The George Spencer
Smith commemorated by The Commonwealth War Graves’ Commission was entered in the Lewes District birth register for the
March quarter, 1887 as Spencer Maryon Smith. He also appears on the 1891 and
1901 census under this name as well.
He appears on
the 1891 census of England and Wales living at
Hanly Farm, Cooksbridge Road, Barcombe, with his family.
The household comprised James Smith (head, married, aged 32, working as a groom), his wife Margaret Emma Smith (nee
Diplock), also aged 32 and their five sons: Arthur Vere Smith (aged eight), Frederick James Smith (aged six), Spencer Maryon
Smith (aged four), Henry William Smith (aged two) and Edward George Smith (aged five months).
James was from Newick, his wife from Lindfield. Arthur had been born in
Newick, Frederick in Hamsey and the other four boys in Barcombe.
Next door to them
lived William Diplock and his family. William was almost certainly directly related
to Margaret; either an older brother or her father.
By the time the
1901 census was taken, the family had grown and had also moved house to Colonels Bank, Newick.
The household now comprised: James Smith (42, by now working as an agricultural labourer), his wife Margaret Emily
[sic] Smith and their nine children: Arthur Vere Smith (aged 18, working as an agricultural labourer), Frederick James Smith
(aged 16, working as a gardener), Spencer Maryon Smith (aged 14, working as a gardener), Henry William Smith (aged 12), Edward
George Smith (aged ten), Leonard Diplock Smith (aged eight), Cissie Eva Smith (the only daughter, aged seven), Sydney Septimus
Smith (aged 5) and Cyril Frank Smith (aged two). The four younger children had
all been born in Newick.
George is not
mentioned in Chailey’s parish magazine but The Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s Debt of Honour Register notes
that he was 32 years old and was the son of James
and Margaret Emma Smith of Yew Tree Cottage, Colonels Bank, Chailey, Lewes, Sussex.
G/9591 Private
George Spencer Smith was killed in action on 26th April 1918 whilst
serving with the 13th Royal Sussex Regiment. He has no known grave and is commemorated
on the Tyne Cot memorial in Belgium. His brother, Frederick James Smith, had been killed in France just over a year before, on 17th April 1917.
Both George and Frederick attended the village school at Newick and
the photo that appears on this page is the one which George sent his old headmaster, John Oldaker. A photographer's stamp
at the bottom shows that it was taken at Newhaven, Sussex.
Sources and Acknowledgements
- 1861 Census of England and Wales
- 1891 Census of England and Wales
- 1901 Census of England and Wales
- England and Wales, Civil Registration Index: 1837-1983
- Soldiers Died in The Great War
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission: Debt of Honour
Register
- Marnik Vanderper of Belgium for photographing George's
name on the memorial at Tyne Cot
- Simon Stevens for the photograph of George Smith taken
from John Oldaker's collection
