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Key dates over August 1916

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Lives lost on this day: 3

3rd August 1916 - Royal Albert Orphanage to lift limit of children of fallen servicemen

At the Front:

2nd Batt: Owing to the heat, breakfast served at 7.00am and coys did tactical exercises from 7.45am until 10.15am. The drums beat the Retreat in the evening.

4th Batt: Number 1A crater heavily shelled and 2 men were wounded by shrapnel. Our aeroplanes very active between 5 and 8pm. I man killed on a working party in the new trenches.

7th Batt: 450 rifle grenades fired with good results between 1.00am and 5.00am.

10th Batt: batt entrained to Mericourt, arrived at Longpre at 1.00pm and marched to Mouflers.

SMD RFA: Cat and Adj JC Dixey proceeded to dug-outs to learn the Front Line prior to the relief.

Yeomanry/cavalry: All available aircraft sent up to join in the battle which began at midnight.

On the Home Front:

Royal Albert Orphanage – Provision for Children of Local Heroes – A special meeting of the Royal Albert Orphanage was held today in order to consider the question of altering one of the rules of the Institution, which will remove the existing limit to the number of children of fathers who have fallen on active service, who may be elected to the orphanage.

Life Lost for Minnows – Boy Drowned at Camp – Inquiry was today made into the death of Archie Beechey, a small boy, whose parents live at 54 Nelson Road, St Johns. He was drowned at Camp on Monday. Evidence was given by Mrs P Coward of McIntyre Road, St Johns, that her own boy and Archie were friends and on Monday she took them by steamer to Camp. They crossed to the Claines side of the river and she made tea. The tea was too hot for the boys to drink and while it was cooling they went down to the water the catch minnows, just below the weir. They had not gone but a few minutes before her boy came to her crying “I cannot find Archie”. She ran to the water, but could not see the boy. Some people boating informed the lock keeper and three men entered the water, one being a particularly strong swimmer. The father asked: Did it not strike you that it was dangerous to let boys approach the river at a dangerous part? Witness: I told them not to go; but I did not want to spoil their holiday by insisting upon them not going. Louis Coward said that his friend stood up to his ankles in the water and stooped to catch minnows with his hands.

Worcestershire Casualties Rank and File – Prisoners - Trooper Hubert Maddox – In the engagement at Katia on Easter Sunday there were a number of casualties among the Worcestershire Yeomanry. Among the missing was Trooper Hubert Maddox, youngest Son of Mrs Maddox, Hardwick Terrace, the esteemed parish nurse. In the list of prisoners published some little time ago, his name did not appear, but the list did not claim to be complete. A letter by way of Geneva was received by his mother on Thursday morning, stating that he was a prisoner at Angopa and was being humanely treated by the Turks, and preserved food in tins would be welcomed. The news of his safety has been received with great gratification, as his absence of name from the list had given rise to considerable anxiety.

Information researched by the WWW100 team.