Pte 52058 George Francis Aston

George Francis Aston was born probably late in December 1887 at 7 Virginia Street, Bootle and his birth was registered in the March quarter of 1888. 

He was the 2nd of 3 children to Edward (Edwin) Aston a Birmingham born baker and his  wife Harriet Alice (nee Lace) who was born at Ramsay, Isle of Man. They married on 8 March 1883 at St James's Liverpool. George was baptised 8 January 1888 in St John's Church, Toxteth. 

 

The 1891 Census shows the family living at 19 Virginia Street, Bootle.

The father Edwin aged 28, born 1863 is employed as a baker and he was born in Birmingham. His wife Alice is aged 29, born 1862 in Ramsey Island and has no occupation listed. They have three children at the taking of the Census, Edward aged 7, born 1884 and a scholar, George aged 4, born 1887 and Nora aged 2 born 1889. The children were all born in Bootle.

 

The father Edwin appears to have died sometime mid 1890s and his mother Harriet Alice remarried in 1895 to Robert Thomas Hughes 

The 1901 Census shows the family still at 19 Virginia Street Bootle.

 

The step- father Robert Thomas Hughes is aged 32, born 1869 and employed as a commercial clerk and he was born in Anglesey. His wife Alice is aged 36, born 1865 (Previous Census showed year of birth as 1862) and has no occupation listed. They have two step children at the time of the Census, George aged 13 and Nora aged 11. They have a further two children Mary aged 4, born 1897 and Robert aged 3 who was born in 1898.They were born in Bootle.  

 

The 1911 Census shows George as a single 22 year old man residing as a Porter at Netherfield Rd Liverpool City Isolation Hospital. 

 

George enlisted in Liverpool as Private 52058 joining the 19th (Pals) Battalion of The King's Liverpool Regiment. Sadly, no Army service records appear to have survived for him.

 

Details of the action in which George was killed are contained in the Battalion Diary  which records :-

 

George, aged 29, was 1 of those 16 whose body was never found and presumed dead on 03rd August 1917.

 

The Liverpool Echo dated 3rd October 1917 reported 

 

 

Private George Aston. K.L.R., has been missing since August 3. Any information concerning him will be gratefully received by his sister and and relatives at 4 Brook-rd, Bootle.  

He is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial at Ypres Belgium.

The site of the Menin Gate was chosen because of the hundreds of thousands of men who passed through it on their way to the battlefields. It commemorates casualties from the forces of Australia, Canada, India, South Africa and United Kingdom who died in the Salient. In the case of United Kingdom casualties, only those prior 16 August 1917 (with some exceptions). United Kingdom and New Zealand servicemen who died after that date are named on the memorial at Tyne Cot, a site which marks the furthest point reached by Commonwealth forces in Belgium until nearly the end of the war. New Zealand casualties that died prior to 16 August 1917 are commemorated on memorials at Buttes New British Cemetery and Messines Ridge British Cemetery.

The YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL now bears the names of more than 54,000 officers and men whose graves are not known. The memorial, designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield with sculpture by Sir William Reid-Dick, was unveiled by Lord Plumer on 24 July 1927.

 

His mother, Mrs Alice Hughes, of 34 Washington Street, Bootle received his Army pay of £3:14s:10d on 14/09/1918, she also received a War Gratuity of £5 on 30/12/1919.

His step brother Robert Hughes received 15s on 08/03/1919.

 

His elder brother Edward James Aston enlisted in 1916 into The King's Liverpool Regiment and survived the War.

We currently have no further information on George Francis Aston, If you have or know someone who may be able to add to the history of this soldier, please contact us.