Name
John Richard Jennings (*1)
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
03/09/1916
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Rifleman
S/17566
Rifle Brigade
16th Bn.
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
THIEPVAL MEMORIAL
Pier and Face 16 B and 16 C.
France
Headstone Inscription
NA
UK & Other Memorials
Hitchin Town Memorial, St Mary's Church Roll of Honour (Book), Hitchin, Diocese - Book of Remembrance, St Albans Cathedral, St Albans, Diocese of St Albans - ROH, St Albans Cathedral, St Albans
Pre War
John Richard Jennings. He was born in Islington, was a resident of Brondesbury in Middlesex and enlisted in Holborn. His Regimental Number was S/17566 and he was a Rifleman in the 16th Battalion of the Rifle Brigade. However we have yet to find any connection to Hitchin or to find him in the census.
He had a sister called Lily M Jennings – identified in his pension records, after his death, the same source identifies a Catherine Hayes as a guardian, which presumably means he had a child or Lily required a guardian after his death.
In 1915, the electoral register records, John Richard Jennings, in 1915, as boarding in the two top rooms of 94 Bingfield street, Islington West at the house of Mr Towers of the same address.
Officially John was recorded as born in Islington, Middx., living in Brondesbury, Middx. when he enlisted in Holborn, Middx..
Wartime Service
John was killed in action on the 3rd September 1916 in France and he is described as being on ‘Special Duties’. He was missing and later presumed dead.
He has no known grave, but is remembered on Pier/Face 16B & 16C of the great Thiepval Memorial to the Missing in France.
Additional Information
After his death £2 14s 0d was authorised to go to Catherine Hayes, his child’s guardian, on 11 October 1917. Later, a war gratuity of £3 was authorised to be paid to her, on 18 October 1919.
His pension cards name Catherine Hayes as guardian and Lily M Jennings as his sister.
*1 We struggled to positively identify this man as originally apart from his name on the memorials, the only information we had was the the Lawson Thompson Scrapbooks – scrapbooks created by a local man and held by Hitchin Museum. According to them he was in the Rifle Brigade, more recently the St Albans Cathedral Diocese records have been researched and they list him as R J Jennings, confirm a connection to Hitchin records and that he served in the Rifle Brigade Because of this information we believe that we have identified the correct man, however, we still have to prove his Hitchin connection.
Acknowledgments
David C Baines, Jonty Wild
