Lance Corporal William Alfred Birtchnall
| Date of Birth | c1897 |
|---|---|
| Age at Death | 20 |
| Date of Death | 10/09/1917 |
| Service Number | 50420 G/35196 |
| Military Service | Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex) Regiment |
| Merton Address | 43 Kirkley Road, Merton |
| Local Memorial | St. Saviour’s Church, Raynes Park |
Additional Information
William Alfred, who was born in the first quarter of 1897, was the eldest son of William and Alice Mary Birtchnall. He was baptized on the 27th March 1897 in Croydon; according to the baptismal records, the family resided at the Haigh Street in Merton and his father was listed as a wine merchant. (His 18 year old father, William, who was born in Brighton was employed as a footman at the Deanery, according to the 1881 Census).
The 1901 Census reveals that his father William was 37 years old and his wife Alice Mary was 33 years old, the family resided at 77 High Street in Merton. The couple had a total of 3 sons including younger son Harold who died in 1918. The family also employed one servant, 19 year old Edith. William’s occupation was a wine and beer merchant.
The 1911 Census Reveals that William and Alice had been married for 19 years, the couple had a total of 9 children, and 3 children had died in early childhood. William’s occupation is listed as of a grocery 0f License. The family had moved to 43 Kirkley Road in Merton.
William Alfred’s service record is not available through Ancestry, although he enlisted at Merton in Surrey, rising to the rank of Lance Corporal in the Duke 0f Cambridge’s Middlesex Regiment. He died of his wounds on the 10th September 1917 and was buried at Wimereux cemetery.