Wives at Death & Burial

[familyhistoryman]

Blackburn Library has an excellent collection of WW1 obituaries, all mounted on card. All have a story to tell and I found the one relating to Rifleman Albert Hargreaves No S/7789 Rifle Brigade very interesting. He was wounded on 22^nd August 1917 and died in hospital in France on 12^th September the same year. What I found hard to believe was that his wife was present at the time of his death and also attended his burial at Mont Huon Military Cemetery.

 

Are the other examples of wives being present at the death and burial of their husbands in France?

 

Basic information re Albert Hargreaves:

 

Born, Blackburn 1887 son of Thomas Hargreaves and Ellen (nee Bulcock)

Married 24 Aug 1907 Mary Ann Jones at St Michael, Blackburn

 

Regards

 

Tony

[Marilyne]

Hi,

 

That is not a strange story at all.

When a soldier was gravely ill or wounded, the family was notified and they could cross over to the base hospitals to visit. the YMCA would get them from the boat, bring them to a dedicated hostel and drive them to the hospitals.

There are quite some stories about parents and/or spouses who travelled to France for this.

One very special example is Florence Grover, who travelled to Etaples to visit her wounded husband, only to fall ill with the flu and die in Etaples. Her husband followed her in death shortly after and the are now both buried in Etaples cemetery, at a stone throw from one another.

 

I'll be focusing on Mont Huon shortly for my own project and will look up Albert's grave when I'm there for the pictures.

 

M.

 

[stiletto_33853]

[familyhistoryman]

Many thanks for the information and image

Tony

[PaulC78]

Not a wife, but I have the similar example of Pte John Royle Huyton 51906 KLR whose mother and uncle attended his funeral, also at Mont Huon Military Cemetery. He died on 27 March 1917.