Humberston’s war memorial is in the cemetery of St Peter's Church. The plinth is topped by a Celtic cross. There are inscriptions on all four sides of the memorial to commemorate nine deaths in the First World War and nine from the Second World War.
Front
In
loving memory
of the
parishioners of Humberston
who gave their lives
in the
Great World-War
from 1914 to 1919
ROBERT PARKER. JULY 1st 1916
A. DENZIL JENNISON. SEP 15th 1916
FREDERICK RUSSELL. JAN 25th 1918
Right-hand side:
1939-1945
S. JOEL.
J. SHOWLER.
E. C. TOWNSEND.
J. D. WARWICK
N. ROWNTREE
JAMES GEORGE FISK. FEB 23rd 1918
FRANCIS N DUNCOMB. APRIL 1st 1918
Left-hand side:
1939-1945
T. C. COOK.
M CROFT.
W. R. EDWARDS
H. GOSSOP
VISCOUUNT WENDOVER. MAY 1915
ERIC A MILNER LANE. MARCH 8th 1918
ERIC SHAW JUNE 22th 1918
Rear:
This monument was erected by the parishioners of Humberston
in conjunction with the parents and friends of the departed.
The parish war records are preserved in a book which is kept in the church
FRANCIS 'FRANK' NORMAN DUNCOMBE
Sergeant 801040, B Battery, 295th Brigade, Royal Field Artillery
Died of wounds: 1 April 1918
Born in Luton
BedfordshireSon of Charles and Emily Duncombe
Enlisted in Grimsby
Buried: Doullens Communal Cemetery Extension No 1
Frank is also commemorated on the Waltham War Memorial.
In March 1916, Commonwealth forces succeeded the French on the Arras front and the 19th Casualty Clearing Station was moved to Doullens, followed by the 41st, the 35th and the 11th. By the end of 1916, these had given way to the 3rd Canadian Stationary Hospital (which stayed until June 1918) and the 2/1st Northumbrian Casualty Clearing Station. From February 1916 to April 1918, these medical units continued to bury in the French extension (No 1) of the communal cemetery. Doullens Communal Cemetery Extension No 1 contains 1,335 Commonwealth burials of the First World War.
Background
Frank, the son of a railwayman, was born in 1885 in Luton in Bedfordshire. In 1891, the Duncombe family lived at 25 Crawley Green Road in Luton. Father, Charles, 32, worked as a railway foreman porter. He was born in Great Barford. Wife Emily was four years older than her husband and hailed from Hockliffe in Bedfordshire. Oldest son, Walter, 10, was born in Luton. Next came Frank, aged five. Then Albert, two. He, like his two older brothers was born in Luton. Also living with the family was Mary A Norman, Emily’s 40-year-old sister, a straw hat maker.
By 1901, Charles was the station master at Waltham Station and lived in the station master’s house.
Oldest son, Walter, had left home. Frank and Albert, however, still lived at home and had been joined by a sister – Kate E, aged seven and born in Waltham.
In 1908, Frank married Caroline Robison – the marriage was recorded in Grimsby. The couple had at least two children – probably more – Mary A Duncombe born in 1912 and Charles H Duncombe born in 1915.
JAMES GEORGE FISK
Deck hand 308DA, Royal Naval Reserve, HM Trawler Marion
Died 23 February 1918, aged 27 years
Born in Great Yarmouth
Son of the late James George Fisk and Eliza Jane Fisk of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk.
Commemorated: Chatham Naval Memorial
After the war, it was decided to commemorate members of the Royal Navy who had no known grave after they were lost at sea. Chatham, Plymouth and Portsmouth were each to have an identical memorial of an obelisk, which would serve as a landmark for shipping.
Background
James Fisk was born in early 1891 to fisherman James (from Great Yarmouth) and wife Eliza Jane (nee Gissing) from Norwich. In 1901, the family lived in Great Yarmouth. Father James was at that time aged 44 and Eliza, 39. The couple’s daughter Annie was 17 and worked as a hosiery machinist. William was 14 and James G, 10. All the children were born in Great Yarmouth. Father James died in 1905 in Great Yarmouth and mother Eliza(beth) Jane just short of her 50tth birthday in 1910. She was drowned on the beach and buried at sea. James moved north to Grimsby and worked as a tailor’s cutter before joining the forces and becoming a deck hand in the Navy. He died off Malta after the 128st steam trawler Marion sunk after hitting a mine.
ALFRED DENZIL JENNISON
2nd Lieutenant, 14th Battalion, Kings (Liverpool Regiment)
Died: 17 (15 on memorial) September 1916
Son of George and Letitia Jennison
Buried: Pieta Military Cemetery, Malta
Alfred originally joined the Lincolnshire Regiment as a Private (10/115). He was transferred to the Liverpool Regiment.
From spring 1915, the hospitals and convalescent depots on Malta and Gozo dealt with over 135,000 sick and wounded mainly from Gallipoli and Salonika. There are 1,303 Commonwealth casualties of the First World War buried or commemorated at Pieta Military Cemetery.
Background
Alfred Denzil Jennison was the son of fish merchant George Jennison and his wife Letitia. Jennison Bothers, fish merchants of Grimsby, became relatively well off in the boom times in fishing at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century.
In 1901, the family lived in Brereton Street (later Brereton Avenue) in Cleethorpes.
Alfred was born in early 1897.
In addition to Alfred, there was four-month-old Maud. All the family had been born in Grimsby.
By the time of Alfred’s death, the family had moved and were lived at a house named Lamorna (?) on Humberston Avenue.
ERIC ARTHUR MILNER LANE
Private 1335, Lincolnshire Yeomanry, then 2nd lieut Manchester Regiment
Killed in action: 8 March 1916
Son of Frederick and Hannah Lane
Commemorated: Basra Memorial
Eric served in France before going to the Mesopotamia.
The Basra Memorial commemorates more than 40,500 members of the Commonwealth forces who died in the operations in Mesopotamia from autumn 1914 until the end of August 1921 and who have no known grave. Until 1997, the memorial was in the naval dockyard at Maqil, on the west bank of the Shatt-al-Arab, 8km north of Basra. However, the memorial was moved and re-erected 32 km along the road to Nasiriyah.
Background
Eric was the son of Humberston vicar, Reverend Frederick J Lane, and his wife, Yorkshire-born Hannah. The Revd Lane was from the East End of London from Mile End Road, Leytonstone, born in about 1861. Unlike many of the clergy of the time, the Revd Lane's parents and Private Lane's grandparents weren't from a middle-class background. Revd Lane's father, William, was a carpenter, and his mother, Mary, a laundress - considered a lowly occupation. By 1881, 20-year-old, Frederick was lodging in Main Street, St Bee’s, Whitehaven. At some point after his training, he becomes a curate at All Saints Church in Darfield, about five miles east of Barnsley. In 1891, he and his wife (Annie M or Hannah M), lived at 36 Snape Hill in Darfield.
The Yorkshire town of Darfield had been agricultural until the opening of mines nearby after which it grew rapidly. In 1886, a mine accident in the area killed 10 men when the cage fell. There is a memorial to the men in the churchyard. It is likely that the curate would have officiated at the funerals.
The couple’s eldest daughter, Margaret C was born in about 1889 in Darfield. Next was Winifred M who was born in 1890. The family had a 22-year-old domestic servant – Ada Beaumont.
In 1892, Eric was born in Darfield (the registration district is Barnsley).
By 1901, the curate has become the vicar of St Peter’s in Humberston, living in the vicarage. Here they had a cook – 50-year-old Katherine Ambleford from Bradford, and a 16-year-old domestic servant – Eliza Bradley, who was born in Humberston.
The Revd Lane was also a freemason.
ROBERT PARKER
Private 1142, 10th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment (Grimsby Chums)
Killed in action: 1 July 1916, aged 31 years
Born in Humberston
Son of William Youhill Parker and Sarah Elizabeth Parker, Humberston
Resident of Goxhill
Enlisted in Grimsby
Buried: Serre Road Cemetery No 2
In June 1916, the road out of Mailly-Maillet to Serre and Puisieux entered No Man's Land about 1,300 metres SW of Serre. On 1 July 1916, the 31st and 4th Divisions attacked north and south of this road and although parties of the 31st Division reached Serre, the attack failed. In the spring of 1917, the battlefields of the Somme and Ancre were cleared by V Corps and a number of new cemeteries opened. Serre Road Cemetery No 2 was begun in May 1917 with the burials in Plots I and II, but was greatly enlarged after the Armistice. There are now 7,127 Commonwealth burials of the First World War in the cemetery, mostly dating from 1916.
Background
Robert Parker was born in early 1885 into a large Lincolnshire family. Father William Parker hailed from Laceby and his wife, Sarah, from Grimsby. In 1901, 51-year-old farmer, William, and 38-year-old Sarah lived in Field House, Humberston. At home with them were 10 children - George (19), Susannah (17), Sarah E (15), William (14), Mary (12), Jessie (seven), Robert (six), Bennett (five), John (four) and Joseph (two). All the children were born in Humberston. Also living with the family was farmer William’s 79-year-old mother – Mary – who lived on her own means.
Of the children, William, Susannah, Sarah, Mary, Jessie, Robert, Bennett and Joseph are still living at home.
FREDERICK 'FRED' RUSSELL
Private 1728, 1st Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment
Killed in action: 25 January 1918
Born in Binbrook, Lincolnshire
Son of Mrs Mary Russell, 5 Cambridge Street, Cleethorpes
Resident of Cleethorpes
Enlisted in Grimsby
Buried: Fins New British Cemetery, Sorel-Le-Grand
The New British Cemetery was opened in until July 1917. It was used by fighting units (especially the 40th, 61st (South Midland) and 9th (Scottish) Divisions) and Field Ambulances until March 1918, when it comprised about 590 graves in Plots I to IV.
Background
Fred was born in Binbrook in 1890 to agricultural labourer, William Russell, and his wife, Mary Maria Russell - who was four years older than her husband. In 1891, the family lived at Spring Row in Binbrook. Fred, their eldest child was 11 months old at the time of the census. William was born in Swinhope and Mary in Binbrook. By 1901, the family had moved to Immingham. Father, William, 37, worked as a waggoner on a farm. Fred was by then aged 10 and had been joined by three sisters - Elizabeth (eight) and Elsie (four) – both from Binbrook. The youngest, three-month-old Edith, was born in Immingham Marsh.
ERIC SHAW
Private 5617, 20th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers
Killed in action: 22 June 1916
Born in Driffield, East Yorkshire
Son of Mr J Shaw, High Street, Nafferton, East Yorkshire
Resident of Preston, Lancashire
Enlisted in Manchester
Buried: Gorre British and Indian Cemetery
The chateau at Gorre was occupied early in the war by British and Indian troops and the cemeteries in the SE of the chateau grounds were begun in the autumn of 1914. The Indian part of the cemetery was closed in October 1915. The cemetery was used by units holding the sector until April 1918. A few graves were brought into the cemetery later from near Gorre and from Mesplaux Farm, near Locon. There are 934 Commonwealth casualties of the First World War buried or commemorated in this cemetery.
Background
Eric was the youngest son of Primitive Methodist minister, James Shaw, and his wife, Sarah. As typical of Methodist ministers at the time, the family moved to a new ministry every few years. In 1881, the family lived in Highgate in Cleethorpes. James, 38, was born in Mexborough in Yorkshire and Sarah hailed from Bonby in north Lincolnshire. Their peripatetic life is demonstrated by the locations of the birthplaces of their children. Their eldest daughter, eight-year-old Charlotte, was born in Retford in Nottinghamshire. Eldest son, George (seven) entered the world in Pocklington in East Yorkshire. Five-year-old son Joseph was born in Barrow (upon Humber) and three-year-old Emily in Tetney. At the time, the youngest member of the household was one-year-old William who was born in Cleethorpes. Also living with the family was 15-year-old Rose Dean, the family's their general servant. The 1891 census shows the family at 22 Park View in Cleethorpes. However, in the 10 years between, the minister’s work has taken him to Goole and Halifax. The family had grown in number with the addtion of three more children – Rosa born in Cleethorpes in about 1883, Sarah aged four and born in Goole and one-year-old Agnes who was born in Halifax. At some point the family moved to Driffield in East Yorkshire where Eric was born in late 1895. By the time of the 1901 census, the family has moved to Ecclesall Bierlaw, near Sheffield. Living with the minister and wife Sarah, were 21-year-old William, by then a grocer’s apprentice, Rosa, 18, Sarah, 14, Agnes, 11, and five-year-old Eric. So why is Eric on the memorial? Did his father work for some time as the minister in Humberston. Can anyone confirm this? The Primitive Methodist Chapel opened in 1907.
ALBERT EDWARD CHARLES ROBERT WYNN-CARRINGTON. VISCOUNT WENDOVER
Lieutenant, Royal Horse Guards (Blues)
Died of wounds: 19 May 1915, aged 20 years
Born in London
Buried: St Mary’s Churchyard, Moulsoe
Viscount Wendover's name is on the HOuse of Lords war memorial.
Background
Albert was born into the English gentry on 24 April 1895 at 50 Grosvenor Place in London. The youngest child and only son of Liberal politician and freemason Charles Robert Wynn-Carrington (16 May 1843-13 June 1928), 1st (and last) Marquess of Lincolnshire, GCMG, PC, and the Hon Cecilia Margaret Harbord – the first daughter of Charles Harbord, fifth Baron Suffield, and his wife Cecilia Annetta, née Baring.
Albert’s parents married on 15 July 1878 at the Chapel Royal, Whitehall, before ‘no less than ten members of the Royal family’.
Charles Wynn-Carrington was a close friend of the Prince of Wales. However, Queen Victoria thought that this ‘Champagne Charlie’ was a bad influence on her son and disapproved of him.
In fact, the family name was Smith, but Charles changed it first to Wynn and then to Wynn-Carrington.
Albert was christened on 5 June 1895 at Wycombe Parish Church with the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) as his sponsor.
Young Albert made an appearance in the press in 1901:
PERSONAL NOTES FROM LONDON
Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XVIL, Issue 730, 31 August 1901, Page 3
Lord Carrington’s six-year-old son, Viscount Wendover, has commenced public life early. The other day the youngster opened an At Home and Sale of Work at High Wycombe. He was received by a young ladies choir with a song of welcome, and presented with a bouquet by the little daughter of the vicar. His speech on the occasion was as follows: ‘The at home is open.’
Like his father, Albert attended Eton School. He became Viscount Wendover in 1912 at the age of 17 after his father became Lord Lincolnshire.
Again like his father, he joined the Royal Horse Guards and became a lieutenant.
He was wounded in action on 13 May 1915.
On May 17 1915, under the headline 'Further Heavy Loss in Officers: Over 400 names', The Times reported that:
Lord Wendover, the only son of Lord Lincolnshire, who has been wounded in the leg and arm, is reported to be going on well. He was wounded in an attack during which some British troops were driven out of their position by heavy shell fire. They reformed, however, and charged over a thousand yards of open ground, driving the enemy out of the trenches. They have succeeded in reoccupying and re-establishing themselves in their original position.
In spite of this positive report, Viscount Wendover died on 19 May from the wounds he received. His parents were with him when he died.
On 20 May 1915, The Times reported his death.
Lord Wendover
We regret to announce that Lord Wendover, Royal Horse Guards, died, of wounds received, early yesterday morning in hospital in Boulogne. LordWendover has had his thigh and left arm seriously injuried in action. The arm was amputated, but gangrene set in.
Albert Edward Charles Robert Wynn-Carrington, for whom King Edward stood sponsor, was born in April 24 1895. He was the only son of the Marquess and Marchioness of Lincolnshire, and was gazetted for the Royal Horse Guards in August last and was promoted to temporary lieutenant. Lord Wendover was the only heir to his father’s marquessate; the heir presumptive to the baronies of Carrington in the peerage of Ireland and Great Britain is now his uncle, The Hon Rupert Carington DSO, Lord Lincolnshire.’
Unlike most who lost their lives in the war, Albert'sparents repatriated his body for burial in England.
Albert's funeral was reported in The Times on 24 May 1915
Funeral of Lord Wendover
The funeral of Lieutenant Viscount Wendover, only son of the Marquess of Lincolnshire, who died from wounds received in action, took place at Moulsoe, Bucks, on Saturday, with full military honours. The plain oak coffin, covered with flowers and wrapped in the Union Jack, had been brought to England from Boulogne on Thursday. At the grave, a firing party fired three volleys and the Last Post was sounded. A heart-shaped wreath from Lord and Lady Lincolnshire was lowered into the grave with the coffin.
Among the senders of wreaths were Lord Rosebery, the Bucks Volunteer Defence Corp, the Bucks Voluntary Aid Detachment, the Officers of the Horse Guards, and Lord Lincolnshire’s employees and tenantry.
The New York Times ran a report of how the war had affected the English gentry.
War Makes New Heirs for Many English Titles
"House of Lords Is Now a House of Mourning," as Few of Its Members Have Not Suffered Bereavement Through the Great European Conflict
By a Veteran Diplomat.
September 26 1915, Sunday
LORD LANSDOWNE, in a moving speech the other day, in the Upper Chamber of the Imperial Legislature at Westminster, described the House of Lords as a House of Mourning. Of its 640-odd members, there are but few who have not suffered bereavement through the terrible conflict which has now been raging for more than a year. Great Britain’s peerage has been hard hit by the war.
One of the saddest cases of bereavement has been that of Lord Lincolnshire, better known under his former name of Lord Carrington now in his seventy-second year. It was not until he had been married close upon twenty years that is hopes and prayers for a son to inherit his titles and estates were finally granted. The son was a singularly attractive and winsome lad, who had the title of Viscount Wendover. He went to the front early in the war, as a 19-year-old subaltern of the Royal Horse Guards. Shockingly wounded about the head in the battle of Mons, the boy succumbed without recovering consciousness in the base hospital at Boulogne, in the presence of his parents.
In April 1916, The Times reportedthat a memorial to Lieutenant Viscount Wendover, Royal Horse Guards, only son of the Marquess and Marchioness of Lincolnshire, who was mortally wounded near Ypres on May 13, had been erected in the parish church, Wycombe.
It is unlikely that the family ever lived in Humberston, but the viscount is listed as the family were significant landowners in the area.
Second World War names: Research ongoing. | 
