Long before the Commonwealth War Graves Commission put names and burial places on its excellent website, when I visited Belgium I made some notes on graves of soldiers in the British West Indies Regiment who are buried in British cemeteries in Belgium. I walked the rows of white stones, noted when the BWIR regimental badge appeared, and then cosulted the cemetery's book (located at the entrance - and now the source for the computerised record).
I found my notes the other day, and here are the details:
Hooge Crater cemetery contained
Private Arthur Norman Reid, 3029, 3rd battalion BWIR, died 3 October 1917 aged 20. Son of Arabella and late James Reid of Jackson Hill, Jackson Town, B.W.I.
Bard Cottage cemetery, near Ypres, contianed
Private H. Davidson, 7305, 6th battalion BWIR, died 25 September 1917 aged 24. Son of Mr and Mrs George S. Davidson of Time and Patience District, Linshead, Jamaica.
Private Eustace Dixon, 7312, B company, 6th battalion BWIR, killed in action 26 August 1917 aged 29. Son of Mr and Mrs Zechariah A. Dixon, Sandy Gutt, Troja, St Catherine, Jamaica.
Private F. Gowie, 7353, BWIR, died 3 October 1917.
Poperinghe New cemetery, near Ypres, contained
Private E. Gibbs, 7120, 6th battalion BWIR, killed in action 14 October 1917 aged 24. Son of Joseph and Marian Gibbs of Hopewell, Hanover, Jamaica.
Private H. Morris, 7429, 6th battalion BWIR, died 20 September 1917 aged 17. Son of William and Ophelia Morris, Riverside P.O., St Catherine, Jamaica.
Morris had been charged with desertion and had been executed. There are details on several sites and books on these judicial murders.
Also in this cemetery is the grave of Gunner Douglas Roy Manley, who died on 28 July 1917. He was a member of the famous Manley family of Jamaica, serving in the Royal Field Artillery.
Birr Crossroads cemetery has the grave of
Private N. Bryan, 2831, 3rd battalion, BWIR, died 3 October 1917.
Jeffrey Green
