Private Walter George Grainger
| Date of Birth | 13 December 1894 |
|---|---|
| Age at Death | 21 |
| Date of Death | 5/6/1916 |
| Service Number | STK/96 |
| Military Service | 10th Battalion Royal Fusiliers |
| Merton Address | 19 Cambridge Road, Wimbledon |
| Local Memorial | Rutlish School, Merton |
Additional Information
Walter George Grainger was born in Wimbledon on 13th December 1894 to Walter and Nellie Grainger. His father was an engineer’s clerk and he had a twin sister called Olive. In 1901, when he and his sister were 6 years old, the family lived at 105 Amity Grove, Raynes Park. By 1911, however, they had moved to 19 Cambridge Road, Raynes Park which was still Private Grainger’s home at the time of his death. His sister Olive wasn’t at the family home when the 1911 census was taken as she was a pupil at a Hertfordshire boarding school at the time.
Walter attended St. George’s College, a private preparatory school in Wimbledon, before moving on to Rutlish School, a grammar school then located on Rutlish Road near Merton Park station. By 1911 he had already left school and was employed as an insurance clerk until he joined the 10th Battalion Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) in September 1914. The 10th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers was one of the first Pals battalions. Recruitment began on 21st August 1914 and within a matter of days 1600 men from the stockbroking community in the City of London had joined.
Private Grainger arrived in France on 31st July 1915. He was wounded in action in France or Belgium and subsequently died of his wounds on 5th June 1916, a few weeks before the onset of the battle of the Somme. There is no record of the circumstances of his death although the Rutlish Roll of Honour states that he ‘had been recommended for the Military Medal’. The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to Army personnel below commissioned rank for bravery in battle on land. The medal was established on 25 March 1916.
Private Grainger’s war gratuity of £8.00 was paid to his father Walter Grainger. He is buried in the Doullens Communal Cemetery Extension No.1. Grave reference I.C.18. Doullens is a town in the Department of the Somme, which housed a casualty clearing station manned by troops of the Royal Army Medical Corps.
He is also remembered on the war memorial at Rutlish School.