Herbert William Perry

Name

Herbert William Perry

Conflict

First World War

Date of Death / Age

04/04/1918

Rank, Service Number & Service Details

Rifleman
S/10584
Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort’s Own)
1st Bn.

Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards

British War and Victory medals

Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country

ARRAS MEMORIAL
Bay 9.
France

Headstone Inscription

Not Researched

UK & Other Memorials

Not on the Sawbridgeworth memorials

Pre War

Herbert was born in Sawbridgeworth in June 1885 and was baptised in August that year.

In 1901 he was a ‘Maltster’s Office Boy’, but by 1911 he was a ‘House Painter’.

He enlisted on the 5th May 1915 aged 32 years and 11 months, when living at 9 Garden Lane, Brixton Hill, SW London. It was recorded that he had no living relatives. He was married to Elizabeth Sarah (Lizzie) Perry and had an adopted daughter May Davis born 20th October 1910.  They were recorded after his death as of 34 Mill Lane, Brixton Hill, SW London.

He was living in Brixton Hill, Surrey when he enlisted in Lambeth.

Wartime Service

He was on training and Home service until the 5th October 1915 when he left for France

Herbert was killed in action between the 3rd and 4th of April 1918. The Battalion was in the Chemical Works sector and that night two Companies were working on improving Carolina Trench, but there were no casualties recorded although at the end of the month 40 Other Ranks were reported as killed.

Additional Information

There is some confusing information, e.g. his adopted daughter's parents have been listed at Charles Harris and her mother as Maud Harris, formerly Mason. I had assumed that she was the daughter of his wife Elizabeth (Lizzie) per she was adopted by both. The pension records for Herbert name his wife with a birth date of 15th August 1962, suggesting that she would have been 23 years older that Herbert. His mother was also Elizabeth (1901 census) so perhaps there is some confusion.

Acknowledgments

Jonty Wild, Douglas Coe