Arthur
Jennings – Born 20 October 1875 – Killed in Action, France
9 April 1917.
I
was looking at the Roll of Honour in St. Mary’s, Standon. Each
one given a brief description of their families, apart from Arthur Jennings.
This is what I have managed to piece together. (As of 15th August 2026).
Census: In the 1881 Census, Arthur, aged 5, is living
in Standon Street, Standon at the home of Frederic and Elizabeth Draper.
The census gives Arthur’s birthplace as East Grinstead, Sussex.
Frederic Draper was born in Standon in 1851 and married Elizabeth Hunt
in West Ham, Greater London, Essex in 1875. Elizabeth was born in St
Marylebone, London in 1849. They had no children.
Frederic was a carpenter and the Drapers were very much involved in
the welfare of the local community as press articles confirm. Elizabeth
died in 1909 and Frederic in 1922. Their grave can still be found in
Saint Mary’s, Standon.
Baptism: I have found a baptism record from East Grinstead,
which reads Arthur Jennings, baptised 30 January 1876. Mother’s
name Jennings. The original baptism entry may give further information,
but this does not appear available online.
School: in 1882 Arthur is a pupil at Standon Endowed
School. The school admission register gives his birth date as 20 October
1875, and his guardian as Frederic Draper
Census: In the 1891 Census, Arthur Jennings, born in
East Grinstead is still living with the Drapers, now in Puckeridge,
near Standon. Adopted son and Apprentice Carpenter.
Census: In the 1891 census Arthur is working in Hampstead
at the Northwestern Hospital as a Stoker. It is where his future wife
Ellen Rebecca Mills is working too. His birthplace has changed to Lymington,
Hants.
With reference to the Northwestern Hospital, in its early days there
is an East Grinstead connection - The Metropolitan Asylums Board
was established in 1867 and soon acquired three sites for infectious
diseases hospitals. One of these was near Pond Street, Hampstead, where
on 25 January 1870 Hampstead Hospital opened in temporary buildings
for the reception of patients suffering from relapsing fever. Nurses
were provided by the Anglican Sisters of Saint Margaret, East
Grinstead.
Is this a coincidence? East Grinstead, the birthplace given for Arthur
when he was a child in Standon.
Marriage:
On the 22 June 1902 Arthur and Ellen Rebecca married at St John’s,
Woolwich. The marriage certificate gives Arthur’s residential
address as Puckeridge, Standon. This gave me the information I needed
to confirm that the Arthur Jennings born in Lymington (1901 census)
and the Arthur Jennings born in East Grinstead, Sussex (1881 and 1891
census) were the same person.
Arthur’s wife Emma Rebecca was born in Rawalpindi, India (now
Pakistan) on 20 September 1875, the daughter of Amelia and Henry Mills.
Her father was serving in the Royal Horse Artillery. As mentioned before,
in the 1901 census Ellen is at the Northwestern Hospital, Hampstead.
Occupation Nurse.
Leave England for Canada: Soon after their wedding
the couple emigrated, and on the 21 August 1903, they arrived in Montreal,
Quebec, Canada. Their onward destination was Winnipeg, Canada. See below.
Passenger list below.
1911
Canadian Census: Living in Winnipeg., Arthur’s occupation
Carpenter.
The Great War: On the 21 December 1915 Arthur enlisted
in the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force to fight in the Great War.
His birth date has changed from 1875 to 1877. Served in France and like
so many, was tragically killed in action on the 9 April 1917.
It appears from documentation that the military authorities struggled
to find next of kin information. But in 1921 documentation proves that
had traced Emma Rebecca. She had married again, in 1918 in Washington.
Her husband was Charles Henry Forehand, an American citizen. They remained
in the United States, both passing away in Santa Cruz, California. Charles
in 1934 and Ellen Rebbeca in 1962.
The military documents below confirm the above.
The last will and testament of Arthur Jennings – Written, prior
to leaving for France.
Below
confirms that the wife of the deceased soldier Arthur Jennings (102nd
Battalion British Columbia Regiment 703930) is Ellen Rebecca Forehand
of Washington, United States of America
Above:
Arthur’s grave at the Canadian Cemetery No. 2, Neuville-Saint-Vaast,
Pas-de-Calais, Nord-Pas-de-Calais (Pas-de-Calais), France.
Back
in England Arthur was remembered too. His adoptive mother Elizabeth
Draper had died in Puckeridge in 1909, but his adoptive father Frederic
Draper was still alive in 1917 and clearly ensured his adopted son was
remembered too, as Arthur’s name appears on the Standon Roll of
Honour for those that gave their lives in the Great War.
Photo taken July 2026. Saint Mary’s, Standon.
Their Name Liveth
for Evermore.
"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old. Age shall
not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun
and in the morning We will remember them".
