|
|
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site you agree to accept cookies.
If you enjoy this site please consider making a donation.
Site Home
Help & FAQs
Features
Submissions
Information
Advertisements
World War 1 One ww1 wwII greatwar great 1914 1918 first battalion regiment
L/Cpl. Frank O'Donnell
British Army 1st/2nd (East Lancs) Field Coy. Royal Engineers
from:Red Lion, 4 Caton Street, Hulme, Manchester
(d.4th June 1915 )
Frank O'Donnell first joined up on 12th July 1897: The Royal Lancaster Regiment.18 years and 9 months 5'7 1/4 weighting 120 lbs. He had red hair, a ruddy complexion, and a cross tattooed on his right forearm. He was in for 48 days and on the 28th August 1897 paid £10 to get himself discharged. He joined again 5 months later on the 24 January 1898. His record says that he was 19 years and 3 months, 5ft 7 3/4 tall, 130 lbs, with a fresh complexion, grey eyes and red hair. It also says he had slight knock knees!! Did he want to join up again when he heard the regiment was being posted overseas? On 21st January 1898 he was attested and posted on 1st June 1898. He was transferred to the 7th Dragoon Guards on the 18th October 1899 and was transferred to South Africa on 8th February 1899 to fight in the Boer War until 8th July 1900. He was discharged as medically unfit on 30th September 1900 at Woolwich. His medals were ----- with Queens clasp At the time of his discharge he was stated to be 5'11 so he had grown 4 inches while serving in South Africa. He had his 3rd finger of his left hand amputated and his other fingers were useless. His conduct while with the colours was described as 'very good'. He was entitled to one good conduct medal. On 3rd May 1899 he got a 3rd class certificate of education and on the 29th June 1899 he got a 2nd class certificate of education.
Frank joined up 2nd September 1914 and served as a sapper in the 1st/2nd (East Lancs) Field Coy. Royal Engineers. On 10th September he embarked from Southampton for Egypt. On 5th May 1915 he embarked at Alexandria for the Dardanelles. Died 4 June at the Third Battle of Krithia 4 June 1915 Gallipoli. He was lance corporal when he died On 19th October 1916: 1 pocket book, letters and a certificate were in existence and returned to his widow Alice. Alice was awarded a pension of 23 shilling a week.
Related Content:
Can you help us to add to our records?
The names and stories on this website have been submitted by their relatives and friends. If your relations are not listed please add their names so that others can read about them
Did your relative live through the Great War? Do you have any photos, newspaper clippings, postcards or letters from that period? Have you researched the names on your local or war memorial?
If so please let us know.
Do you know the location of a Great War "Roll of Honour?"We are very keen to track down these often forgotten documents and obtain photographs and transcriptions of the names recorded so that they will be available for all to remember.
Help us to build a database of information on those who served both at home and abroad so that future generations may learn of their sacrifice.
Celebrate your own Family History
Celebrate by honouring members of your family who served in the Great War both in the forces and at home. We love to hear about the soldiers, but also remember the many who served in support roles, nurses, doctors, land army, muntions workers etc.
Please use our Family History resources to find out more about your relatives. Then please send in a short article, with a photo if possible, so that they can be remembered on these pages.
The free section of The Wartime Memories Project is run by volunteers.
This website is paid for out of our own pockets, library subscriptions and from donations made by visitors. The popularity of the site means that it is far exceeding available resources and we currently have a huge backlog of submissions.
If you are enjoying the site, please consider making a donation, however small to help with the costs of keeping the site running.
Hosted by:
The Wartime Memories Project Website
is archived for preservation by the British Library
Copyright MCMXCIX - MMXXIV
- All Rights Reserved -We do not permit the use of any content from this website for the training of LLMs or for use in Generative AI, it also may not be scraped for the purpose of creating other websites.
