WAR STORIES
This page is dedicated to stories from the War
George Henry Fletcher
1916-1944
Born 24th January 1916 in West Bromwich, the address on his Birth Certificate is given as 35 Summer Street (Just off Stony Lane)
He had four sister and one brother, they went by the names of, Elsie May 1913, Florence Rose 1918, Samuel 1921-1988, Hannah 1925 and Lillian 1928-2005.
When George enlisted in 1938 the address in his Army Pay Book was 131 Gladstone Street, we know very little of what he done between the years he was born up to when he enlisted, other than he was a Press Worker, we don’t know where ?
After he was enlisted on the 4th April 1938 he ended up with the Coldstream Guards as a member of the 5th Battalion, who were involved in the “Big Push” through Belgium and all the way to Southern Holland to Nijmegen, Arnhem and onto the Final Assault in Germany.
George also fought in North Africa with the 8th Army Desert Rats and then went on to Campaign in Italy.
He then came home to be posted at Chequers to Guard Winston Churchill, it was around this time he met his future Wife, Mary Grace Fenton, in the local Pub called the Bernard Arms. She had just come over from Cahersiveen, Co Kerry, Ireland, to go into service for an Author & Actress who had homes in London and a cottage in Little Kimble, which was very near to Chequers. They got married on the 29th July 1944 at Princes Risborough, not far from Aylesbury
Not very long after they got married, George was sent to The War, with The Guards Armoured Division, which was involved in “Operation Market Garden” which was trying to join up with the Airmen at Arnhem, which failed, this led to a lot of fighting around Nijmegan in the Netherlands, this was where George was wounded and died of his injuries on the 5th October 1944.…less than 3 months after he was Married
George is Buried at Jonkerbos War Cemetery, Nijmegen
This is where, his Son, another George, comes into the story, born on the 29th March 1945, after his Father died
George never knew his Father and his Mother was having a hard time, as you can imagine, struggling to bring up George on her own
She stayed working for the same people and around 1946 she moved back to London with George, living in a large house, which was ideal for George, with loads of room for a growing Boy
George lived in London ever since but didn’t do too well at School so he left to do loads of jobs before joining the Merchant Navy
He then left the Merchant Navy to start the “knowledge” of London and became a Taxi Driver, which he done for over 40 years, but ill health has forced him to retire, that was when he decided to start his family Tree and look into his Fathers past and as much as he can about the Fletchers of West Bromwich.
He has also Enrolled for the Open University to see if he can do better than he did at School
George found this site while looking for some information about West Bromwich and he has made a trip to West Bromwich and found Summer Street, but it's now a carpark and it would be great if anyone can come up with some info to help him build up a picture of his Dad, a Dad who went to War and never came back, a Dad he never knew
Here is a bit of info he knows already
Grandparents; John Charles Fletcher, 1886-1957---Elizabeth Smith, 1892-1932.Known address’s, 200 Spoon Lane, 12 Taylors Lane, 35 Summer Street, 131 Gladstone Street, John ended up in 15 Greswold Street.
Great Grandparents; John Charles Fletcher, 1857-1898----Hannah Eliza Rose 1862---?. The same address’s as above.
Great Great Grandparents; John Fletcher 1821, Mary Ann Robinson 1825 they came out of Bilston, but I found John living at 25 Hall Street West Bromwich, in 1880.
Two of the Johns and Elizabeth are buried in Heath Lane Cemetery.
A few of the Fletchers went to Christ Church school in Mayers Green