Raymond Cecil Smith
Location St Nicholas church, Church Lane
Town/Village Kemerton
County Gloucestershire
Postcode GL20 7HX
Details on cross: 4 GRU tags
6.10.18
54040 PTE R C SMITH
SOUTH STAFFS REGT
I.W.G.C
Text type: GRU Tags
Cross dimensions in mm
Shaft Height 580
Cross beam width 410 x 170
Width of wood 45
Other information
Mounting to wall: Nope
Detailing: None
Evidence of use in field: None
Surface insertion depth: None
Finish: None
Condition: Poor
Other information, notes and observations:
The saddest of the crosses surveyed so far. This one found in the Church yard looking very unloved and forgotten. Looks like shaft has been broken, and is no in a metal meta post in the ground.
Death date appears to be incorrect on the cross, CWGC site lists date as 16/10/1918 plate on cross says 6/10/18.
Service number also looks incorrect, on cross it looks like 54040 whilst CWGC site lists as 54044.
Son of Charles and Elizabeth Smith, of Kemerton. Born at Kemerton, Tewkesbury, Glos.
Survey and photos Mike Edwards
Survey date 11/08/2016
Raymond Cecil smith. B 1888. A Gardner in 1911. Soldiers Died gives date of death the same as the cross 6/10/ 18.
After two years (!) we finally have an agreed faculty to bring the cross into the church, conserve it, and mount it in a display together with explanations of Raymond’s life in Kemerton and in the war. I can send out our proposal if anyone would like to read it. (I’m the churchwarden referred to in the posting below.)
Can someone not have a word with the church to move it inside?
Mike has had a word with the Church Warden. Part of what we’ve realised as the project has rolled out is that whilst some churches and authorities know what these markers actually are the significance on others has become lost over the last 100 years. And that’s what’s good about what we’re all doing, by recording them there will be a permanent record of where they are and what condition they are in that people can refer back to in the future. Hopefully not only will it help lock part of a community’s heritage into place but it will also help people with research into their community and also help to protect these artefacts for the future. 🙂
Nick
Raymond was my great-great uncle. The date on the wooden cross is correct; if you download the CWGC scanned data for his death it’s also correct. Just the online database is wrong, giving the plot number (16) instead of the date (6).
Service number is 54044. That was his third. He served in the Royal Engineers and the Durham Light Infantry before the South Staffs.
I don’t know what date or number is on the war grave in France.
I’m sorry to hear that the cross is in bad condition. It’s many years since I last went to Kemerton and it was in a reasonable state then.
Thanks Rob, duly noted. I believe Mike Edwards has alerted the church to the state of decay. Hopefully it will be protected.
The church is shortly to submit a faculty application to properly display the cross inside the church together with explanatory details.