“One Abergele man is commemorated in a small town in Australia and another in Utica, New York, USA,” says Abergele WWI researcher Andrew Hesketh.
Finishing up on the 100th anniversary of the start of War on 28 July, AbergelePost is serialising Andrew’s list in this year which marks the Centenary of the beginning of the Great War.
Here are the people with Abergele connections from outside Wales and even further afield.
|
Name |
Regiment* |
Location |
|
OWEN, |
King’s Own (Shropshire Light Infantry) |
Acton Pigott, |
|
AMOS, |
|
Australia |
|
EVANS, DAVID SAXON WALTON |
Australian Army |
Australia |
|
EVANS, |
Australian Army |
Australia |
|
GILCHRIST, |
Australian Army |
Australia |
|
DAVIES, |
Labour Corps |
Battersea |
|
EDWARDS, |
Canadian Army |
Canada |
|
EDWARDS, |
Canadian Army |
Canada |
|
JONES, |
Royal Welsh Fusiliers |
Duffield |
|
LOCKETT, |
Worcestershire |
King’s Norton, Worcestershire |
|
KERSHAW, |
Lancashire Fusiliers |
Liverpool |
|
WILLIAMS, |
Royal Welsh Fusiliers |
Liverpool |
|
OWEN, |
Australian Army |
Moora, Western Australia |
|
JONES, |
Royal Engineers |
New |
|
PARRY, |
Australian Army |
Perth, Australia |
|
WYNNE, |
Royal Army |
Pleck, Walsall |
|
HILL, |
Singapore Volunteer Rifles |
Singapore |
|
RIDGE, |
Machine Gun Corps |
Surrey |
|
PROCTOR, |
Royal Welsh Fusiliers |
Torquay |
|
DAVIES, |
US Army |
USA |
|
DAVIES, |
Machine Gun Corps |
West Kirby |
|
BAKER, |
King’s (Liverpool) |
|
|
BORTHWICK, |
Royal Scots |
|
|
BRADLEY, |
Royal Warwickshire |
|
|
CLOUGH, |
Manchester |
|
|
COOKE, |
The Prince |
|
|
DAVIES, |
Cheshire |
|
|
DAVIES, R. |
London |
|
|
DAVIES, |
King’s (Liverpool) |
|
|
EVANS, |
Manchester |
|
|
EVANS, |
Australian Army |
|
|
FALLON |
Irish Hussars |
|
|
GRIFFITH, |
Gordon Highlanders |
|
|
GRIFFITHS, |
Lancashire Fusiliers |
|
|
GUNTER, |
Lancashire Fusiliers |
|
|
HUGHES, |
King’s (Liverpool) |
|
|
HUGHES, |
Border |
|
|
JONES, A |
Manchester |
|
|
JONES, |
Lancashire Fusiliers |
|
|
JONES, |
King’s (Liverpool) |
|
|
JONES, |
King’s (Liverpool) |
|
|
JONES, J. |
Canadian Army |
|
|
JONES, |
US Army |
|
|
JONES, |
King’s (Liverpool) |
|
|
LINEKAR, FRANCIS RUBENSTEIN |
Liverpool |
|
|
LLOYD, |
Cheshire Yeomanry |
|
|
LYNE, |
South African Army |
|
|
M?, HARRY |
Manchester |
|
|
MILLS, |
King’s (Liverpool) |
|
|
NEEDHAM, |
Manchester |
|
|
OWEN, R. E |
Cheshire |
|
|
OWEN, |
Australian Army |
|
|
RINDER, |
York & |
|
|
ROBERTS, |
London |
|
|
ROBERTS, |
Manchester |
|
|
ROBERTS, |
Cheshire |
|
|
SMALE, |
Lancashire Hussars |
|
|
SMITH, |
Black Watch |
|
|
STACEY, |
Australian Army |
|
|
STURGESS, |
Gordon Highlanders |
|
N.B. Andrew Hesketh says that the Regiment column usually shows the last known regiment of the 1914-1919 period. When the principal experience of a man has been with a former regiment, this is shown instead.
The next installment will list participants from Abergele’s outskirts, from Pensarn to Llanddulas and from Dolwen to Moelfre.
Excellent Andrew following many years of tedious work sifting through various papers etc. Thank you on behalf of the community and the relatives at Abergele & District. Diolch.
Thank you Delyth. The first list contains the men with ‘connections’ to Abergele. For the most part they were born in the town and moved away before the war. Some have rather tenuous links, for example their parents had grown up in the town but their sons were born elsewhere. Whilst the links are remote in a number of cases, the vast majority received a mention at some point in one of the several local and regional newspapers that served the district.
I will cite two examples to fit in with the quote provided by Gareth.
William Davies, Private, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Division, US Army. 06/06/1918, Killed in Action, Battle of Belleau Wood. Youngest son of the late Mr. Lewis Davies, Mount Pleasant, Abergele. Lived in Utica, New York, USA, with his brother Robert John Davies who worked for a large banking institution. Enlisted into the US Army August 1917. Reported missing 6 June 1918 and still not found by 6 December 1918. Recipient of a Cheque from Abergele, Christmas 1918. In reality William had been killed on 6 June 1918. His body was recovered some time after the war had ended. He is buried in Plot A.7.66, Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, Belleau, France. Commemorated on the Utica War Memorial, New York State., USA. He is not commemorated in Abergele.
Herbert Wynn Walton Evans, Private, No. 1817, Australian Army Service Corps, 3rd Salvage Company. 16/07/1918, Killed in Action. Buried Plot II. G. 36., La Neuville British Cemetery, Corbie, Somme, France. He is commemorated in a little town in Australia called Gnowangerup. Herbert has a fascinating story – and far too long to relate here. There is a huge plaque to him on the south aisle wall in St. Michaels. He is the H. Walton Evans on the Abergele War Memorial. I visited his grave a few years ago. He is not alone: also in the same cemetery is Edward Henry John Wynne, the heir to Coed Coch, who is commemorated in Betws yn Rhos.
Forgot to mention Herbert’s Abergele connection. Herbert was born in Bala, the son of David Evans who became Vicar of Abergele in 1876 when Herbert was 1 year old. In 1897 David Evans became Archdeacon of St. Asaph and died in 1910. Obviously therefore Herbert grew up in Abergele, though he had flown the nest (with his brother David Saxon Walton Evans, see above) some time before the war and the pair had emigrated to Australia.
http://www.warmemorials.net/memorials/wheatbelt/gnowup/gnowup.htm