Name
Arthur James Sales
12 November 1883
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Sapper
WR 251807
Royal Engineer
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 /15 Star, British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
Not yet known
United Kingdom
Headstone Inscription
Not Researched
UK & Other Memorials
Woolmer Green Memorial, St Michael & All Angels Church Memorial (paper sheet), Woolmer Green, Not on the Welwyn memorials, Not on the Woolmer Green memorials
Pre War
Arthur James Sales was born on 12 November 1883 in Sevenoaks, Kent, the son of John and Edith Sales.
His father died in 1884 and his mother remarried to William Finnish. On the 1891 Census he was living with his stepfather, mother, brothers John and Frederick, sister Kate as well as half-siblings William, Albert and Alfred, at Blean, Kent.
By the 1901 Census, he was living with his brother John, his wife Emma and their three daughters at No. 3 The Mint, Harbledown, Nr Canterbury, Kent when both Arthur and his brother were working as Farm Labourers.
He married Martha Ann Sutton on 6 July 1903 in Canterbury, Kent and it is believed they had seven children. They later lived in Woolmer Green, nr Welwyn, Herts as the last five of their children were born there, and Arthur was listed on the Register of Absent Voters in Woolmer Green, Welwyn in early 1919.
Wartime Service
Arthur enlisted on 13 April 1915 and served as a Sapper with the Royal Engineers, Railway Troop Depot. Originally numbered 87812.
He survived the war but was discharged because of sickness on 16 April 1919 and died in Lewisham, being buried in Lewisham Cemetery on 3 October 1919.
Additional Information
War office ref. No. RE/3724. Believed to be buried in Lewisham Cemetery.
His widow's address on pension records was initially given as Woolmer Green, but later changed to St Malo, Woodland Way, Oaklands, Welwyn, Herts. She was initially awarded an £11 grant but no pension amount is given on record cards and, surprisingly, none of the children are listed on pension records.
N.B. Not listed on CWGC website as he died after discharge in 1919.
Acknowledgments
Brenda Palmer
