Peasants to Puddles
My Family History - By Nicky Rowberry
John Emlyn Davies - Telegraphist J/42615
This page is dedicated to the memory of John Emlyn Davies who died on 25th May 1918.
John Emlyn Davies died on 25th May 1918 in Plymouth. He was unfortunately one of the casualties amongst the millions of men who lost their lives in World War 1. It seemed sad for him to have died and all but these bare facts remembered, so I've tried to find out at least a little about his life before his untimely death aged just 18.
John Emlyn Davies was born on 6th November 1899 at Greenfield in Abercarn, in Caerphilly, Wales. He was the 8th of 9 known children of John Davies and his wife Mary Ann (or Annie) Wall. His father John worked in the mines as a colliery fireman. In 1901 the family were living at 52 Greenfield, Abercarn. 6 children were still at home; one of the older girls had already left home, perhaps gone into service and sadly one boy had died as an infant. The photo below shows the entire family with the 8 surviving children and was probably taken about 1908. Thanks to David on Ancestry for giving me permission to use the photo. Since John Emlyn and William Ewart were so close in age, we're not sure which is which, but they are likely the 2 boys either side of their father.
By 1911 the family were living 34 North Road, Newbridge, Monmouthshire and John's father was described as a Colliery Examiner, which sounds a step up from fireman. John was still at school aged 11, with 5 older and 1 younger siblings still at home. A later newspaper report suggests he went to Pontywaun County School. The older boys were also employed in the coal mines.
War broke out in the summer of 1914, when John would have been 15 years old, too young to enlist. But by 1915 he had joined the Royal Navy aged just 16. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission website confirms that he was a Telegraphist in the Royal Navy and that his service number was J/42615. I can't reproduce his CWGC record, but to see his page please click here.
John's Royal Navy service record shows that he joined the navy on 7th August 1915, when he was only 16 years old. His rank was described as Boy II class, because he was under 18 years of age and he would have been trained in seamanship and other relevant skills. By April 1916 he has been promoted to Boy Telegraphist at HMS Ganges, which was actually a Naval training base. He was then transferred to HMS Victory which was another training base this time in Portsmouth. In September 1916 he was finally transferred to an actual ship - HMS Renown, which was a brand new battle cruiser, patrolling the North Sea. There he was promoted to Telegraphist on 6th November 1917 when he turned 18. In April 1918 John fell ill and was returned to Plymouth hospital, where he died on 25th May from tuberculosis.
John's death was reported in the local newspapers. Since his death came just a month after his brother William Ewart's death, the two were often reported together. The image below is taken from the Western Mail on 14th June 1918. Image © Reach PLC. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. Image reproduced with kind permission of The British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)
The image below is taken from the South Wales Gazette on 21st June 1918. Image © Reach PLC. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. Image reproduced with kind permission of The British Newspaper Archive (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)
I don't know the exact newspaper this final newspaper clipping comes from, nor the image of John at the top of the page. I found them both on Shaun McGuire's excellent Monmouthshire Warriors page for Newbridge, but it doesn't say which papers they came from. You can see more Monmouthshire Warriors for Newbridge by clicking here. This clipping also includes the death of a 3rd brother Joseph Ernest Davies who died just before the war started.
John was buried back home in Abercarn Cemetery. He is also commemorated on the Celynen Colliers Roll of Honour which you can see here and the Tabernacle Church Roll of Service which you can see here. He is also listed on Newbridge's War Memorial.
So far the only photograph I have of John is the one at the top of the page. I'm hoping to get permission to use another one, but in the meantime if anyone has a photo of John Emlyn Davies, please do get in touch. E-mail: n.rowberry@btinternet.com
In researching John's life, several sites have been invaluable, so I've included links to some of them here.
Newbridge War Memorial Website
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission:
The National Archives at Kew:
The British Newspaper Archive:
If any of the above is of further interest, please feel free to contact me at: n.rowberry@btinternet.com
Nicky Rowberry 2025
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Peasants to Puddles - My Family History. By Nicky Rowberry