war
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Revisiting The Western Front
Last year, I visited Ypres and the surrounding area for the Passchendaele 100th anniversary commemorations. There was more to see and do than I could fit into that weekend, so a year later I returned to tick off the missing… Continue reading
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Harry William Downing: Lost at Sea
Harry William Downing 1876-1915 Painter and Sailor of Southend-on-Sea and Bristol, and my third great uncle Harry was the third child of Henry and Harriet Downing, brother to Emily, Joseph and my great great grandmother Annie. He was born in… Continue reading
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Jack and Herbert Gillingham: Civilian War Dead
Jack and Herbert were the children of Emily Downing, the oldest daughter of Henry Downing. They were cousins to my great grandfather Frederick. They were both civilians killed during The Blitz. Continue reading
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Samuel Downing: Man Overboard!
For a long time I believed that Samuel Downing, the first son of Southminster patriach Joseph Downing, had died in infancy. It seemed the logical conclusion – there was no sign of him in any of the Southminster records or… Continue reading
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Frank Thomas Beale: A Fallen War Hero
Frank Thomas Beale, 1889-1916 Waggoner and Soldier of Beckley, Sussex, and my great uncle. My great grandfather, Frederick, survived the war. Several of my other relatives were not so lucky. Frank Thomas Beale was my great uncle, my father’s mother’s… Continue reading
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Passchendaele100
My great grandfather, Frederick Allen Downing, survived the Battle of Passchendaele. Half a million soldiers, mostly from Great Britain, Germany, New Zealand, Australia and Canada, did not. I joined Guided Battlefield Tours for their Passchendale Centenary Tour and went to… Continue reading
Family Mystery 