229347 Frederick William Walker British Army 14th Battalion Suffolk Regiment from:London Grandad, Frederick Walker, was a shopkeeper in the Streatham / Mitcham area of south London. His two older sons had both volunteered for the Army in 1913 and were both serving on the front line in France in 1916. That year, due the heavy losses on the battle front, an appeal went out for older men to join up for home duties in order to release younger soldiers. Grandad volunteered, was placed in the Suffolk Regiment, 14th Battalion and posted to Alexandra Palace (known to Londoners as Ally Pally). This grand building was being used as an internment camp for German and Austrian civilian aliens. Grandad was not a strong man, and after it was agreed he was not fit enough for guard duties he worked in the cookhouse for the rest of the war. Granny had to run the shop with help of my dad, aged 13, and two younger sisters. Dad's life story gives details of being able to visit his dad at Ally Pally on a regular basis. It also describes the fear when the Germans dropped their bombs from zeppelins, not knowing they were bombing fellow Germans.
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