British Postcards 3
Postcard 1: 17.5.1915
Legend: Albert Harbour, Greenock
To R G Easton, 56 Lynette Av. Clapham Common, London
Have been appointed to Deptford 1 so shall soon be settled over mom. Many thanks for your letter re [?]tax which I have had no time to acknowledge. With kindest regards, yours sincerely Lesli. G
Geihnger [?]
Postcard 2: August 1915
Legend: S.S. Worthing Belle
To Mr Leslie Easton
4 Buckingham Terrace, Ayr
Dear Leslie/Grandma, I have been to Brighton on the Worthing Belle. Eddie and Connie are staying nexr door and we have a fine time on the shore. We went to Southsea yesterday. Love from Jack.
Note: One online source claims that the S.S. Worthing Belle was sold in 1913 to a Turkish company and subsequently damaged by
Allied gunfire in the Dardanelles. Yet here we have a reference on a postcard to the ship operating its accustomed daily schedule between Brighton and Worthing.
Postcard 3: November 1915
Legend: Its a long way to Tipperary
To Bobby Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue, Clapham Common
How do you like your Daddy.
Postcard 4: 11 Mar 1916
Legend: The Pier, Eastbourne
To Bobby Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
Summerdown
Convalescent Hospital Eastbourne
Dear Bobby, I have just come for a turn at the seaside.
Daddy
Postcard 5: 25 July 1916
Legend: The Fountain, Cliveden
To R G Easton Esq, Inland Revenue, Newington Butts, London
From Officers Mess, Taplow Loge, Taplow Bucks
Dear Robert, I shall probably have to start back soon aster 10pm tomorrow although should you have any engagement don't send [?] Yours sincerely Harold.
Note: Taplow Lodge was set up as a hospital in 1915. It specialised in treating victims of poison gas.
Postcard 6: 31 July 1916
Legend: Clock Tower and Esplanade, Weymouth
To L R Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
Rock Restaurant, 63 St James St.
5.30 Dear Leslie we arrived safe and took 6 hours .......
Lovely weather. Bathed and paddled today and went on W. Pier yesterday. Lots of people here and many ......
Bathing is very popular. It is the only cool place. An airship and an aeroplane went over here this afternoon. We are not probably going on to Worthing tomorrow. There are so many wounded
soldiers here.
With love [??] Eddie
Postcard 7: 19 August 1916
Legend: Cliffs, Westonville, Margate
To L R Easton, Windermere, West Hall Road, Bournemouth
Dear Leslie, We are having very fine weather here hope you are having the same. There are ever so many aeroplanes here. There are some sea-plane hangars just near and you can sea the see planes
go down on the water. With love Jack
Note: From 1914 Westgate, just west of Margate, was the location of a Royal Naval airplane base.
Postcard 8: 29 September 1916
Legend: Council House Gateway, Shrewsbury
To Mrs R Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
Arrived back safely at 7 o/c pm. Missed train at Euston by 5 minutes! had to await am train. but had a pleasant journey back. A wet evening after my arrival home. I have wondered what Bobby had
to say nay not a [??]? Kiss him from me and accept kind regards. Yours sincerely M.S.
Postcard 9: 22 July 1917
Legend: Madeira Walk, Kemptown, Brighton
To Mrs R Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
From 8 Clyde Road, Brighton
Dear Mrs Easton (D.V.) we will be back in London on Friday next ab will call for Bobby the latter part of the day. We trust you are all well. We are having very beautiful weather here. With
kindest regards to all and a kiss for Bobby. I am sincerely, M Shearcroft
Postcard 10: 25 July 1917
Legend: Palace Pier and Beach, Brighton
To Mrs R Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
From 8 Clyde Road, Brighton
Dear Mrs Easton, we do not know what .......... arrived at, and when we get to London. so will then come on to Clapham after finishing our business here.I hope to be with you to take Bobby on
with us the latter part of the day. We trust this will not inconvenience you. With kind regards. Yours sincerely M Shearcroft.
Postcard 11: 30 July 1917
Legend: Beachy Head Lighthouse
To L R Easton , 56 Lynette Avenue
From 27 Channel View Rd, Eastbourne
Dear Leslie
We are staying at ?? for about 1 week so you may write. Started at 7 pm on Saturday arrived East Grinstead at 9.50 and stayed night. Started at 10 ma, and got here 2 pm, Had dinner on route. Eastbourne very crowded - 3 hours getting bed brought bag from station to day. Airships on West and aeroplanes in East of town. Seen some of both go up. Rained all Sunday afternoon and is still overcast. Walked to Beachy Head this afternoon (see back) saw steamers off the ??. Have not bathes yet. No Nierrots here [??] C.W.Watt
Note: Airships were based at Polegate, near Eastbourne. Later that year there was a fatal collision between two
airships on patrol one night.
Postcard 12: 22 October 1917
Legend: A Glad Birthday
To Master R Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
With Grandma and Grandpa's love
(with a present to follow)
4 Gray Street Northampton
Postcard 13: 19 November 1917 (postmarked Savona Torino)
Legend: Savona - Stazione Letimbre - Piazza Principe Umberto
To Master Bobby Easton
Dear Bobby, I have just been for a lovely train ride through beautiful country. It is quite warm here. Daddy
Postcard 14: 16 July 1918
Legend: Skegness - Why need England fear?
Dear Bobbie
Another card from Skegness for you. We had a card from Daddy sent on from Northampton. Will make ?? on our return to ?? ... Hope you are all well. We are having very nice weather here. ...........................................
Postcard 15: 23 September 1918
Legend: Rough Sea at Splash Point, Worthing
Mr Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
From 9 Edens Road, Worthing
Dear Robert, We are getting on very well but not nice weather is so so very windy much too rough for the little ones but it seems better this morning the band plays 3 times a day and we are quite
near the sea. With love from mother.
Postcard 16: 24 September 1918 [?]
Legend: The Lifeboat, Worthing
To Mr Easton, 56 Lynette Avenue
Dear Robert, I have just remembered it is your birthday. Wish you many happy returns. It is very fine today with love to all from Mother.
Postcard 17
Yours pathetically Ginge, I Stargern [?]
Yours with best luck Harry Scott
With kind regards W Bushnell P Vass
With kind regards E Money
Postcard 18
Legend: 15th Hussars Drummer
Dear Leslie, Thank you for your pretty card, I am sorry you could not buy our snow but we don't want any mud thank you. When you go out on this horse, you must hold the reins tight, else he will bolt, he is also a high kicker, especially when you beat the drum too loud. He likes good music. Lots of love from Grandma and Auntie Flo xxxxxx
Postcard 19
Postcard 20 - 24
Legend: Strand School Cadet Corps "A" Company, Rifle Range and Advanced Physics Laboratory
Note: The Strand was a boys grammar school that moved from its original location in the Strand to Tulse Hill in 1913.
Schooling and the Great War includes the following comment. During the Great War 247,061 commissions were granted in the British Army.
Some 100,000 of these went to men with OTC experience gained in the Public Schools and universities. High attrition rates, however, meant that the demand for officers soon outstripped supply.
From January 1916 onwards Officer Cadet Battalions (OCB) were formed. These provided a four month course for ex-rankers, many of whom were men of working and lower-middle class origins. new
officers were granted commissions for the duration of the war. The Temporary Officers were often referred to as 'Temproary Gentlemen'. This became a term of derision for those who were not from
the 'quality' classes.
The programme for the memorial service held on June 1st 1919 at Brixton Parish Church, lists all the staff and former pupils who fell in the Great War. It seems likely that one of the easton family went to the school, perhaps Bobby. No one with the name Easton is on the list of fallen.
The programme has been annotated to show a careful count of those listed, 150 former pupils and 2 members of staff. Of these, where the rank is listed, the fatalities were split between the ranks
as follows:
Private (or equivalent) 57
Lance Corporal 9 (39%)
Corporal 5 (3%)
Sergeant 2 (1%)
Company Sergeant Major 2 (1%)
2nd Lieutenant 51 (35%)
Lieutenant 14 (10%)
Captain 7 (5%)
Postcard 25 - 30
Legend: scenes from Louvain, Dinant, Dixmude and Ypres.
Drawings of buildings that were all severely damaged during the fighting.
Postcard 31
Legend: Allies
Postcard 32
Legend: HM Dockyard, Rosyth NB
Reverse: contemporary description of base under construction.
Note: work on the Royal Navy dockyards at Rosyth were started in 1903. The first battleship moored there in March 1916. It had capacity for 11 large ships, or 22 if doubled up.
Postcards 33 - 34
German submarine UC5 was captured in April 1916 and exhibited in London, later in New
York.
Postcards 34 - 39
Legend: The Great European War 1914
Photos of the damage in Louvain in August 1914
Postcard 40
Legend: Belgian Anti-Aircraft Gunners
Issued by the Y.M.C.A. Hut Fund (full series of 312 cards)
Note: YMCA huts were set up to provide soldiers with food and a place to rest on the frontline or at home in military camps and railways stations.
Soldiers would arrive in London at all hours of the day and night and were often forced to stay overnight for a connecting train. The YMCA opened hostels at the main stations. Accommodation was
also provided for the use of soldiers' wives who had travelled long distances to witness arrivals and departures. The YMCA also embarked on a massive educational programme for soldiers which
eventually became the Army Education Corps.
The soldiers in the picture are using a light machine gun of unknown make.
Postcard 41
Legend: British Gunners with their Trench mortar
Note: Mortars as
weapons had generally fallen out of use since Napoleonic times, but came into their own again in the era of trench warfare. The picture shows a 2 inch mortar; large bores were quickly
developed, often out of other discarded weaponry, and they were able to deliver a wide range of munitions.
Postcard 42
Legend: Bringing in the wounded in the Flanders Offensive
Note: the wounded and dead were collected by Field Ambulances. These were not vehicles but units of the Royal Army Medical Corps.