See also

Richard Ventres BRAY [578] (1891-1961)

Individual Events and Attributes

  • Birth:

  • 22 Jun 1891

  • Windy Nook, Co. Durham1

  •  

  • Address: Square Houses, Windy Nook

  • Census:

  • 31 Mar 1901 (age 9)

  • Felling, Co. Durham2

  •  

  • Address: 2 Rowlandson Terr, Felling

    Richard V BRAY 9 from Windy Nook was living with his parents.

  • Occupation:

  •  

  • miner; Felling, Co. Durham

  •  

  • Address: Heworth Coll.

  • Census:

  • 2 Apr 1911 (age 19)

  • Heworth, Co. Durham3

  •  

  • Address: 11 First St, High Heworth

  • Occupation:

  • 2 Apr 1911 (age 19)

  • coalminer putter3

  • Military Service:

  • frm 16 Nov 1914 to 17 Nov 1916 (age 24 yrs 4 mns)

  • Army Service Corps; France4,5

  •  

  • Within a month of enlisting he was sent to France. Sailing from Southhampton on the SS Caledonian for Havre on 10 December. In France he was a strapper attached to the 5 Ad Remount Depot. A strapper was a junior in a stable who strapped the harness on the horses, hence the name. He had a weeks leave between 30 April and 6 May 1916. On 11 June 1916 he was admitted to hospital in Gournay suffering from a horse bite. He rejoined his unit on the 5 July but was back in the hospital on the 16th. On 10 August he was moved to Rouex and rejoined on 5 September. He wasn't with the unit very long before on 19 October he returned to England where he spent 23 days in the Royal Hospital, Woolwich before being transferred to the 83rd Leicesters.

  • Military Service:

  • frm 17 Nov 1916 to 14 Jul 1917 (age 25-26)

  • 83rd Leicesters4

  •  

  • He was in the Training Reserve Battalion.

  • Military Service:

  • frm 14 Jul 1917 to 21 Feb 1918 (age 26)

  • 497th HS Employment Regiment4

  •  

  • On 2 February he was in the Labourer Centre in Ripon before being transferred to the 297th Resereve Labour Company.

  • Military Service:

  • frm 21 Feb 1918 to 29 Apr 1918 (age 26)

  • 297th Resereve Labour Company4

  •  

  • He had leave with a free warrent on 11 April 1918 before sailing from Folkstone to Boulogne where he was posted to the 713th Labour company.

  • Military Service:

  • frm 29 Apr 1918 to 26 Nov 1918 (age 26-27)

  • 713th Labour Company; France4,5

  •  

  • He had another spell in hospital with dysentry. On his return to Britain he was transfered to class P reserve and discharged 6 March 1919 as being surplus to requirements and was awarded the Victory, British and 1915 star medals.

  • Occupation:

  •  

  • smallholder; Eaglescliffe, Co. Durham

  •  

  • Address: Moorhouse Farm

    He was on the dole in Gateshead before becoming a smallholder.

  • Census:

  • 29 Sep 1939 (age 48)

  • Eaglescliffe, Co. Durham6

  •  

  • Address: 22 Moor House Farm

  • Occupation:

  • 29 Sep 1939 (age 48)

  • smallholder; Eaglescliffe, Co. Durham6

  • Death:

  • 2 Oct 1961 (age 70)

  • Eaglescliffe, Co. Durham7

  •  

  • Cause: Cerebral taromkis/atheroma

    Address: 22 Moor House Est, Preston on Tees, Stockton

  • Burial:

  • 5 Oct 1961 (age 70)

  • Eaglescliffe, Co. Durham8,9

  •  

  • Address: Preston Cemetery grave K/17

    This was 2 days after the Harvest Festival.

Marriage

  • Spouse:

  • Ethel LEWIS (1893-1981)

  • Children:

  • Joseph BRAY (1918-1918)

  •  

  • Gabrielle BRAY (1919-2004)

  •  

  • Isabella BRAY (1921-2001)

  •  

  • Ethel BRAY

  •  

  • William BRAY

  •  

  • Norman BRAY

  •  

  • Margaret Ellen BRAY

  •  

  • Richard BRAY (1933-1933)

  •  

  • Maurice Lewis BRAY (1935-1944)

  • Marriage:

  • 9 Dec 1916 (age 25)

  • Heworth, Co. Durham10,11

  •  

  • Address: Parish Church

Individual Note 1

His middle name was given as Ventres on his birth certificate, Victor on his marriage certificate, Veatrice on his death certificate and Ventress on his wife's death certificate. His daughter Ethel said it was Vincent.

Individual Note 2

 

See our pages on his Military Service

and descents from Robert RULE

 

Sources

1.

Birth Cetificate of Richard V BRAY. Cit. Date: 3 August 1891. Gateshead Register Office.

2.

PRO, Census UK 1901 Felling, Co Durham RG13/4749 fo109 (Rowlandson Terr), (RG13/4749 fo109 p48). sch: 284. 1901 Census Website.

3.

PRO, Census UK 1911 Heworth, Co. Durham RG14/30396 (First St), (RG14/30396 sch22). 1911 Census Website.

4.

War Office, Soldiers’ Documents from Pension Claims, First World War for Richard BRAY, (WO 364 - Soldiers' Documents from Pension Claims, First World War). Ancestry.co.uk.

5.

Army Medal Office, Medal Card for Richard BRAY, (WO 372/ 2 - Medal Card). The National Archieves (TNA), Ruskin Avenue, Kew, Richmond, Surrey. TW9 4DU. Tel: 020 8876 3444, Web: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk.

6.

Register UK 1939 Eaglescliffe, Co. Durham RG101/2872A/004/21 (BRAY Richard), (RG101/2872A/004/21). Find My Past. Web: www.findmypast.co.uk.

7.

Death Certificate of Richard Veatrice BRAY.

8.

Letter from A.N.Cadd, Clerk of Preston on Tees Parish Council dated 11 Nov 1995..

9.

FFHS, Results from Family History Online, (www.familyhistoryonline.net).

10.

Marriage Certifcate of Richard Victor BRAY = Ethel LEWIS.

11.

General Registry Office Index to Births, Marrages and Deaths, (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/indexes_search.asp). Dec Qtr 1916. Family Record Centre (FRC), 1 Myddelton Street,

London

EC1R 1UW. Tel: 020 8392 5300, Web: www.familyrecords.gov.uk/frc.

© Eric & Hazel McMullin 2021