Skip to navigation | Skip to content | Skip to footer


Key dates over September 1917

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Lives lost on this day: 40

26th September 1917 - Three Sons Killed

Rolling casualty count: 7649

War Front:

1st Batt: Gen Hunter-Weston, GOC 9th corps, visited the camp.

2nd Batt: In the early morning the German artillery barrage became intense, missing the front line but getting Barr HQ. Our attack began at 5.30am and a constant fight with the enemy was kept up. At about 4.40am the enemy attacked the Queens near the Menin Rd and the Kings near Liverpool Rd.

4th Batt: There was an inspection by the CO at 12.30pm.

10th Batt: The Batt moved camp again.

Home Front:

Body Found in Severn: The body of a man found in the Severn near Worcester, on Saturday afternoon, has not been definitely identified. A Kidderminster resident has seen a photograph that was taken of the corpse and is inclined to believe that the deceased was his brother, a weaver of that district.

Three Sons Killed, Fourth Serving: Mrs. William Rea, 87, St. Dunstan’s Crescent, Worcester, has received news that her husband died of wounds on September 14th at a Casualty Clearing Station in France. He was wounded on September 12th, a bullet penetrating his lungs. A Chaplain wrote saying that everything possible was being done for him. He sent a message for his wife and little boy not to worry. A chum also wrote and said he was only slightly wounded, and hoped he would soon be back with them again, about two months ago he was in hospital suffering from deafness. Mrs. George Rea, 3, Berwick Street, Cherry Orchard, received news that her husband died of wounds on September 1st, at a Field Hospital in France. He was hit in the back with a bullet, which also struck his chum, but his chum owes his life to a tin cup which he had in his pack. A younger brother was killed in April of this year. The fourth and last son went to France this month.

Pte. T. Ramsey, whose wife lives at 22, Spring Lane, was wounded on the 31st July and is now progressing favourably at the 1st Western General Hospital, Liverpool. Before the war he was employed in the Telegraph Office of the G.W.R. Pte. Ramsey has served five years with the Gloucestershire Regiment, being invalided home from Malta in 1911 with bad eyesight. He attempted to join his old regiment at the beginning of the war, but was rejected. With the Worcestershires he has seen some hard fighting, being in the attack on Messines Ridge. He had only been in France four months when he was wounded.

Street Lighting: We are informed that arrangements have been made for at once resuming the lighting of such of the gas lamps in the streets as in May last were ordered not to be lighted at all and we are asked to remind citizens that the Home Secretary’s Order of 7th August, 1916, as to extinguishing, obscuring and shading lights in the city is still in force.

Absentee: John Watkins (40), Severn House, Hylton Road, was charged with being an absentee from the Northumberland Fusiliers. P.C. Lawley gave evidence, and prisoner was remanded to await an escort.

Transfer: The license of the Grosvenor Arms, Henwick Road, was temporarily transferred from John Henry Luffman to James Ernest Randall, late of the Prince of Wales Inn, Shrub Hill. Mr. Coombs made the application.

Removal of Pigs: Annie Wright, Broomhall, Norton, was fined 2s. 6d. for moving two pigs without a license. P.S. Wilkes proved the case. Defendant said that she had removed pigs before, but had always had a license. She was worried.

Information researched by The Worcestershire World War 100 team