2nd Lt William Francis Scott - 8 Bttn Somerset Light Infantry

[greenman126]

I'm looking for any more information to help with the story of William Francis Scott (24 Feb 1885 to 01 Jul 1916). I have the information below and a copy of the relevant war diary, but anything that can be added would be welcome - a long shot is a photo (been trying to track one down for years)

 

William was a chorister at Bath Abbey and went to Grammar School and eventually onto Cambridge University gaining an BA before becoming a school master at Hendon County School teaching Mathematics.

 

He joined the Army in November 1914, originally as a Private in the 9th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Queen Victoria's Rifles), before being Commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant in the 8th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry in June 1915. He  arrived in France on 25 December 1915 and was killed at the Battle of the Somme on 01 July 1916 and is buried at the Gordon Dump Cemetery on The Somme.

 

William’s obituary reads ‘He fell gallantly leading his men through a perfect hail of bullets.’ At the time of his death his wife, Gertrude, was living 40 Voltaire Road, Clapham, London. He is remembered on the Hendon War Memorial.  

[HERITAGE PLUS]

Have you tried the Bath Chronicle for a photo? 

 

There is a file at the NA:

 

https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C1059438?descriptiontype=Full&ref=WO+339/5496

 

Dave

[greenman126]

Thanks for the reply - currently looking at The Bath Chronicle and am contacting National Archives to arrange a copy of the relevant file.

[Toontraveller]

Hi, may Also be worth checking archives of Hendon and Finchley Times who always had good coverage of local men serving the Colours , especially if they were an Officer and were killed in WW1. 

 

There are copies  of the Newspaper in the British Newspaper Archives site sadly I don’t have access at the moment.

[Guest]

  By chance, I am also in the queue to zap "Hendon and Finchley Times" when and if the current bother subsides.  The good news is that the file has been put on Microfilm at the Biritish Library, which given it's use of the excellent Covergold microfilm readers takes an awful lot of the work out of it- the machines can digitise what you have on-screen and then you can e-mail it to yourself (The biggest labour saving device for me since the invention of the potato peeler).  This newspaper is also held by London Borough of Barnet Local Studies but, given the choice of using a particular run, then BL should be favoured because of the ease of copying.

    BL also holds another local paper, Hendon Advertiser,which covers the war years.

 

The main catalogue for the British Library also records that the school, as Hendon County Grammar School, also published a school magazine, which alas, BL only holds from Volume 12 (1942).  School magazines are a much underrated source of information, their obscurity and scarcity being the main factors in keeping them underused. It is quite possible that the school magazine went back to the Great War era.  The school itself would be foolish if it did not retain a run of it's own magazine but either that or the Local Studies above should be able to settle that one.

    I cannot see easily which Cambridge college he attended but most of them have done some work on their alumni  for the Great War centennial.

 

In addition, there is a "William Francis Scott" listed on the war memorial for this school by the Imperial War Museum War memorials Register. Not absolutely certain it is the same man,given the numbers of "Scotts" killed in the war but likely. Again, the existence of a school magazine is highly likely and both the school and the local Local Studies may hold it.  [PS- A zap of CWGC suggests he is the only British Army "William Francis Scott" killed in the war]

 

Wyggeston & Queen Elizabeth College - WW1 (WMR 50797)
Leicester
Leicestershire

Edited 24 November , 2020 by Guest

[greenman126]

Thanks - I hadn't thought of the Cambridge University College route. I believe the school is now an Academy, but may well contact them to see if they have any issues of a school magazine lurking in the archive.

 

Will also check out paper recommended by Toontraveller. 

[greenman126]

  I cannot see easily which Cambridge college he attended but most of them have done some work on their alumni  for the Great War centennial.

Just spent an hour looking into this - William Francis Scott entered St. Catharine's College in 1909.

 

Thanks for the tip

[Guest]

52 minutes ago, greenman126 said:

Just spent an hour looking into this - William Francis Scott entered St. Catharine's College in 1909.

 

Thanks for the tip

 

    You may be in luck with Wyggeston- Leicestershire Archives have this on their catalogue:

 

WYGGESTONIAN (previously Wyggseton School Magazine)

Description

Bound volumes: 1889-1891, 1899-1901, 1902-1903, 1904-1905,1906-1907, 1908-1909, 1910-1911, 1912-13, 1914-15, 1916-19, 1920- Mar 1924, July 1924- Dec 1926, Mar 1922- Dec 1923, Mar 1927- July 1929, Mar 1928 -Dec 1929, Dec 1929- July 1932, Dec 1932-July 1935, Dec 1935-July 1938, Apr 1930 - Dec 1931, Mar 1932 -Dec 1933, Apr 1938-Dec 1939, Dec 1938-July 1941, Dec 1941-July 1946, Dec 1946-July 1950, Apr 1946 - Dec 1947, Mar 1948 -Dec 1949, 1950-1953, 1953-1956, 1956-1958, Apr 1950 - Dec 1953, Apr 1954 - Dec 1957, Apr 1958 - July 1961, Dec 1958 - July 1962, Feb 1963 - July 1963, Feb 1964 - May 1968, Feb 1964 - June 1965, June 1966 - Dec 1968, 1969 - 1970, June 1973 - Dec 1974, Dec 1968 - June 1971, Dec 1971 - Dec 1974, June 1975 - May 1978

[greenman126]

Spent some time searching the British Newspaper Archive and found some references to William - will continue looking and pulling things together and post the results later.