My paternal Scottish grandmother, May's young brother John (age 19) was reported as 'missing in action' in September 1915, during the Battle of Loos. He had been a private soldier in
"C" Co.5th Bn. Cameron Highlanders
( www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=726401)
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| In this picture you can see that I'm holding a wedding ring beside Great Uncle John's inscription - it is his sister May's |
My hubbie Colin has long since had a passionate interest in WWI history. But we were only able to make this special, personal connection with Great Uncle John this summer through Colin's diligent research into our family trees. I was quite emotionally 'bowled over' by this discovery and wonder if any previous family members had been able to visit the grave in the 1920s and '30s. Perhaps this was John's first family visit - and what a reponsibility! Thank you Colin for making this happen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loos_Memorial
"The Loos Memorial is a World War I memorial forming the sides and rear of Dud Corner Cemetery, located near the commune of Loos-en-Gohelle, in the Pas-de-Calais département of France. The memorial lists 20,610 names of British and Commonwealth soldiers with no known grave who were killed in the area during and after the Battle of Loos, which started on 25 September 1915. This memorial covers the same sector of the front as the Le Touret Memorial, with each memorial commemorating the dead either side of the date of the start of the Battle of Loos.
Designed by Sir Herbert Baker, the sculptures were by Sir Charles Wheeler. The memorial was unveiled on 4 August 1930 by Sir Nevil Macready. General Macready served as Adjutant-General of the British Expeditionary Force from the outbreak of the war to February 1916, and then served as Adjutant-General to the Forces until a few months before the end of the war."
My father (born 1918) was named Ian (gaelic for John) in memory of his young Uncle John.
In turn my son's first name is also Ian.
