Major Lionel M Graham

[barriem]

Hello Everybody. Thank you for letting me use your forum. My name is Barrie Martindale and I live in Toronto, Canada near the Mount Pleasant Cemetery.

When my friend and I were walking through the cemetery last week, we happened upon a grave marker that was almost completely overgrown. It had obviously been totally neglected for years. That's a shame and next week we are going to go back with a stiff brush, garden trowel and bottle of water and return the marker to the good condition that the deceased occupant deserves.

However, since the deceased was a soldier in the Manchester Regiment, we would be very interested to find out something more about him than the marker plate says. What it says is:

In loving memory of Major Lionel M GRAHAM. Manchester Regiment 1915 - 1917. Born March 21 1889. Died April 10 1937.

It's tough that the grave was neglected but really rotten to remain effectively unknown. So we are wondering if anybody knows anything about this Major Graham. Something about his service, his life, his family, the manner and cause of death at a relatively young age? We conjecture that maybe he was a gas victim and died early because of that.

Any information would be most gratefully received. Then we'd know who we're looking after.

Many thanks,

Barrie

[tisgrannie]

Hello Barrie and welcome to the site. I have checked the UK census for Lionel in 1891 and 1901. I had a no show on both. We have some real experts on here.  With the time difference to you in your beautiful part of the world. ours will be asleep or some will. They will respond I assure you! Thank you so much for taking care our of "chap" its very thoughtful of you. I hope that the folks here can fill in some of the missing gaps.
best wishes
tisgrannie

[tisgrannie]

Well just before I logged offf to get to my bed. I thought I will give a quick look at the medal cards. Bingo. Lionel is Canadian!
tisgrannie

[harribobs]

here his other card, i am not sure if it says all medals refused!

[mack]

lionel,milford graham[listed as mitford]
born.croydon 1889
a lionel,m graham and his wife ethel, sailed to the USA on the SS president van buren on 30-12-1922,arriving in the USA on 10-1-1923
they were bound for harrisburg,pennsylvania.
their former address was bridgehill,torquay,devon.
there was a marriage between a lionel,m graham+miss dick,at grimsby in 1916.
lionel was in the 3rd batt,they were part of the humber garrison during the war

mack

[barriem]

Thank you mack, harribobs and tisgrannie very much. Now we are looking after a person, a real soldier, not just a grave marker.

Barrie and his friend Kathryn

[timberman]

Sometimes on the forum we have requests for information that don't always
ring true with what they have been told. In most cases we leave it to the
people requesting the information to find out the truth by giving sugestions
on how they can go about this without telling them it's untruths they've
been told. 

The following I feel should be told.

Although I've sat on this information for a while I feel it should be
added to this topic, there is no evidence to confirm that Lieut Lionel
Milford Graham was ever a Major but he was dismissed from the army
by a GCM in 1919.

Lieut Lionel Milford Graham
3rd Manchester Regiment.
MIC says 43/Can Inf
Roll says Att RE

GCM was 11/04/1919
Medals not approved and put on the suspense
list.

THE LONDON GAZETTE. 2 JUNE, 1916.
The undermentioned 2nd Lieute. (on probation) are confirmed in their rank: —
Manch. R.
L. M. Graham. C. C. Whyte. A. E. Porter. H. F. Whitmore. F. H. Woodbridge

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 15 JUNE, 1918. 7111
The undermentioned1 2nd Lts, to be Lts.:
Manch. R.—1st July 1917. H. W. Henderson. H. T. Wilkins. L. M. Graham. W. E. Warburton

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 29 JANUAKY, 1919. 143
3rd Maneh. JR.—Lt. L. M. Graham is apptd. for duty with the R.E. 29th Nov. 1918.

SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 29 NOVEMBER, 1918. 1406$
Manch. R.—Lt. L. M. Graham to take rank. and precedence in his Corps and in theArmy as if his appt. as Lt. bore date 10th.- Oct. 1918.

7286 SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 5 JUNE 1919.
3rd Manch. R.—Lt. L. M. Graham is dismissed the service by sentence' of a General Court-Martial. 9th May 1919.

General court martial (GCM)
This was army’s highest tribunal, dealing with commissioned officers and the most serious cases involving other ranks. It could only be convened by the Crown or its deputy (for example, the commander in chief, or governors general). At least 13 commissioned officers had to be present if ‘at home’ (serving in the British Isles, Ireland, non-British territories or small British possessions), or five if ‘overseas’ (the British colonies), together with a judge advocate. Decisions were confirmed by the person who issued the warrant (that is, the Crown or its direct deputy).

Lieut Lionel Milford Graham
3rd Manchester Regiment.
MIC says 43/Can Inf
Roll says Att RE
Medals not approved and put on the suspense
list.
He was tried by a general court martial on the 11/04/1919
and dismissed the service.
It was gazetted in the London Gazette 5/6/1919

Timberman

[Keith Brannen]

His Canadian Service record is available here:
https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/military-heritage/first-world-war/personnel-records/Pages/item.aspx?IdNumber=429201

It doesn't give any information after he received his commission. His middle name is given as Mitford, and it says he was born in Montrose, Fife, Scotland.

One interesting item: His was 6 feet 6 inches tall! Might be a disadvantage in the trenches!

[timberman]

Thanks for the link.

According to the birth records
Name:   Lionel Mitford Graham
Registration Year:   1889
Registration Quarter:   Apr-May-Jun
Registration district:   Croydon

So not sure where Scotland comes from unless he was registered in Croydon?

Also I got his wife's name as Celia I Dick and not Ethel.

Timberman

[Keith Brannen]

His death certificate (1937) has the name: Major Lionel Graham. His wife is listed as Evelyn.

Have no idea why on his Canadian military records he had Montrose, Fifeshire, Scotland as his birth place. Very strange, indeed. Did find him in the 1891 census with his mother (listed as Matilda, other later census records in the US have her as Hilda) and brother Basil. 1891 census has his birth place as Surrey.

[timberman]

Thanks Keith

Either he got through a few wives or she just kept changing her name
should think it's the later.

Did the death certificate give cause of death, just wonder if it was war
related.

I wondered on and off for nearly ten years why he had the rank of Major
guess we'll never know.

Timberman

[Keith Brannen]

His death certificate (free at familysearch.org under Major Lionel Graham) states the cause of death as Double Lobar Pneumonia due to Influenza, with "Plaurs" (sic, pleurisy?) Pneumonia as a "morbid condition" "contributing to death but not causally related to immediate cause"!

Wonder whether he got gassed at any time.

I wonder whether at any time he was ever an acting, or temporary, Major? Or, it could simply be it is easier to call yourself, and have others call you, Major, rather than Lieutenant, after the war to denote your service!

[timberman]

I'm sure if I get this wrong I'll get shot down

After WW1 retention of Officer rank on retirement was a minimum
of field rank i.e. Major or above.
So if he wanted to inflate his military service he would have to call himself
a minimum of Major.
Not sure, but was lowered to Captain when Mark Phillips married Princess Anne.

It is possible that he could of been gassed as he was entitled to some medals
until they were withheld because of his GCM, so he had served overseas.

Possible but unlikely that from 1922-1937 he re-joined the Canadian army and
obtained the rank honestly.
He was never any higher than a Lieut in the British army, it would of been in the
Gazette if he had.


Timberman

[CarolineBoo]

I am from a small village near Montrose in Scotland.  It is in Angus not if Fife or Fifeshire!

[Keith Brannen]

So, not only was he not born there, but he was wrong about where in Scotland Montrose was! Since his attestation was in Canada, obviously the error was not caught, or questioned.