James Victor Swan

A Private with the 6th Battalion, James died on 13th of May 1918 aged 19.

James was born at Lowestoft in 1898, a son of William James and Alice Maud Swan. He was baptised at Saint Margaret’s Church on 4 November 1898 and his family lived at 3 Burcham Square. In 1901 his family were living at 2 Wilde’s Street and in 1911 at 3 Rant Score East. Later his family lived at 3 Reeve Street. James worked as a deck hand, at Lowestoft Harbour, for the Great Eastern Railway Company. 

James enlisted in the Army at Lowestoft in February 1917. He joined the Suffolk Regiment, service number 48531. He was transferred to the Queen’s Own (Royal West Kent Regiment), service number G/25850, and around September 1917 was posted to the 6th Battalion in France. James was wounded in late 1917 and his name appears in the official casualty list, the War Office Daily List, of 2 January 1918. In March 1918 he was serving with C Company. On 27 March the 6th Battalion were at Aveluy Wood and were attacked by a large force of the enemy, which they repulsed with a counter-attack. The next day another spirited attack had to be dealt with. James received a gunshot wound to the left of his face: this was either on 27 or 28 March. On 29 March he was admitted to the 3rd Canadian Stationary Hospital, and he was transferred to another medical facility on 2 April.

James died of wounds, but it is not clear whether it was his wound in March 1918 that proved fatal, or if he had returned to his battalion and been wounded again. James is buried at Doullens which suggests that he died at one of the medical facilities based there.