Waters, Charles Benjamin

Charles was born at Wilmcote early in 1891 and was recorded in the 1891 census as 1 month old. He was the first child of George Albert and Ann Elizabeth Waters (nee Houghton). Among their neighbours were Charles’s grandparents, Issac and Ann Mason with Isaac’s stepson (George’s brother) Benjamin Waters. Both Albert and Isaac were agricultural labourers.

In the 1901 census, Charles was living with his grandparents in Wilmcote. Albert and Elizabeth were also living in Aston Cantlow, with son Ernest Edward (4) and daughter Winifred Ellen (1). Father Albert was working as a stone quarryman.

By 1911 Charles, now aged 20, is living as a boarder with farm labourer James Thomas Clements and his wife Martha who previously lived in Aston Cantlow. Charles is employed as a groom.

Albert and Elizabeth A Waters were living at Hatton Hill with sons Ernest Edward (14, a farm boy) and Percy James (7) and daughters Winifred Ellen (11) and Dorothy Elizabeth (4) as well as a nephew Ernest A Houghton (20, a cowman on farm).

Charles married Jane Elizabeth Jones (23) on 27th December 1915 at St Mary’s Warwick. His residence was given as Old Square, Warwick and his trade as soldier.

Although Charles was killed in April 1917, he was originally reported as missing and his parents were only informed of his death in February 1918

Local War Item Warwick Advertiser 16th February 1918

Charles’s younger brother Ernest also fell but his name did not appear on the Warwick War Memorial, as Charles was probably included due to his having married a Warwick girl and living in Warwick. Ernest’s name has since been added.

Their father, George Albert, died in 1952 in Stratford upon Avon and their mother, Ann Elizabeth, died in 1958 in Warwick at the age of 87.

Note: Both George Albert and Ann Elizabeth (as their names appeared in their baptism records) appear to have transposed their forenames on official forms, such as the census’ of 1819, 1901, 1911 and 1939 – hence they sometimes appear as Albert and Elizabeth as well as George and Ann!