Henry Mather (1886-1917)
Private in Royal Marines Medical Unit
According to the 1901 census Henry Mather was working as a coal miner by the time he was 14. He joined the Royal Marines in York at the beginning of 1915. According to the service registers he was then posted to Crystal Palace, where the Navy did much of the training of First World War recruits. His service record shows that he was 5 feet 9 1/2 inches tall with blue eyes and brown hair.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission records note that he was attached to the 149 Field Ambulance Unit. The diary for the unit records that on the date that he is supposed to have been killed records that a shell destroyed one of their horse wagons and two heavy horses. The diary also contains a list of five casualties but Mather is not among them.
Useful sources:
http://www.newmp.org.uk/detail.php?contentId=6774
http://www.newmp.org.uk/detail.php?contentId=6777
The National Archives, Admiralty Service Registers, Adm/159/209/3283
The National Archives, War Diaries, WO 95/3106/2
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/463906/MATHER,%20HENRY
Civil Parish: Pelton
Birth date: 21-Apr-1886
Death date: 26-Oct-1917
Armed force/civilian: Navy
Residence: 8 Boundary Cottages, Grange Villa, Pelton (1911 census)
Religion: Church of England
Employment: Coal miner (1901 and 1911 censuses)
Family: Parents: Sam Mather, coal miner; Sarah Mather
Brother: Frederick D Mather (1901 census)
Wife: Elizabeth Mather
Child: Ernest Mather (1911 census)
Military service:
Enlisted York, 18 Jan 1915
149th Field Ambulance, Royal Marines Medical Unit
Medal(s): Star, British and Victory Medals
Memorial(s): Tyne Cot Cemetery, Belgium
Roll of Honour, St Thomas’s Church, Craghead
Craghead War Memorial, Edward Street, Craghead
Gender: Male
Contributed by Durham County Record Office
Comments on this story
Comment
This is my great, great grandfather! This is the first account I have been able to find to suggest how he died - so thank you!. He is buried in Tyne Cot cemetery beside another royal marine medical private killed the same day and they are the only two Royal Marines in the whole cemetery... we believed they must have died together so a shell would confirm support that theory. Thank you!
Contributed by
Begg
Report abuse