THE DESCENDANTS of a brave city soldier who was wounded in one of the bloodiest battles of the First World War are being sought by a Warndon community group.
Members of Warndon Library Community Group are attempting to discover more about the life of Private Walter Joseph Cottrill, 203068, from the 8th Battalion Worcestershire Regiment.
The group are working as part of ‘Passchendaele At Home’, a national project researching the lives of servicemen who were injured at Passchendaele in Belgium in 1917.
During the battle, hundreds of men were wounded and were evacuated to hospitals in the UK, but died during treatment. Sadly there was central record of the location of their graves or memorials.
This year marks the centenary of Passchendaele and the aim of the project is to research and locate their graves and memorials in the UK for the first time so that they can be recorded.
Walter was born November 12 1890 to parents John and Eliza Cottrill. He was a twin to his sister Ethel who died in infancy in 1892.
He married Emma Marie Moore, who he probably met in Worcester where she was in domestic service, on August 17 1914 in Bath.
They lived in Worcester and Walter worked for his father, who was a manager of the Birmingham and Worcester Coal Company.
Walter enlisted on November 22 1916 and was wounded at Ypres on October 9 1917.
He died of pneumonia eleven days later, aged 26, on October 20 1917 at the University War Hospital, Southampton and was buried in Astwood Cemetery.
James Robertson, co-ordinator of the research project, said: “We are really interested in finding out more about Walter and want to discover if he has any descendants still living in Worcestershire.
“We are hoping to mark the 100th anniversary of Walter’s death on Friday with help from the Royal British Legion, so if you can help in any way to add to our knowledge, and to the national database, we would be delighted to hear from you.”
There will be a display about Pte Cottrill in Warndon Library for the next two weeks, with a duplicate display in The Hive.
There will also be a short memorial ceremony at Astwood Cemetery on Friday at 11am to remember Pte Cottrill on the 100th anniversary of his death.
Anyone who is related to Pte Cottrill should contact James Robertson at Warndon Library on 01905 822722.
