Blackswell Ralph

BLACKWELL, RALPH

		Source
		CWGC	SDGW	Uttoxeter Advertiser	Other
Parents	Mr. & Mrs. C. Blackwell			1a
Parents	Cope and Lucy Blackwell				7
Where born	Uttoxeter, Staffordshire				7a
When born	Abt 1892				7a
Address	21, New Street, Uttoxeter (parents)			1a 1b	5
	101, Wath Road, Mexborough, Yorkshire (wife)	Yes		3b
	Mexborough, Yorkshire (self)		Yes		5
Spouse	Gladys Blackwell	Yes		1a
Children	One			1a
Employment Before Joining up	Messrs. Hunter’s grocery department, Uttoxeter			1a
When he joined up	May 1915			1a
Where Enlisted	Rotherham, Yorkshire		Yes		5
Regiment	Royal Field Artillery	Yes	Yes	1a	5 9
Unit	"D" Battery. 232nd Brigade.	Yes
Rank	Gunner	Yes	Yes	1a	9
	Driver				5
	Private			1a 1b
Service Number	L/26599	Yes	Yes		5 9
Date of Death	14 October 1917	Yes	Yes		5
Age at time of death	25			1a
Age at time of death	24	Yes
Where Killed or died	Flanders – Lijssenthoek, near Poperinge
How he died	Died of Wounds		Yes		5
Location of Grave or Memorial	Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery - near Poperinge, Grave XXI. F. 16.		Yes		4
Awards	1915 Star – Roll RFA/1A&B				9
	British War Medal – Roll RFA 145B Page 8838				9
	Victory Medal - Roll RFA 145B Page 8838				9

Photograph with kind permission from the Uttoxeter Advertiser

The details that follow are based around the only R. Blackwell on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission register and ‘Soldiers Died in the Great War’ database who died on 14th October 1917. Also, the rank and area match the details given in the Uttoxeter Advertiser.

Ralph was born in Uttoxeter around 1892, the eldest son of Cope and Lucy Blackwell of 21, New Street, Uttoxeter. His brother, Joseph, was killed at the Hohenzollern Redoubt at Loos on the 13th of October 1915.

In civilian life, Ralph married Gladys, of 101, Wath Road, Mexborough, Yorks, and they had one child. His obituary says that he was married only a few days before going to France and had no leave after that.

He worked in Messrs. Hunter’s Grocery Department in Uttoxeter, so he will have been well known about the town.

Ralph joined up at Rotherham in May 1915 and was serving at Sutton Mandeville at the end of December 1915. He was part of ‘D’ Battery, 232nd Brigade of the Royal Field Artillery and served as a Private, Number L/26599.

His Medal Index Card indicates that he first went to the Western Front (‘France’) on 30th December 1915.

He died from wounds at the age of 25 or 26 on 14th October 1917. He had served abroad for a little over a year and nine months.

Ralph is buried in Grave XXI.F.16 in Lijssenthoek Cemetery, near to Poperinge in Belgium. This cemetery arose around a major hospital complex and received a lot of casualties from the Ypres sector. Given the date of his death, it seems likely that he received his wounds during the battle of 3rd Ypres, or Passchendaele as it is more commonly known.

Ralph was awarded the 1915 Star, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.