Stanley Oswald John

Serjeant Stanley Oswald John – Army Service Corps, attached 11^th Infantry Brigade HQ

Early Life

Stanley Oswald John was born in 1889 in Swansea, the son of George John and Margaret Gwynn, who had married at the parish church in Penmaen. In the marriage record, George’s surname appears as Johns.

1891 Census

At the time of the 1891 Census, the John family was living at Nr. Login, Swansea. George, aged 35 and born in Penmaen, was employed as a General Labourer, while Margaret, aged 37 and born in Llanrhidian, kept house. Their children were Alfred George (11), Allen Llewellyn (9), and Edward Thomas (7) — all born in Penmaen and attending school. The younger children were Stanley Oswald (2) and Ivor Gwyn (9 months).

1901 Census

By the 1901 Census, the family had moved to Gabalfa Cottage, Sketty. George, now 45, was working as an Insurance Agent, while Margaret was 47. Their children at home were Alfred G. (21), employed as a General Hawker; Edward T. (17), working as a Coach Driver; Stanley O. (12); and Ivor G. (10).

1911 Census

The 1911 Census shows the family still at Gabalfa Cottage, Sketty. George, aged 55, was still employed as an Insurance Agent, while Margaret, now 57, remained at home. Only two sons were recorded in the household: Stanley Oswald (22), working as a Coal Exporter’s Clerk, and Ivor Gwynn (20), employed as a Jobbing Gardener.

Military Service

Stanley enlisted during the First World War and served as a Serjeant with the Army Service Corps, attached to 11^th Infantry Brigade Headquarters. His duties would have included overseeing supply, transport, and logistical support to ensure the brigade could function effectively at the front.

Death

Army Registration of Soldiers' Effects

Serjeant Stanley Oswald John was killed in action on 5^th October 1917, during the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele).

The day before, British forces had captured Broodseinde Ridge in one of the most successful operations of the campaign. On 5 October, however, heavy rain fell, turning the ground to mud and making the already devastated landscape almost impassable. The focus shifted from attack to consolidation, with units struggling to move supplies, ammunition, and reinforcements forward across broken tracks and cratered ground.

For soldiers of the Army Service Corps, this meant working under fire to keep frontline troops supplied despite the appalling weather and German shelling. Stanley, serving with Brigade HQ, would have been involved in these vital but dangerous duties when he was killed.

Burial

Stanley Oswald John
Bard Cottage Cemetery
credit - findagrave

He is buried at Bard Cottage Cemetery, Belgium, close to Ypres. This cemetery was used by field ambulances and fighting units from 1915 to 1918, and it contains the graves of many who fell in the surrounding battles of 1917.

Legacy

Serjeant Stanley Oswald John is remembered on the St. Paul’s memorial, Swansea, alongside fellow parishioners who lost their lives in the Great War. His story reflects not only the sacrifice of those on the firing line but also the essential work of the Army Service Corps, whose efforts underpinned every operation on the Western Front.

His name, preserved in both Swansea and in Belgium, endures as a reminder of the heavy cost of Passchendaele, one of the most gruelling battles of the First World War.