|
190575 277th Railway Company, Royal Engineers
William Cutmore was born in 1880 in Glemsford, Suffolk, one of eight known children of Drewell and Elizabeth Cutmore. His father was a mat maker and his mother a silk weaver and the family lived at 14 Inkerman Row in Sudbury.
By 1911 William had moved to London to live with his older brother Charles and his family at 124 Dunedin Road, Leyton. Both brothers were employed as platelayers with the Great Eastern Railway.
William enlisted in Leyton, Essex and served with the Wiltshire Regiment (formerly 11784). He landed in France on 20 July 1915. His former occupation with the railway saw him later transfer to the Railway Company, Royal Engineers. The main objective of the railway companies was to take standard gauge railways as close to the front line as possible. Miles of tracks were laid all over the British sector including tracks for ambulance train sidings. The 277th Company was in France and Belgium from March 1916, they were not only responsible for laying tracks but for building bridges and track maintenance as whenever there was work in progress it became a potential target from enemy artillery and planes.
William was killed in action on 28 June 1917. He lies buried in Dozingham Military Cemetery, Poperinge, Belgium. He was awarded the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.
A Cross of Remembrance was laid by his grave in April 2006.
The three cemeteries in this area served the field hospitals and casualty clearing stations, they gained their names from the British soldiers sense of humour, who called them ‘Bandaghem’, ‘Dozinghem’ and ‘Mendinghem’ as nearest to their Flemish names.
Back to Roll of Honour
|
