William Frederick Parnham
- Family History
- Military History
- Extra Information
- Photographs
William Frederick Parnham married Mary (also May) Ball (b. 1879) in 1902 (reg. Mansfield). In 1901, the year before their marriage, Mary, a cotton spinner, and her son Frederick Baden (Ball) aged 1 month, were living with her widowed mother, Mary Ball, on Radford Street, Mansfield, William and Mary had five children by 1911 and three after 1911. These included Frederick who was born the year before their marriage: Frederick Baden b. 1901, Ernest b. 1903, Arthur b. 1905, Frank b. 1907, Edna May b. 1910, Gertrude Mary b. 1912, Walter b. 1914 and Annie b. 1916. All the children were born in Mansfield. In 1911 William, a bricklayer's labourer, and Mary were living at Wharf House, Wharf Lane, Mansfield, with their five children: Frederick (surname Parnham) (10), Ernest (8), Arthur (6), Frank (3) and Edna May (1). Also in the household was a boarder, Geoff Parnham (49) single and a builders' general labourer. On the 1939 England and Wales Register, Frederick used the surname 'Ball' (Frederick BP Ball). William's widow was awarded a pension of 36 shilings and 3 pence a week with effect from 25th February 1918. Mary had another son, Herbert, in 1920 (reg. Mansfield, Parnham, mother's maiden name Ball). Mary married Walter Foulds (b. 1879) in 1925. The CWGC record gave her details as 'Mary Fould-sic (formerly Parnham) of 15 Portland Street, Mansfield, Notts.' Mary and Walter were still living in Mansfield in 1939 when the England & Wales Register was compiled. Walter was an unemployed bricklayer's labourer. Also in the household were Mary's sons Walter, an unemployed general labourer, and Herbert, a constructional engineer. Mary died in 1964.
Formerly 12677 Leicester Regiment Private William Frederick Parnham enlisted at Mansfield and served first with the Leicester Regiment and then with the 7th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment. William landed in France on 24th April 1915. According to a report of his death in a local newspaper, he was wounded twice, the second time on July 1st, 1916 'when he was buried by a shell explosion' after which he was medically evacuated to England and admitted to a hospital in Manchester. William was killed in action on 8th August 1917 and is buried in Brown's Copse Cemetery, Roeux, France (grave ref. IV.A. 45). He may have been buried on the battlefield and then his grave cleared in the summer of 1917. He qualified for the 1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal. CWGC - History of Brown's Copse Cemetery (extract): 'Roeux was built over a system of caves which helped to make its capture in 1917 exceptionally difficult. It was attacked by the 9th (Scottish) Division without success on 12 April. The chemical works close to the railway station were taken by the 51st (Highland) Division on 22 April and after incessant fighting, the village was cleared by the same Division on 14 May. The chemical works were lost again and retaken on 16 May ... The cemetery is named from a small copse (the Bois Rossignol) on the east side. Plots I to IV are composed almost entirely of graves cleared from the battlefield in the summer of 1917. Plots V to VIII were made after the Armistice when 850 graves were brought in from a wide area north and east of Arras [cemeteries listed].' (www.cwgc.org)
William Frederick Parnham is also commemorated in a Book of Remembrance in Mansfield Civic Centre. Mansfield Chronicle Advertiser, 23 August 1917: 'Pte William Frederick Parnham of 15 Portland Street, Mansfield. Leaves a widow and 8 children Killed in action on 08/08/1917. A bricklayer at Rufford Colliery.' Report published 24th August 1917 in the Mansfield Reporter and Sutton Times :- “MANSFIELD SOLDIER LEAVES EIGHT CHILDREN. “Much sympathy is felt for Mrs. Parnham, of 15, Portland-street, Mansfield, who has been left with a family of eight children by the death in action of her husband, Pte. William Frederick Parnham. A letter has come to hand from 2nd Lieut. Tilbury, [1] the officer commanding Pte. Parnham's platoon, stating that he was killed in action on August 8th. The officer writes : “Your husband's death is a great loss to his company, and is deeply felt by all his comrades, all of whom sincerely sympathise with you and your family” “The late soldier always wrote home cheerfully, though he confessed that he had been in some rough places. He had been wounded twice, the second time being on July 1st, 1916, when he was buried by a shell explosion, and was for some time in Manchester Hospital. He went out to France for the third time last Easter week, and had nearly completed three years in the Army. He was in his 38th year. In his last letter to his wife, dated July 30th, he stated that he was then in the trenches, and expected to remain there for a further week. Following this he sent a field post card, dated August 5th, and this was received on the 8th, the day on which he fell. Before joining the army, nearly three rears ago, the late Pte. Parnham worked as a bricklayer's labourer on the surface at the Rufford Colliery.” [1] Second Lieutenant Herbert Walter Tilbury, 7th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, was killed in action on 5th September 1918. Buried in Lebucquiere Communal Cemetery Extension, he was the 21 year-old son of Mr. W. G. Tilbury, of 63 Victoria Road South, Southsea, Hampshire. Above article and information are courtesy of Jim Grundy and his facebook pages Small Town Great War Hucknall 1914-1918
