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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

Great Uncle - Driver for Royal Field Artillery


Lancey

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I wondered if someone could shed some light on one of my three Great Uncles born in Liverpool who was killed in the Great War.

Driver William Smallshaw no. 696038 (CWGC) or 696033 (Ancestry.co.uk and on his medals index card), DOB 9th July 1886, Died 8th July 1917, age 30 years (note, he died the day before his 31st birthday), Royal Field Artillery, 57th Ammunition Column, Married 1912, Miss Graham, 3 children: William DOB 1913, Nora DOB 1914 and Alice DOB 1916, Buried Merville Communal Cemetery Extension, France, plot I.B.37.

His medal card detail, next to his two medals, near the Victory Medal states:

Roll. (TF) RFA/117B Page 3275

What does this mean and is there any hope of finding out where he was killed, can anyone direct me based on his regiment and date of death, war diary?

My Great Aunts told me he went to calm the horses down and was hit by a stray enemy artillery shell.

Lance

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Lance,

Welcome to the Forum.

Your Great Uncle was in the 57th (2nd West Lancashire) Division. Each Division consisted of Infantry, Artillery, Engineers, etc. and also an Ammunition Column which was numbered according to the Division it belonged to.

Did you find his service papers on Ancestry?

At the time of his death, the 57th Division were located near Erquinghem-Lys, which is between Armetieres and Ypres, close to the French/Belgian border.

For more detail, your next logical enquiry would be to locate the 57th Divisional Ammunition Column's War Diary which will be at the National Archives, Kew. That will tell you what was happening within the unit at that time, but probably won't mention your Great Uncle by nmae, unless you are very lucky.

Good luck in your research,

Ken

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Lance,

Here's some more info if you didn't have it.

His wife was Alice Graham and they married in West Derby, Lancashire, in 1912.

According to the SDGW disk, he 'Died of Wounds'. Now, the terminology for this means that it was due to hostile fire. If it had said 'died' it would have been from illness, disease or accident.

There are a few William Smallshaw's that appear on the Ancestry census of 1901, and some of these are from the Lancashire region.

Not much to add, but you never know.

Cheers Andy.

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[Wow !!!, Ken many thanks for this, its just fabulous indeed. I managed to get an article in the Friday before Rememberance edition of the Liverpool Echo about his brothers, James and George from the King's Liverpool and Liverpool Scottish Regiments, also killed in France and Belgium respectively. Our hear held thanks for this !!, Lance and family]

Lance, Welcome to the Forum.

Your Great Uncle was in the 57th (2nd West Lancashire) Division. Each Division consisted of Infantry, Artillery, Engineers, etc. and also an Ammunition Column which was numbered according to the Division it belonged to.

Did you find his service papers on Ancestry?

At the time of his death, the 57th Division were located near Erquinghem-Lys, which is between Armetieres and Ypres, close to the French/Belgian border.

For more detail, your next logical enquiry would be to locate the 57th Divisional Ammunition Column's War Diary which will be at the National Archives, Kew. That will tell you what was happening within the unit at that time, but probably won't mention your Great Uncle by nmae, unless you are very lucky.

Good luck in your research,

Ken

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[Andy, Again many thanks for your time on this, very much appreciated indeed. It's coming together, isn't it !!, this is all so much to take in such a short time. Thanks for the family and I ]

Lance, Here's some more info. if you didn't have it.

His wife was Alice Graham and they married in West Derby, Lancashire, in 1912.

According to the SDGW disk, he 'Died of Wounds'. Now, the terminology for this means that it was due to hostile fire. If it had said 'died' it would have been from illness, disease or accident.

There are a few William Smallshaw's that appear on the Ancestry census of 1901, and some of these are from the Lancashire region.

Not much to add, but you never know.

Cheers Andy.

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