Hampton Court at 159 Cook Street

A more thorough search of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website led to the discovery of two additional soldiers whose parents resided in the area outlined in my previous article, Fairfield in the First World War.

Charles Stuart Baxter was born in Victoria on June 19, 1894 and enlisted with the 50th Gordon Highlanders on November 5, 1914. He left with a draft of the 30th Battalion in late February 1915 but was soon sent to France to reinforce the 16th Battalion (The Canadian Scottish). Attached to the Machine Gun Section he was seriously wounded in October 1916, very likely in the attack on Regina Trench, one of the final chapters in the long and bloody Battle of the Somme.

British Colonist Nov. 2, 1916

Charles Stuart Sr. and his wife Elinor were living on Cranmore Road in Oak Bay when they received the news their son’s death, however within a few months they had moved to suite #4 in the Hampton Court apartments on Cook Street. Their son lay buried in the Contay British Cemetery in the village of Contay, located on the main road between Amiens and Arras.

Doctor Arthur Price and his wife Charlotte were living at 1224 Richardson Street when they received word of the death of their son Charles Leslie Price on March 15, 1918. Charles served in the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve but in 1915 he went overseas and joined the 1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment. He enlisted as a private but received a commission and was holding the rank of 2nd Lieutenant at the time of his death.

In November 1915 the 1st Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment left Flanders for Salonika in Greece however in September 1917 they were redeployed in Egypt where they took part in the Palestine campaign. Charles died from his injuries after being seriously wounded and is buried in the Kantara War Memorial Cemetery located 160km north-east of Cairo.

British Colonist – Mar. 24, 1918