

Jim passed away in April 1927 aged 53 leaving behind a widow and three sons, the youngest of whom was 9.

Here is his likeness shared on Ancestry by his two times great granddaughter. If my interpretation is right it was taken during his Company Sergeant Major days when he would have been about 40 years of age. He wears the cap badge of the Royal Engineers of whom Jim was so proud. What is missing is his QSA medal ribbon – I wonder if that is significant?

Part 3 covers two Mounted Infantry men and a Coldstream Guard who were all brought up in Sagebury Terrace and associated with Stoke Prior Salt Works who owned the houses.

3438 Private Thomas Henry Harrison, Mounted Infantry Company, 1st Battalion Worcestershire Regiment.

Thomas was born in early 1869 and baptised in the parish of Dodderhill on 11 April 1869. Dodderhill was the parish to the south west of Stoke Works. Thomas’s parents were called Richard & Mary and the baptism record gives Richards’s occupation as “Saltmaker”. The 1871 Census found the family still residing in Dodderhill and shows Thomas was the oldest son of Richard & Mary and he had a younger brother, George.

By the time of the 1881 Census the family had moved to 39 Sagebury Terrace, Stoke Works and grown with the addition of one boy and two girls. The breadwinner was still a “Saltmaker” and Thomas, aged 13, was still at school although the school leaving age was 10 at the time (raised to 11 in 1893).

On the 1891 Census the family had not moved and Thomas’s age was given as 22, rather than 23, suggesting he was born in early April and baptised in a hurry because there was concern about his survival. By 1891 Thomas had joined his father at the salt works and was listed as a “Saltmaker”, George, his younger brother, was a labourer at the salt works.

Thomas attested at nearby Droitwich on 7 November 1892 for service in the Worcestershire Regiment. His age is given as 20 years which cannot be right, he was actually 3 years older. He was below average height for the time at 5 ft 4 inches and was a lightweight at 8 stone 4 lbs but his chest measurements met the requirements. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion and joined them at Curragh Camp in Ireland. 15 months later he was transferred to the 1st Battalion and was posted to India on 16 February 1894 along with his new comrades in arms. He returned home nearly three years later during November 1896 and on arrival home received his second GC Badge & pay rise – his disciplinary record appears flawless as both his GC Badges were awarded on time i.e. the first and second anniversaries of his enlistment.

Just before the Boer War started Thomas would have been expecting discharge to the Army Reserve when he completed his 7 years of active service in November 1899. This did not happen and in December 1899 he was transferred to the newly formed Mounted Infantry Company – he seems a bit of a surprising choice for this as his past would suggest no familiarity with horses.

The 1st Battalion Mounted Infantry Company left for South Africa on 18 March 1900, ten days after their former and still on foot comrades. The medal roll gives a good idea of what Thomas & his mounted comrades were involved in as his QSA had 5 clasps – Paardeburg, Driefontein, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill & Relief of Kimberley. A typical member of the unmounted 1st Battalion only received two clasps (Cape Colony & Wittebergen or Orange Free State) to his QSA excluding date clasps.

Thomas did not arrive back in England until 10 August 1902 and his 26 months of wartime service ensured he also received the King’s Medal with both date clasps. He was not discharged to the army reserve until January 1903 and fully discharged in November 1904 by when he had completed 12 years of service, of which nearly 10 were on active service.

Two months after he arrived back in England Thomas featured in a short report in the Bromsgrove & Droitwich Messenger:

STOKE PRIOR REFORMATORY
The first of a series of monthly temperance entertainments for the coming winter was held on Saturday evening. A party of friends from Stoke Works supplied an interesting programme of songs and recitations. The chairman, Mr Hadley, strongly urged upon the boys the importance, when leaving the Reformatory, of keeping clear of public houses, and of having nothing to do with intoxicating drinks, to avoid gambling, betting, and all bad company, and never take to smoking. A very pleasing feature of the entertainment was an address given by Private Harrison, of the Mounted Infantry, who went through the South African War. The boys listened with the greatest interest to his graphic description of the hardships he had gone through while in South Africa. A cordial vote of thanks to the performers, and to Private Harrison for his kind address, brought a very enjoyable and profitable evening to a close.

Just after he was discharged to the army reserve Thomas was married on 28th February 1903 in Wychbold Parish Church – it would appear that as the village of Wychbold in the Parish of Dodderhill grew the parish took on the name of Wychbold and hence Thomas was married in the same church he was baptised in 34 years earlier. He married Elizabeth Corbett who was no relation of the salt works owner John Corbett but she came from Stoke Works and her father was a “Saltmaker”. Thomas gave his occupation as “Time-Keeper”.

By the time of the 1911 Census Thomas & Elizabeth had set up home in the Kings Heath area of Birmingham where he found employment as a timekeeper at an ironworks. They had a 4 month old son but the return showed they had previously had two other children who had both died by the time of census, at least they lived in a reasonable size house with 5 rooms.

Meanwhile back at 39 Sagebury Terrace his widowed father was still living with 3 of his younger brothers – Ernest, a pan smith i.e. a person who made pans used in open pan salt works; Albert, a waggon builder & Walter, a salt loader.

Thomas was in his mid-40’s when the Great War started and there is no evidence that he served even on home service.

The 1921 Census found Thomas & Elizabeth still at the same Birmingham address now with a second surviving son. Thomas was still a timekeeper working at a nail works.

Thomas passed away towards the end of 1921 aged 52.


793 Private George Simmons, 2nd Battalion Coldstream Guards

George was born on 4 May 1876 in the Parish of Dodderhill immediately to the south west of Stoke Works. At the time of the 1881 Census he was living at 50 Sagebury Terrace and his father John, born in south Worcesterhire, was a “Saltloader” at Stoke Works. His mother, born in Worcester, started life as Sarah Rosetta Parkins and was familiarly called Rose. George was the fourth of six children and their 72 year old maternal grandmother lived with them.

The 1891 Census shows 50 Sagebury Terrace was even more crowded as 82 year old Grandma was still alive and the number of children had grown to 8. The youngest four were all still at school but the eldest four were all contributing to household expenses by working at the salt works: Alice (21) - packing the salt, John (18) & William (17) - making the salt, George (14) – packing the salt alongside his sister.

George’s attestation papers and service records have not survived but other records regarding the Coldstream Guards have, showing he attested on 11 February 1897 at Stockton-on-Tees. Presumably he was above average height to qualify for a Guards regiment. He correctly gave his age as 20 years 9 months and his occupation as “Saltworker”. His occupation indicates he was still living at Stoke Works and his family were still living 50 Sagebury Terrace in 1901 when he was in South Africa – so why did he attest in Stockton-on-Tees, 190 miles north of Stoke Works?

The 2nd Battalion of the Coldstream Guards, of which George was a member, arrived at the Cape about 12 November 1899 and became part of the Guards Brigade along with the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards. Eleven days later they took part in the Battle of Belmont but were not heavily engaged. At Modder River both the Coldstream battalions were heavily engaged and many of their NCO’s & men fought with notable gallantry and some were mentioned in dispatches. Between both battalions 2 officers & 10 men were killed and 1 officer & 56 men were wounded. George survived unscathed as far as we know.

At the Battle of Magersfontein on 11 December 1899 the battalion were again in the thick of it coming under fire for much of the day and they lost 1 officer (Marquis of Winchester) & 2 men killed and 22 men wounded.

We know George was involved in all three battles, and not laid up, because he received the Belmont & Modder River clasps and he wrote a letter home which was partially published in the Bromsgrove & Droitwich Messenger of 20 January 1900:

Private George Simmons, who is in 2nd Coldstream Guards, now at Modder River under Lord Methuen, has written to his friends at Stoke Prior. In the course of the letter he says: “I am on outpost duty today – Tuesday. It don’t seem much like Christmas, it is so hot. We had a fight with the Boers, but we did not do much good. We lost a lot of men. It was awful to see the poor fellows, and expecting every moment to be shot yourself. They get on the hills, and it takes a lot to shift them. This is the fourth battle we have had. Our commanding was killed, and the Marquis of Winchester. I wish it was over. The food is different here; some days we don’t get any. I hope you will have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Jim Penny (another Stoke man who is serving in the Engineers) is out here, but I have not seen him. He was asking some of our fellows about me. He is in a different camp. I see the Queen is sending us half a pound of chocolate each. Remember me to Ned; I hope he will have a merry Christmas. Give my love to father and mother and the family. I wish I was home now; I could do with a good beef steak. I have plenty of tobacco, but I hadn’t seen a cigar until you sent me those. Matches are scarce, 3d a box. It is not very often we see any. I expect we shall be fighting again in a day or two. The Boers are getting round us, they are all on horses. P.S. – I have just had bread and bread for dinner; it was sour and hard."

His further participation in the war earned George the Driefontein & Johannesburg clasps but not the Diamond Hill & Belfast awarded to many of his comrades. The latter indicates he was not with his unit for much of the summer of 1900.

The Coldstream Guards records show George was invalided home arriving back in England on 6 June 1902. He was discharged to the Army Reserve during November 1902 having completed only 5 years and 9 months of active service of which 2 years 7½ months was on South African service (including the journey there and back).

Besides his QSA with 4 clasps George was awarded the KSA with both date clasps. In November 1902 he had actually been discharged to the Army Reserve and was fully discharged on 10 February 1909 as “Time Expired” and “Conduct & Character” assessed as “Very Good”. Thus did his premature discharge to the army reserve in which he remained to complete his 12 years of service mean that in November 1902 he was assessed as unfit to be an active solider but OK if the chips were down?

On 13 September 1902 George married Elizabeth Tuff, a Londoner, at Chelsea Registry Office. In 1905 their first son arrived followed by a second two years later, both were born in London.

The 1911 Census found George & Elizabeth with their two sons and Elizabeth’s widowed mother living at 32 Meek Street, Chelsea. George was employed as an Estate Agents’ Clerk.

George served in the Great War as Private 98847 Royal Army Medical Corps. He appears to have been conscripted through the Lord Derby scheme which as a married man with children delayed his call up to November 1916 by when he was 40 years old. He spent nearly 3 years on home service being demobilised in September 1919. When discharged he was suffering from heart trouble & rheumatism which was attributed to his service and he was assessed as 20% disabled. Om enlistment his previous service with the Coldstream Guards was listed and he gave his occupation as “Clerk”. The sparse records give no indication of where he was based during the Great War or what his duties were. During the war Elizabeth and their sons moved to Hungerford in Berkshire. Hungerford was heavily involved during the war as a gathering point (mobilisation station) for many Companies of the Royal Army Service Corps (Mechanical Transport) division. There was also a VAD Hospital at Hungerford. More than one interpretation can be made of this information. However, working as a clerk in a mobilisation station would not lead to heart trouble assignable to his service, so was that assessment based on his service the best part of 20 years earlier?
The 1921 Census showed George and family had moved 250 miles north to Middlesbrough and only a few miles from where he had attested 24 years earlier. Also living in Middlesbrough were his parents and his youngest and still unmarried sister – they had in fact moved to Middlesbrough by the time of the 1911 Census. In 1921 both George, his eldest son (George junior) and his father were working as labourers for Middlesbrough Corporation.

The 1939 Register found George, Elizabeth & George junior still living at the same Middlesbrough address, 9 Northern Road, and both the men were working as “Road Sweepers”, presumably for Middlesbrough Corporation.

George passed away in 1953 aged 77 and Elizabeth in 1958 aged 81.


3439 Private Edwin Wright, Mounted Infantry Company, 2nd Battalion Worcestershire Regiment.

Edwin Wright was born on 28 April 1867 in Droitwich about 5 miles south west of Stoke Works. He was baptised on 15 May 1867 in Droitwich and the baptism record shows his father John was a “Waterman”.

At the time of the 1871 Census Edwin’s family were still living in Droitwich and his father’s occupation was given as “Boatman”. Four year old Edwin was the fourth of five children, the eldest being 12 and the youngest 7 months. Surprisingly their mother Catherine worked as a “saltmaker”. She did not have a 5 mile walk to work as Droitwich had its own salt works which was to suffer from the innovation and benevolence of the owner of the Stoke Prior saltworks.

The 1881 Census produced a return of a type I have never come across before for a landlocked family. It is headed “LIST OF OFFICERS, CREW and OTHERS on BOARD the SHIP or VESSEL named the……………..”. The name of the vessel was not written in and only three names appear on the return – John Wright, 45, Boatman; Isaac (surname illegible), 22, Boatman; Edwin Wright, 14, Boat Lad. Meanwhile at 52 Sagebury Terrace could be found his Edwin’s mother Catherine, no longer with time to work as Edwin now had 5 siblings. So we can assume Edwin and his father were working canal boats owned by Stoke Works bringing in much needed coal and taking out the finished product.

The 1891 Census found living at 52 Sagebury Terrace Edwin’s parents and Edwin now occupied as a “salt works labourer”. Also listed is one older and one younger sibling – whilst the older ones had moved on the missing younger one had died.

As Edwin was to perish in the Boer War his attestation papers and service records are not extant but a short article reporting his death in the Bromsgrove & Droitwich Messenger of 2 November 1901 is very informative. He enlisted in the Worcestershire Regiment in December 1892 and served in the 2nd Battalion serving in both Malta and Bermuda. On his return to England like his near neighbours, William Nash & Edwin James, he sailed for South Africa in January 1900. However, once there he was transferred to the battalion’s Mounted Infantry Company – I guess working canal boats he was quite familiar with horses even if they moved at a much more leisurely pace than the ones he rode in South Africa.

On 24 October 1901, near Smithfield, Orange River Colony his unit were involved in an engagement during which he was killed in action and two other men of his Company were severely wounded. No further details were given by the newspapers of the day and it does not appear to be mentioned in any of the post war histories.

The last sentence of the article reads: “The dead soldier’s mother is almost prostrate with grief, and great sympathy is felt for her and the father (John Wright, canal boatman), throughout Stoke Works.”

Edwin was posthumously awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal with 5 clasps – Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill & South Africa 1901.

The 1911 Census found his parents still living at 52 Sagebury Terrace with his father now a labourer at the salt works. His youngest brother George was the Master of a canal boat named Thistle and he had a Mate twice his age to help him work it.

Both Edwin’s parents had passed away by the time of the 1921 Census but 52 Sagebury Terrace was still occupied by the Wright family – namely George the youngest of Edwin’s siblings, now a married man with two young children and still working canal boats for the Stoke Works.


So there we have 8 working class men with their ages when they first became involved in the war ranging from 22 to 31 and averaging 25½. They enlisted in the army between 1890 and 1897, with seven of them still serving at the start of the war, the eighth was recalled from the army reserve.

Their pre-army lives were all heavily entwined with Stoke Prior Salt Works and they must all have known each other quite well through play in the terrace, school and then work and more grown up social activities. This is evidenced in George Simmons letter home – Edwin Wright actually lived two doors away from George whereas Jim Penny lived 14 houses away in the other direction.

Whilst half served in the local regiment (Worcestershire), one in the ubiquitous Royal Engineers and one a neighbouring County regiment (Warwickshire), two made surprising choices in the Yorkshire Regiment and the Coldstream Guards.

Considering the very small sample size 1 out of 8 perishing was not untypical for Imperial Troops in the Second Boer War although it works out as a relatively high percentage.

Between them they contributed 15 years 5 months war service in South Africa which averages out at 1 year 11 months in a war that lasted for 2 years 7 months. At least three went on to serve in the Great War and between all 8 they accumulated a total of 128 years of army service with only 14 in reserve.

Obviously they all received the Queen’s South Africa and averaged 3 clasps each with two receiving 5. Four also received the King’s South Africa and one missed out by a couple of weeks.

An impressive contribution.

Immediately to the north of Stoke Works lay an area called Stoke Heath and three men from there served in the ABW. I have done a post on one (link below) and he also had connections with Stoke Works as his father was a “Saltmaker”, I have yet to investigate the other two let alone the one who came from Stoke Pound a bit farther north up the canal.

www.angloboerwar.com/forum/5-medals-and-...iment?start=90#98775

Thus there could be a part 4.