Cannon, Private J, Royal Lancasters, 1914

7762 Private

J. CANNON

Royal Lancaster Regiment

1st November 1914

 

CANNON, J

Rank:…………………......Private

Service No:……………7762

Date of Death:………01/11/1914

Regiment:……………...King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment)

……………………….........1st Bn.

Grave Reference:….25. 319.

Cemetery:……………...NORWICH CEMETERY, NORFOLK

CWGC: www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2803082/CANNON,%20J

 

Soldiers Died in the Great War records that Private John Cannon Died of Wounds on the 1st November 1914 whilst serving in the 1st Battalion, Kings Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment) in the France & Flanders Theatre of War. He was born Liverpool and enlisted Bootle, Liverpool. No place of residence is shown.

 

The Medal Index Card for Private 7762 John Cannon, King’s Own Royal Lancaster Regiment, is held at the National Archive under reference WO 372/4/8881

discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D1692694

 

Some of his Service Records survived the incendiary bombing in the Blitz. John attested at Bootle on the 7th May 1903, having been born at Liverpool. He was then aged 19 years and 8 months, working as a Labourer. He was willing to be enlisted in the Kings Own Royal Lancaster Regiment.

 

At his medical he was 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighed 122lbs. He had brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion. He was a Roman Catholic. Distinctive marks were a scar on the left side of neck and on each knee.

 

His initial next of kin was his step-brother, Richard Gilbertson, of 7 Lune Street, Liverpool.

 

Following a medical on the 16th May he arrived at the Regimental depot on the 18th May. Following completion of his initial training he was posted to the 2nd Battalion on the 26th August 1903. There is then a narrative entry which is very faded, before he was posted to the 1st Battalion on the 27th February 1904 out in India. He received a good service badge in 1905. On the 20th February 1906 he was posted back to the 2nd Battalion in the UK. All these units were part of “K.R.Lanc.” On the 15th May 1906 he was transferred to Section B of “A.R.”

I suspect from the other forms in the file that this stood for Army Reserve. He was leaving the Army to be a Postman although his annual reservist training reports in 1907 and 1908 show him as a Labourer.

 

On the 4th June 1906 he married a Jane Scarisbrick, Spinster,at the Church of S.S. Peter + Paul Liverpool R.C., Great Cosby, Co. Lancaster.

 

There is an internal memo dated 23-1-13 from the Paymaster “For decision please. This is the second occasion on which this man has proceeded to sea without Leave”. A letter was subsequently sent to Mrs Cannon stating her husband must report himself when he arrives from sea.

 

Unfortunately the correspondence has suffered a lot of fire and water damage. It appears he had leave to go to sea until the 30th December 1912. At the time they were living at 5 Leveden Street, Waterloo. It looks like there was a similar issue in December 1911/January 1912.

 

On the 5th August 1914 he was called back to the 1st Battalion. On the 23rd August 1914 he arrived in France,

 

He died in Norwich Hospital on the 1st November 1914 from wounds received in action. He had a shrapnel wound of the spinal cord.

 

There is no obvious Soldiers Will or Civil Probate for this man.

 

A report on his death appeared in the Crosby Herald on the 7th November 1914.

 

THE LATE PRIVATE J. CANNON, WATERLOO.

 

In the "Eastern Evening News," which is published in Norwich, the following paragraph appeared on Monday last:- "We regret to have to announce that there have been two deaths among the party of 100 war patients received at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital on Sunday morning. Twenty minutes after his arrival death claimed Private J. Cannon, of the Royal Lancashire Regiment, whose home address is Sweden-street, Waterloo, Liverpool. Late last night Private E. Edridge, of the 2nd Border Regiment, succumbed to an abdominal wound, which from the first had given the surgeon cause for grave misgiving. Notification has been passed on to the officer commanding the district, and in each case there will be a military funeral this week on a date yet to be announced. Cannon was a Roman Catholic, and Edridge a member of the Church of England." On Wednesday Private Cannon was given a full military funeral, being the first of the wounded dying at the hospital. He assisted at the building of the Blundellsands Family Laundry, where his widow has been employed for many years. Much sympathy is felt for her in her sad bereavement.

 

Also from the Merseyside Roll of Honour site.

 

John Cannon was born at Liverpool in 1884. He was the son of Michael Cannon and Margaret (nee Gilbertson).

 

His mother had three children - Henry, Elizabeth and Richard - at the time of her marriage to Michael Cannon at St.Sylvester's R.C. Church on the 2nd June 1883.

 

John had three siblings; twins Bridget and Joseph (b 1886) and Margaret (b 1889).

 

He enlisted in the Army at Bootle in 1903 giving his next of kin as his 'step-brother', Richard Gilbertson, of 7 Lune Street, Everton.

 

He gave his residence as Colchester when he married Jane (nee Scarisbrick) at SS Peter & Paul's R.C. Church, Crosby on the 4th June 1906

 

His service records have survived. They show he and his wife were living at 96 Grey Street, Bootle in 1907.

 

At the time of the 1911 census his wife, Jane, was living at 5 Sweden Street, Waterloo but John was away from home. Jane's younger brother, William Scarisbrick, was also a member of the household.

 

John was still a serving soldier when the war broke out. He was posted to the Western Front on the 23rd August 1914.

 

He is commemorated on the Waterloo with Seaforth Civic Memorial.

www.merseysiderollofhonour.co.uk/get2.php?cwgc=2803082

www.merseysiderollofhonour.co.uk/memorials/southsefton/se...

 

His step-brother (half-brother?) Richard Gilbertson fell in 1916.

www.merseysiderollofhonour.co.uk/get2.php?cwgc=293755

 

1881 – Censuses of England & Wales, and Scotland.

 

The 29 year old Margaret Gilbertson, unmarried and a Dress Maker from Crosby, Lancashire, was recorded living at 3 House, 2 Court, Rawsthorne Square, Liverpool. This was the household of her uncle and aunt, George and Hannah Rigby. As well as George’s brother-in-law, two other nieces and another nephew, there is also a grand-niece, Elizabeth Gilbertson, (aged 4 and born Liverpool) and two grand-nephews, Henry, (aged 6) and Richard, (2 months), both born Liverpool.

 

1883 – Marriage of his parents

 

The marriage of a Margaret Gilbertson to a Michael Cannon was recorded in the Liverpool District in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1883.

 

September 1883 – birth of John?

 

When he enlisted in May 1903 he gave his age as 19 years and 8 months, placing his birth as circa September 1883. However a search for births in Lancashire does not provide a single likely match.As the Cannons seem to have eluded the censuses, its difficult to check how accurate that age is.

 

To compound matters, there is no obvious death recorded for a John Cannon in Norfolk at the end of 1914, start of 1915. There is however a 30 year old John Canon, whose death appears in the General Registrars Office Index of Births for England and Wales in the October to December quarter, (Q4), of 1914, in the Norwich District.

 

That age would appear to make his birth more likely to have been in 1884.

 

1891 – Censuses of England & Wales, and Scotland.

 

There is no obvious match for Margaret, her husband Michael or her son John on this census. I could not find an obvious death for Margaret Cannon between 1881 and 1891

 

Of the other children from the 1881 census:-

Henry Gilbertson, born Liverpool circa 1875. No likely matches on later censuses.

Elizabeth Gilbertson, aged 15, single and a Paper Bagmaker from Liverpool was recorded as a boarder at No.15 Epsom Street, Liverpool.

Richard Gilbertson, aged 11 and born Liverpool, is recorded as the Adopted son of a Robert and Mary Barrow, living at House 10, Court 4, Great Horner Street, Everton, Liverpool.

 

According to the Merseyside Remembers web-site their should also have been three other children living with Michael and Margaret at this point.

 

There is no obvious match for either a Bridget or Joseph Cannon, born c1886 or a Margaret Cannon born c 1889.

 

1901 – Censuses of England & Wales, and Scotland.

 

Margaret and Michael Cannon also appear to be missing from these censuses, as does John.

 

4th June 1906 – Marriage

 

Date from Service Records.

 

The marriage of a John Cannon to a Jane Scarisbrick was recorded in the West Derby District of Lancashire in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1906.

 

1911 – Census of England and Wales

 

The 27 year old Jane Cannon, married and a Laundress, born Crosby, Lancashire, was recorded as the head of the household at 5 Sweden Street, Waterloo, Lancashire. She and her absent husband have been married 4 years. His absence could be caused by work, visiting, etc, or estrangement. In the former cases most women decribed themselves as the “Wife of the Head of the Household”, but that’s not universal. I’ve recently researched the war memorial of a fishing community and on a number of the censuses the wives described themselves as the Head when their men were out at sea.

 

So far the couple have had no children.

 

Also living with her is her brother William Scarisbrick, aged 26 and a Builders Carter from Crosby.

 

Post August 1911 it became compulsory when registering a birth with the Civil Authorities in England and Wales to also records the mothers maiden name. However a search of the General Registrars Office Index of birth for those countries looking for children registered with the surname Cannon, mothers maiden name Scarisbrick, produced not a single match.

 

Battalion History

 

The 1st Battalion, King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment was based in Dover on the outbreak of the war. They were mobilised and sailed from Southampton and arrived in France on 23rd August 1914.

 

Within days they were in bitter action at Haucourt, in the Battle of Le Cateau. The battalion sustained many casualties, killed, wounded and also taken prisoner of war in the first months of the war.

 

7-10 September 1914…………Battle of the Marne

12-15 September 1914………..Battle of the Aisne

13 October to 2 November 1914.Battle of Armentieres

Including

13 October 1914………………..Capture of Meteren

21 October 1914………………..Battle of Armentieres

www.kingsownmuseum.com/ww1-1korlr.htm

 

Casualties

 

18th October 1914 - 1 Killed in Action

19th October 1914 - 1 Killed in Action

20th October 1914 – 31 Killed in Action, 2 Died

21st October 1914 – 3 Killed in Action, 2 Died of Wounds

22nd October 1914 – 6 Killed in Action

23rd October 1914 – 1 Died of Wounds

25th October 1914 – 1 Died of Wounds

27th October 1914 – 4 Killed in Action, 1 Died of Wounds

www.kingsownmuseum.com/fww-centenary008.htm

 

Life for the Royal Lancasters at this time.

 

The following letter has been received by Mr Davis, of Lancaster, from his son, Sergeant John Davis, of the Royal Lancasters:-

 

28th October 1914

My dear dad, I am going to write you a fairly decent letter. This is my third attempt at it; the previous ones have been interrupted by the Germans. They either started “shelling” us or we had to move to some other position. There is much that I can tell you, but it is rather difficult on account of the Censor. I am very well and in good spirits. Our position is very favourable indeed. The enemy in front of us have suffered heavy losses lately, and we have splendid news of the Russians. We are all in good spirits, and there is very little sickness amongst us. I am writing this in the trenches, partly buried under the ground. Above me I can hear the big shells travelling on their way, also an airship on reconnaissance duty. I had three days in the trenches a little while ago. We were under artillery fire all the time, not to mention the worry the “snipers” caused us. Behind the trenches was a farm which the Germans shells set alight. After the roof and walls had fallen our chaps used to run across to the debris to boil water for tea etc on the white hot tiles and bricks. The Germans then started sending an odd shell across just as a reminder. The brewing of tea (“drumming up” as we call it) did not stop, however. At night we sneak out of the trenches and dig others, or fix up barbed wire entanglements in front of our own. I had two nights digging; the first night it rained all the time, and, of course, we had to stay in our wet clothes. They dried on us, but we are a hardy lot, and took no harm. Since that affair at Le Cateau, I have been in a few more engagements. On each occasion the regiment bore a good share of the fighting, and it has now earned a splendid reputation. The Lancashire Fusiliers and ourselves have been particularly mentioned to the commander of the 3rd Army. That itself is no little thing. I cannot tell you the names of places or dates, but will try to narrate a little of what we have done, leaving those out. One day we got orders to attack the enemy, who were in a position around a village. We started off, and eventually came under artillery fire. We then opened out, and the fun commenced. When we got near the village we found the enemy in trenches, loopholed houses etc. They took some shifting, but had to give way. One party of them showed the white flag, and when the men who saw it showed themselves they opened fire on them with a maxim. We take no notice of white flags now – once bit, twice shy. We were complimented for our share in that little bit. The people in that place were very glad to see us. In no place that I have been in yet have I heard a good word regarding the Germans. They certainly have assaulted many ladies. In one place I stayed a night, the husband told us that he had been tied up whilst the women folk were assaulted. As far as possible when we halt anywhere we are accommodated in barns, workshops, etc and generally get one day in the week out of the trenches as rest. Now I’ve left off my story, so had best start again. After the attack I have just told you of we chased the Germans a few miles, and took up a position ready to meet them again. They also took up a position, and after some time attacked us. The people on our left had to give way to them, and they left our right in a very queer position. We stuck to our places until we were ordered to retire. We fell back a few hundred yards, and eventually drove them right back again. They left over 400 dead behind, so must have suffered heavily. I had a couple of days “sniping” from the roofs of two houses. I think I managed to “bag” at least one of them, but no one can tell the results of his shooting. You see, someone hundreds of yards away may fire at the same man at the same time you fire. I wish I dare go into details, then I could tell you something really exciting. I had one near squeak the other day. The last day I was “sniping” I took a chair round the far side of the house from the Germans, and had a sit down, chat, and a smoke. A shell dropped just in front of me, broke some of the wall alongside me; something hit my shin, but did not even mark me. It wounded one man. There were two or three of us together at the time. It made me jump, but did not make us shift our position. Now I think that is all that I can tell you. I expect to be home for Christmas. I do not see how the Germans are going to last much longer. Now good-bye for the present.r

www.kingsownmuseum.com/fww-centenary1914augactions.htm

 

Done