Lawrence Heenan was born in 1891 in West Lothian, Scotland, one of five sons and three daughters born to Laurence Heenan and his wife Margaret. Laurence Heenan was of Irish origin, possibly from County Clare. He worked as a tin miner and then a coal miner in the Denny area of Stirlingshire and also in Lanarkshire. His son Lawrence was also working [Click to continue…]

Percy Clarence Drake Percy was born in 1894 in Clacton, Essex, the only son of Clifford Reuben Augustus Drake and Minnie Maria Legerton who were married on 5 Dec 1889 at Tolleshunt Darcy, Essex. In 1911 Clifford was a home decorator in Clacton on Sea, and Percy was a 16 year old employee of his father. In 1916 Percy married Annie Townes and there [Click to continue…]

Wrenford Rayment, the son of Thomas Butler Rayment, a painter, and his wife Sarah Ann Rayment née Davies, was born on 5th April 1889 in Kneesworth, a small village just a mile north of the town of Royston in Hertfordshire.  The third of five children, he lived in the Cambridgeshire side of Royston (before the county border was moved) and after leaving [Click to continue…]

Frank (as he was known within the family) was a very quiet unassuming man. He never talked about his army service experiences. It was only after his death that we obtained a copy of his WW2 service record and began to piece together what he had done. The "Recce" only existed for a relatively short period: they were formed in 1941, became part of the [Click to continue…]

Albert Edward Drake was born in 1895 in Camberwell, London, the fourth son of Alfred Drake and Louisa Annie (formerly Johnson). Alfred and Louisa Annie married 24 Mar 1883 at Battle Bridge All Saints, London, and this Drake line is traced back to Morley, Norfolk. Albert was a Rifleman with the 12th Battalion the Royal Irish Rifles. He died 16 Aug [Click to continue…]