Continuing our current theme of highlighting those men who served and survived here is the story of William Ernest Pawson. While there is a suspicion he made himself younger when he enlisted in 1914 he had a colourful and widely travelled life one that saw him settling in Kingsley Holt.
We have yet to trace any relatives and would love to hear from anyone related to William or who knew him.
At the turn of the century Kingsley Holt was far smaller than it is now and as a consequence, we have seen few men from the village serving in the armed forces. One man who lived in Kingsley Holt is William Ernest Pawson. He was traced as he is on the 1918 Voters List as a Naval Military voter which indicates he was in the armed forces. From this small
He was traced as he is on the 1918 Voters List as a Naval / Military voter which indicates he was in the armed forces. From this small detail we have uncovered a man who joined the army in his teens and served in South Africa in the second Boar War abnd then served again in World War One.
In the Boar War he served with the 14th Hussars and was awarded the Queens South Africa Medal with clasps for service in several of the states. He met and married his wife in South Africa and more than likely left the army and remained in South Africa until after 1911 (as he is not on the census for that year in the UK) Prior to WW1 he returned to England and despite being born in London came to Kingsley Holt.
He signed up once more in August 1914 giving his occupation as a Motor Mechanic and Driver. It seems at some point he served an apprenticeship in Edinburgh. On joining up he was living in Stoke on Trent and its likely he was living at Kingsley Holt. He joined the Army Service Corp Motorised Transport section and at the end of the war as a Tank driver. He saw action in France in 1914 being awarded the 1914 Star. He was demobbed in 1919. We don’t know what happened to him after that although a William E Pawson died in 1945 and his death was registered at Newcastle Staffs.