Private Thomas Walter Marsh
| Date of Birth | c.1898 |
|---|---|
| Age at Death | 18 |
| Date of Death | 09 October 1917 |
| Service Number | 90835 |
| Military Service | 86th Company, Machine Gun Corp |
| Merton Address | 146 Church Road, Mitcham |
| Local Memorial | Mitcham War Memorial |
Additional Information
Thomas was born in Mitcham in 1898. His parents, Thomas and Elizabeth had lived in Mitcham for at least seventeen years although originally from the Lambeth and Wandsworth areas. In 1901 the family were living at 7 Chapel Road in Mitcham. Father Thomas Snr. was employed as a plasterer, as was his father before him. They had seven children, Henry 17, William 14, Ellen 9, Florence 7, George 5 and baby Elizabeth. Thomas junior was aged 2 at the time, and all the children had been born in Mitcham.
By 1911 the family had moved to 3 Oakwood Avenue in Mitcham. The elder boys had followed in their father’s profession and were working as plasterers, and the other elder children were employed. Thomas was aged 13 and was still at school. It seems that their father died soon after in 1913.
During the war Thomas enlisted at Wimbledon with the 86th Company, Machine Gun Corps. The Machine Gun Corps was established in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front, as the British Army had no specialist machine-gun unit. The machine gun units were prime targets for enemy fire. They suffered heavy casualties, which earned them the nickname the “suicide club” due to the heavy losses sustained.
Sadly, Thomas was killed in action on 9 October 1917 and has no known grave. He is commemorated on the Tyne Cot Memorial, Belgium and locally on the Mitcham War Memorial.
His mother Elizabeth received his last pay of £2.15.10 plus the War Gratuity of £3.00. The electoral roll for 1919 shows his elder brothers all living at 146 Church Road, Mitcham, so presumably this is Thomas’s last known address.