Raymond Wood

Age 27    Married with 2 children

Private 81747
Machine Gun Corps (Inf)

Died of pneumonia on
Wednesday 30^th October 1918

Raymond was born at his parents', Richard and Elizabeth's, home in Gardeners Row, Sabden. He had one older brother, Gladstone.  The brothers attended the County School and the family were connected with the Baptist Church and Sunday School.  At the age of fifteen Raymond began work as a colourist at the Sabden Printworks of Messrs Steiner and Company.  

When he was twenty one, Raymond travelled to Lisbon , Portugal where he secured work as foreman of a printworks.  Raymond met and married his wife Annie whilst in Portugal and, when she became pregnant with the first of their two children, the couple moved back to Sabden and lived at 3 Whalley Road .  Raymond found work as a foreman at a printworks in Holcombe Brook.  

He enlisted into the army in September 1916 and joined the Royal Lancaster Regiment.  After training he was transferred to the Machine Gun Corps and was sent out the following February to Mesopotamia.  Whilst on the troopship Raymond contracted dysentery and he was to spend the next twelve months in a convalescent camp.  Shortly after rejoining his regiment, Raymond caught pneumonia and was re-admitted to hospital.  

In November 1918, Mrs Wood received two letters in the same post, one from her husband, in which he told her he was well and for her not to worry.  The second letter was from the Enteric Convalescent Dept., Wellington , South India and it read,  

“We regret to inform you that Private Raymond Wood, Machine Gun Corp., died from pneumonia on 30^th October 1918 .”

Raymond is buried at Wellington Garrison Cemetery , Madras , India .

In Sabden he has been remembered on both the School and Church Plaques.