Use the below links to display a list of men by surname that appears on the War Memorial.
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James (Arthur) was the youngest of Arthur and Annie Brentnall's four children. When James was 18 months old his mother died. Records show that his father was a teacher at Fleetham Street School, Middlesborough leaving there in February 1896 to go to Grangetown Board School. However he was asked to leave in June 1897 because on several occasions he had been drunk in the classroom. By 1901 he was a labourer.
Whether it was at this time that the three girls went to Ormesby Orphanage or earlier it is not known. Later Winifred went into service, Elsie was adopted by Albert and Alice Oddy and Jessie went to live with a cousin. James stayed with his father. Arthur snr remarried in 1904 to Lizzie Alice Shaw, they had two children. Arthur died in 1910. By 1911 James is with his married sister Winifred Stark in Bromley. Sometime between 1911 and 30th June 1916, when he enlisted in the Australian Infantry, James emigrated to Australia.
On enlistment he is described as being 5ft 8ins tall, weighing 143lbs, having a fresh complexion, brown eyes and brown hair. He states that he is a farmer. An advertisement of his Grazing Lease for sale in 1920 says his land consisted of 1340 acres south east of Muradup, Western Australia. All his property was left to his sister Winifred.
Having enlisted in 1916 it was a year before James embarked for England, arriving in Plymouth on 25th August 1917. On 12th December he was sent to France. James was wounded at the Battle of Hamel on 5th July 1918 resulting in the amputation of his right foot on the 6th. He was repatriated to Portsmouth, England on 3rd August where his left foot was also amputated, then moved to the Australian Auxiliary Hospital Southall on 24th August. He died at 7.50 on 17th October, cause of death "amputation of left foot, gunshot wound to neck, secondary haemorrhage".
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