I found a headstone in Stallingborough Church Graveyard, Lincolnshire for a man called William Henry Pearce. The stone says exactly this In Loving Memory of WILLIAM HENRY The Beloved Son of H.W. and Elizabeth Pearce who was accidentally shot by a stray bullet from THE STALLINGBOROUGH RANGE May 27th 1915 Aged 26 Years I know that he was not in the military but surely this man should be considered for a War Grave as his death was caused by a bullet from someone training for war. Elsewhere i have seen War Graves for individuals who have died in civilian plane crashes that have been outside of War dates Anybody think the same?
Maybe his family don't want him in a war grave! In any event I think as it was obviously an accident then no I don't think he should be in a war grave. What if he had been run down by an army truck?
Maybe his family don't want him in a war grave! In any event I think as it was obviously an accident then no I don't think he should be in a war grave. What if he had been run down by an army truck? black humour but I guess that hits the nail on the head.
In any event I think as it was obviously an accident then no I don't think he should be in a war grave. What if he had been run down by an army truck? If he had been a member of the armed forces he would of automatically been granted war grave status no matter what the cause of death, whether the family wanted an official headstone or not. The Brookwood Memorial actually commemorates the names of 10 serving British soldiers, who were hung for separate murders. As the bodies were buried in unmarked graves as was the law, they are named on the Brookwood Memorial, which commemorates those of the land forces who have no known grave. Arthur Peach murdered a Miss Kitty Lyon (apparently murdered another person as well) August Sangret murdered his girlfriend Miss Joan Wolfe Charles Raymond murdered a lady named Marguerite Burge Cyril Johnson murdered a lady named Maggie Small David Jennings murdered a Mr Albert Farley Dudley Rayner murdered his wife Mrs Josephine Rayner Ernest Digby murdered his daughter Dawn Digby Ernest James Kemp murdered a lady named Iris Deeley Frederick Austin murdered his wife Lillian Austin Terence Casey murdered a lady named Bridget Mitton
There is a CWGC casualty in Stallingborough Cemetery: Cemetery:STALLINGBOROUGH (SS. PETER AND PAUL) CHURCHYARD Country:United Kingdom Locality:Lincolnshire No. of Identified Casualties:1 Roxy
Although, I have just discovered that it's not our man. Doh! FAREBROTHER, HARCOURT SUTCLIFFE, H S Lieutenant Norfolk Regiment24/07/1916 Roxy
Maybe his family don't want him in a war grave! In any event I think as it was obviously an accident then no I don't think he should be in a war grave. He's not in a war grave as he was probably either not a service member or on duty with one of the other qualifying organizations. Nothing to do with it being an accident. If he qualified for a war grave, the family would have no choice, but they could refuse an official headstone or choose their own commemoration. Civilian war deaths are not recorded or commemorated for WW1, but they are for WW2 (but no headstone or grave maintenance is provided), if due to enemy action. I wonder what the WW2 status is if the action is not directly from the enemy as in this case? What if he had been run down by an army truck? Are these different to army bullets?
Headstones are optional when not buried in CWGC Cemetery. The Family if they wish can have a private headstone for which they pay, or a CWGC Headstone. The Families choice.
