No.41927, Private, Sidney Charles BOWERS
Aged 19
Born in Newmarket in Q2-1898 [Newmarket 3b:515] to Edward Archibald and Eliza BOWERS (née ANDREWS) of Stanley Road, Newmarket.
1901 census...Sidney[2] was at Stanley Road, Newmarket with his father Edward [32] a stableman born Horringer; his mother Eliza [30] and brothers Edward Archibald 'Archie'[5] and Montague [1] and sister Ethel [2 months]. All the children were born in Newmarket His mother died in 1905. 1911 census...Sidney [13] was living at 6 Montpelier Terrace, Lisburn Road,Newmarket with his widowed father, brothers Edward 'Archie' and Montague and a new brother, Bruce [9]. His brothers Henry Charles, Ronald Norton and Reginald Dudley, and sister Ethel had all died. Living with them were housekeeper Louise Sherman and her children, William Arthur Sherman [9], Queenie Louise Sherman [7], Ada Bowers Sherman [3] and Henry Joseph Sherman [1]. Sidney's elder brother Archie was killed a year earlier see here and his nephew Robert was killed serving in the RAF in WW2 see here |
On the 3rd of October 1917 the 8th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment moved forward for an attack the following morning on the enemy line situated on a ridge to
the east of Zonnebeke and to the south of the Menin Road, as part of the Battle of Broodseinde. At 6am on the 4th of October they leapt from their trenches
and after an advance of some 100 yards they were subjected to a "murderous" machine gun fire from the German front trench where an estimated 100 defenders
still held the line. The machine gun fire coupled with local counter attacks meant that the attack failed with casualties among the Lincolns of 5 officers
killed, 3 officers wounded with 176 other ranks killed wounded or missing. |
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