GroveTown Cemetery CCS's Nov 1916 - Help in locations on map

[The Guardroom]

Hoping that someone may be able to help provide where the actual locations of the following CCS were around Meaulte, GroveTown.

I am presuming it was close to where the Grove Town Cemetery is located but hoping to pinpoint their locations if possible?

My Gt Grandfather DOW 4th Nov 1916 and is buried at GroveTown, so having studied the Long Long Trail details, presume he died whilst at either of the CCS below. I am also struggling to find out why the Cemetery is called Grove Town, as no where on the Web does it say how it got its name?

34th CCS was in GroveTown from Sept 1916

55th CCS (2/2 London) was in GroveTown at the same time from Sept 1916

48th CCS was in GroveTown from Sept 1916 to Nov 1916 - so potentially could have been treated here???

I plan to go out for the first time next year and although not 100% sure where he was wounded (between Les Beoufs and Le Transloy with 1st Middx), I will have a place to go to where I would like to think that he may have been treated and died.

Any help is most welcome.

Many thanks,

Alan

[ianw]

It's a nice cemetery.

A famous occupant is the poet Leslie Coulson and it has a nice example of the humanity of the IWGC/CWGC with a non-standard contemporary headstone left proudly standing in a well ordered row of standard stones.

[Guest T4JWL]

Hello Alan,

My great uncle is buried at Grove Town Cemetery, a place I visited last year. It is a very pleasant and peaceful place surrounded by agricultural fields.

As to why the name was applied to the place regrettably I cannot assist.

My interest lies in the fact my great uncle died Feb 8 1917 of pleurisy and according to his military death certificate was in the hands of the 34 CCS also known as the 1st West Lancs CCS. Whilst it is well known the conditions the soldiers had to endure on the Somme I am trying to determine if his death was due to infection or gassing. The records of the 34 CCS suggest tey were in the Grove Town area in September 1916 and thence to La Chapellette in April of that year.

Wellcome Images have photographs of the CCS camp at Le Marchelpot in 1917. Cumbrian Archives also have some images of the Grove Town medical camp.

Are you aware of the 34 CCS War Diary by any chance? Websites suggest a Kendal printer who served in the 1st West Lancs CCS kept a diary and privately printed a dozen copies. has anyone come across this?

regards...............T4JWL

[brummell]

T4JWL (and possibly Alan),

Grove Town was a camp located on the site of the current cemetery and to the north of a series of sidings for the broad-gauge railway which ran up towards the front to the south of Carnoy. The purpose of the railway was, as you would expect, primarily the movement of artillery ammunition and men. There were a large number of batteries located in this area during the early days of the Somme Offensive, and Grove Town sprang up around the enormous ammunition and equipment dumps adjacent to the railway sidings.

Due to the transport links, relatively safe locations and well-established infrastructure, it was well-suited to accommodating CCSs later in the offensive.

I doubt we will ever know who gave it the name of Grove Town, or why; as you will know, having been there, there are precious few groves to be seen! Nor were there any of contemporary maps. I am trying to pin down a similar place called Grantown, in the same area, so far without success.

[Paul Bradford]

Message for The Guardroom,

 

My Great Grandfather is buried at Grove Town having died of wounds. I obtained a copy of the War Diary for his unit and from that found his location when he was wounded, along with several others, some who died at the scene. The entry for the following day mentioned tied in as it mentioned members of the unit dying of wounds. It was some distance away from the CCS on the Guillemont to Ginchy Road (about 5-600m in length). I have read there was an aid station in the area, but not sure if it was there at the time. in any event, the journey to the CCS either by horse drawn or motor ambulance must have taken some time due to the state of the area at the time. 

It would be interesting to see the War Diaries for the CCS's there at the time in case they have any additional information.

If you have a copy of the War Diary, you might be lucky enough to find mention of him in it.

 

Paul

[Ghazala]

Funny how things pop on on old posts.  It was Nov 2013 when The Guardroom started this.

 

As ianw mentioned In Row J is Sergeant Leslie Coulson, a pre-war journalists who became one of the war poets.  He was wounded whilst fighting near Lesbouefs with the 1/2nd Londons and died here on 8 October.  His poems were widely published after his death.

 

Further back, in Row H, the widowed mother of Private Frank Hitchen of the Machine Gun Corps chose this inscription for his headstone:  If this is victory, then let God stop all wars - His loving mother.

 

A good cemetery to visit if you are on The Somme.

[Ghazala]

On 22/02/2019 at 13:00, Ghazala said:

 

Further back, in Row H, the widowed mother of Private Frank Hitchen of the Machine Gun Corps chose this inscription for his headstone:  If this is victory, then let God stop all wars - His loving mother.

 

[alantwo]

This link to another topic may be of interest.

 

Regards

Alan