Introduction
John Alexander Gray is listed on Hardington’s Roll of Honour for January 1915, despite having been born in Scotland and possibly never having set foot in the village. His connection to Hardington comes from his marriage to Rosa Jane Marsh of Hardington around 1908. The village may also have served as his family’s wartime home. After nearly eighteen years in the Royal Navy, John settled with his family in Somerset and spent much of the rest of his life in Yeovil.
Early years
John was born on 13 February 1883 in Glasgow.[1] After initially working as a farm labourer, he enlisted in the Royal Navy on 6 December 1901 for a twelve-year term. His service record noted that he was five feet two and a half inches tall, with auburn hair, hazel eyes and a pale complexion. When his twelve-year engagement expired in December 1913, during which time he had grown three inches, he continued in the service and ultimately served for nearly eighteen years. He rose from stoker to chief stoker, and his character was consistently assessed as ‘very good’.
Marriage
In late 1907 or early 1908, John married Rosa Jane Marsh in Devonport. Rosa was the daughter of Edward and Elizabeth Marsh of Hardington Mandeville. Her father worked as a farm labourer. it is unclear how John and Rosa met, although her elder brother Samuel John Marsh was also serving as a stoker in the Royal Navy.
The 1911 census recorded Rosa and their first child, Frances Hilda (born in March 1909), living in two rooms at 8 Lynher Street, St Budeaux, while John was away on naval service. Their second child, Rose Alexandra Bessie, was born in September 1912. Rosa later returned to Hardington, where their third child, Evelyn Constance, was born in May 1914.
During most of the First World War, John served on HMS Challenger, a cruiser patrolling off the coast of Africa. While he was serving overseas, Rosa and the children may have lived at Hardington, and in January 1915 his name was included on the village Roll of Honour.[2]
Move to Somerset
On 6 August 1919, John was invalided out of the Navy, although his service record does not provide further details. By June 1921, the family was living at Corton Denham, and John was employed as a boiler fireman at the Wessex Flax Works at Bunford, work that suited his long experience as a naval stoker. Two more children were born during this time: Alec Gordon Latimer in December 1923 and Winifred Mary in April 1926.
Later years
By September 1939, the family had moved to 16 Crofton Park, Yeovil, and John was working as a builder’s labourer.
Rosa died in 1955 at the age of seventy, and John followed in 1962 at the age of seventy-nine.
Conclusion
John’s connection with Hardington may have been indirect, but it was significant. Although he may never have lived in the village, his marriage to Rosa Marsh and her subsequent return there during his naval service brought his name onto Hardington’s Roll of Honour. After nearly eighteen years in the Royal Navy, he settled with his family in Somerset, where he lived for the rest of his life.
References
[1] Royal Navy Registers of Seamen’s Services, 1848-1939; 1939 Register.
[2] Western Chronicle, 5 February 1915, p.6.
