Private Thomas Birch.
84908 Royal Army Medical Corps.
Died at sea 26th February 1918. Aged 26.
Thomas was born in the Sept quarter 1891, Burnley. His mother was Mary Birch.
In the 1901 census he was living with a William H Grimshaw aged 38 Cotton Spinner, born in Burnley, Mary Grimshaw (presumably his mother), born in Middlesborough, Thomas and William H 6 living at 2 Walton St, Burnley.
In the 1911 census the family had moved to 23 Brown St, Burnley. William 55, Mary 40, Thomas 19, William 16, Michael 11, Maggie 9, James 6, Mary Agnes 4, and Elizabeth Violet 11 months. William and Mary had been married 18 years had 10 children 3 of whom had died.
Thomas married Ellen Hartley on the 8th Sept 1914 in Burnley Register Office. He was living at 39 Charlotte St, Burnley, at the time. He enlisted on the 11th Dec 1915 and joined up the following Nov. He saw home service until he was posted overseas in the Feb 1918. Ellen and he had 3 children Ellen born 21 Nov 1915, she died of Brochitis 21 Dec 1916, 13 months old, Thomas William was born 1st Jan 1917 and he died of pneumonia 21 March 1918, 14 months old, Margaret Ellen was born 19th March 1918, a child he never saw. On his attestation papers he gave the following as his brothers and sisters; William Henry, Michael, James, Maggie, Mary and Violet, all from 7 Paradise St, Burnley.
From the Burnley Express dated 23rd March 1918: BELIEVED DROWNED. - ON GLENART CASTLE.
Private t Birch 26, 84908,RAMC, is reported missing and believed to be drowned. He was on the Glenart Castle. His wife and child reside at 16 Mount Pleasant Street Burnley. He joined up in November 1916. Pte. W Grimshaw, Scottish Rifles, a half brother, who enlisted in September 1914 has been on Active Service since September 1915.
Before joining the forces Private Birch was a mule spinner for Messrs Lockwood and Buckley, Jewel Mill, Reedley. He was on the roll of honour of St. Thomas's RC School
Lived at 16 Mount Pleasant Street.
Thomas is commemorated on the Hollybrook Memorial, England:
HMHS Glenart Castle (His Majesty's Hospital Ship) was a steamship originally built as Galacian in 1900 for the Union-Castle Line. She was renamed Glenart Castle in 1914, but was requisitioned for use as a British hospital ship during the First World War. On 26 February 1918, she was hit and sunk by a torpedo from the German U-boat UC-56.
On 26 February 1918, Glenart Castle was returning to the UK. Fishermen in the English Channel saw her clearly lit up as a hospital ship. John Hill — a fisherman on Swansea Castle — remembered "I saw the Hospital Ship with green lights all around her - around the saloon. She had her red side lights showing and mast-head light, and also another red light which I suppose was the Red Cross light." At 04:00, Glenart Castle was hit by a torpedo in the No. 3 hold. The blast destroyed most of the lifeboats, while the subsequent pitch of the vessel hindered attempts to launch the remaining boats. In the eight minutes the ship took to sink, only seven lifeboats could be launched. Rough seas and inexperienced rowers swamped most of the boats. Only a few survivors were reported, with 162 killed including eight nurses, seven Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) medical officers and 47 medical orderlies. The matron of Glenart Castle — Miss Kate Beaufoy — was a veteran of the South African War. Her family kept her diary and her writings describe life on the ship.
Evidence surfaced later that initial survivors of the sinking may have been shot at by the submarine in an effort to cover up the sinking of Glenart Castle. The body of one of the junior officers of Glenart Castle was pulled from the water close to the site of the sinking. It was marked with two gunshot wounds, one in the neck and the other in the thigh. The body also had a life vest indicating he was shot while in the water.