John Thomas Jones was born in 1886 at Oswestry. He was the son of Thomas and Sarah Jones. There were 5 children; the eldest, Sarah and William, were step-children; and there were 2 natural siblings, Price and Elizabeth. The family lived at (26) Oswald Place, Oswestry. John’s father was a roofer and slater, a trade he would also follow. At Christmas 1906 John married Gertrude Jones; they too would live at Oswald Place, at number 12. They would have 4 children.

John volunteered at Oswestry at the beginning of the war, enlisting in 6 Bn King’s Shropshire Light Infantry, Oswestry Pals. He went out to France with the battalion on 24/25 July 1915. The CWGC gives him as KIA on 1 July 1916, however, his military records and obituary give the date as 10 July 1916, the latter is probably correct. John was killed by shellfire in the trenches in the northern sector of the Ypres. His C/O, Captain Hyndham, in a letter to his widow, described him as having been a good and cheerful soldier and an example to his friends. John was buried at Vlamertinghe Military Cemetery; he is also commemorated at St Oswald’s Church, Oswestry.

Acknowledgements.

Photos (cemetery) – Louise Culliford

References and Sources

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