Name
Levi Augustus Wootton
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
06/06/1915
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Private
4/7177
Bedfordshire Regiment
1st Bn.
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 (Mons) Star, British War and Victory Medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL
Panel 31 and 33.
Belgium
Headstone Inscription
No Report
UK & Other Memorials
Not on the Wheathampstead memorials
Pre War
Levi Augustus was born in 1873 in Old Bradwell, Buckinghamshire to Richard Wootton, a shoeing & blacksmith, and Rebecca (nee Atkins.) On the 1881 Census Parents, Sister Ellen (born 1859), Brother Frederick (born 1866) and Levi together with an apprentice Alferd Gaskell were living at Old Bradwell. On the 1891 Census Levi was a blacksmith and living with his parents at Loughton Road, Old Bradwell. Levi’s father died in 1893. His mother remarried in 1904 to John Marshall.
Levi enlisted at Northampton in the Kings Royal Rifle Corps as Private 6547 on 23 Jun 1891 aged 18 years 3 months. He stated that he was already serving with the Royal Bucks Hussars (a Yeomanry Unit). He served in Gibraltar (11 Dec 1891 to 12 Jan 1895), Malta (13 Jan 1895 to 15 Jul 1897, South Africa (16 Jul 1895 to 31 Dec 1897, Mauritius (1 Jan 1897 to 21 Mar 1899), South Africa (22 Mar 1899 to 9 Jun 1899), UK (10 Jun 1899 to 2 Jan 1900), South Africa 3 Jan 1900 to 23 Jul 1900), UK (24 Jul 1900 to 2 Aug 1901), South Africa (3 Aug 1901 to 6 Sep 1901), UK (7 Sep 02 until discharge, after serving 12 years with the Colours, on 12 Jun 1903).
He was mentioned in Special Army Order of 13 Mar 1897 at the wreck of KIMS Warren Hastings Royal He also received the Royal Humane Society Silver Medal for actions at same. For his service in South Africa 1899 – 1902, he received the South Africa Medal with Clasps for Tugela Heights and Relief of Ladysmith.
Wartime Service
Levi volunteered as Private in the 4th (Extra Reserve) Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment, his Service Number was 4/7177 and this was issued shortly after 7 Aug 1914. Following a short period of training he went to France on 11 Nov 1914 to join 1st Battalion in the area of Ypres.
The Battalion were engaged in the Battle of Hill 60 in Apr 1915. Levi died on 6 Jun 1915. His effects records his death as ‘committed suicide’, no further detail is recorded. He is remembered on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres. There is no record of a burial and he is remembered as one of the many ‘Missing’of the Great War.
Additional Information
War Gratuity of £3 and arrears of £2 16s 5d was paid to his brother Frederick George, £2 16s 6d to his mother Rebecca and £2 16 5d to Brother Samuel and also to sister Barbara Charlotte Bagshaw (nee Wootton.). Levi was the brother of Frederick George Wootton who was the Father of Fred Douglas Wooton of Wheathampstead. This is most likely to be his connection with Wheathampstead.
Acknowledgments
Neil Cooper
