Rifleman John Brown
Royal Irish Rangers, 5th or 15th Bn., (formerly Royal Scots)
Died 6 Oct 1918 aged 20
Dadizeele New British Cemetery
Born Torphichen 1897, the son of Thomas Brown, a mill worker and later carter of Vulcan Terrace and his wife Elizabeth Wallace. An uncle of Jessie Kerr who was so instrumental in establishing the WWII memorial. Volunteered at the start of the war. Died of wounds.
The newspaper obituary, (West Lothian Courier), states:
Rifleman John Brown, Royal Irish Rifles, was severely wounded in France on the morning of October 6th, and died on the afternoon of the same day, never having regained consciousness.
Private Brown originally joined the Royal Scots four years ago, but was later on transferred to the Royal Irish Rifles. He has [two] other brothers in the Army, one of whom, James, is presently in hospital suffering from gas poisoning. Hhis father and mother, who have been long resident in Torphichen, are gretly to be sympathised with in the loss of a gallant son - one of [Lord] Kitchiner's men.
Last update: 2009 10 10 JGM