Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Memorial: | Delhi Memorial (India Gate) | ||
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.115 | |
| 3. Memorial: | The (1940) Scroll - WW1 Roll of Honour | 7B GQS | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Early Life :
Edward John AVERY was born in 1878 in Grampound, Cornwall. He had two sisters, Eliza born in 1879 and Harriet born in 1885 (both sisters were born in Brompton, Kent). Their mother was also named Eliza and born in Gorran, Cornwall in around 1848. In the 1901 census, the family were living in St Clement, Cornwall. All the women were described as living on their own means (Mr Avery must be presumed to have died) and Edward John Avery is listed as being a 'Mining Student.' There were plenty of tin (silver and/or coal) mines around nearby Truro. That confirms our man around 36 years old when he died.Education & Career :
Surveyor (1909) & Mining Engineer (1912)
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 4th Battalion Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry |
1/4th Battalion August 1914 : in Truro. Part of Devon and Cornwall Brigade in Wessex Division. Moved on mobilisation to Falmouth but by end of August 1914 was at Perham Down (Salisbury Plain). 9 October 1914 : sailed for India, landing Bombay 10 November 1914. Joined Bareilly Brigade in 7th (Meerut) Divisional Area. 28 January 1916 : landed at Aden, coming under orders of Aden Brigade. Moved to Egypt 13 February 1917. June 1917 : attached to 75th Division. |
| Action : India & Imperial Policing |
At the start of the war it was important to bring Regular Battalions back from their 'Imperial Policing' role in India and the FarEast. These troops were replaced by Territorial and other Garisson troops.
Detail :
Newspaper Article - Source Unknown - Posted on Great War Forum LIEUT. E.J. AVERY KILLED - A cablegram received in Truro announces the death, through a horse accident, of Lieut. E.J. Avery, who went to India with the last draft of the 4th Reserve Battalion, D.C.L.I. The deceased officer, who was 37 years of age, and resided at Coronation-terrace, Truro, joined the 5th D.C.L.I. soon after the outbreak of war, and the day after sailing for India with the 4th Battalion was gazetted as having been transferred to the 5th Devons. Mr Avery was a mining engineer, and had visited many parts of the world, and had a particularly extensive knowledge of the German Cameroons. He leaves a widow and four young children, and his mother is bereft of her only son. Lieut. Avery was a member of the Phoenix Freemasons' Lodge of Honour and Prudence, No. 331, Truro, and a Companion of Royal Cornubian Chapter, No. 331, Truro, of Royal Arch Masons, and it is a sad coincidence that the brothers and companions of the same lodge and chapter (Lieut.-Colonel Burnet and Lieut. Avery) should, within a few days of each other, and in different parts of the world, have met their deaths in a similar manner whilst serving their King and country."
The Northern Mine Research Society records:
"Edward John Avery died in India from a fractured skull, the result of an accident, on February 1st, 1915, aged 37 years, whilst serving as a Lieutenant in the 5th Batt., Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry. He obtained his commission shortly after the outbreak of war.
He received his technical training at the Camborne School of Mines, and during 1901 and 1902 was engaged as assistant to an engineer reporting on properties on the West Coast of Africa. For about five years subsequently he was surveyor and assayer to the Pigg’s Peak Mine, Swaziland, and in 1907 was appointed metallurgist to the Falmouth Consolidated Mines, Cornwall.
In 1908 he went again to West Africa, as surveyor and assayer to the Wassau (Gold Coast) Mining Company, and in 1910 became assistant engineer to the Taquah Central Mines. From 1911 to 1912 he was managing a mine on the Gold Coast, and in 1912-13 reported on tin properties in Northern Nigeria and visited the Cameroons.
Mr. Avery was elected an Associate of the Institution in 1909."
[Vol. 24, Trans IMM 1914-15, pp. 501-2]
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Boscawen No. 699 E.C. | Cornwall |
| Joined : | Phoenix Lodge of Honor and Prudence No. 331 E.C. | Cornwall |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
15th July 1909 | 30th August 1909 | 19th December 1910 |
Boscawen Lodge is Edward's mother Lodge, but he also joined Phoenix Lodge of Honour and Prudence No.331 on 18th March 1912
Source :
The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- The (UK) National Archives
- Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
- ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Additional Source:
- Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
- Researcher : Bruce Littley