Born in 1880 at Colombo Ceylon, son of Patrick William (Merchant) and Christina Gilles Spence, his mother being a native of Colombo. 1891: A pupil at Boarding School, 42 South Terrace, Littlehampton. On 29th June 1904 he married Eveline Eleanor Snelson at St Stephens Church Paddington. 1911: The Director of a Folding Box Company, living with his wife and children Mary (5) and Rowan (3) at “Madeira” Madeira Grove, Woodford Green. This was also the address given for his Probate.
He enlisted at Woodford, initially with the Royal Fusiliers before going on to 11 Middlesex Regiment. In the spring of 1917 he was serving in the Arras Sector. There he suffered wounds from which he died at 12 Stationary Hospital, which was located on the racecourse near the town of St Pol-sur-Ternoise.
Research by Adrian Lee, Local Historian
Sources:
Ancestry.com