Thomas Brown, M.M. – Royal Engineers, 210th Field Company

Lance Corporal Thomas Brown, M.M. – Royal Engineers, 210^th Field Company

Birth and Family Background

Thomas Brown was born in 1880 in Mochrum, Wigtownshire, Scotland, the son of Thomas Brown and Sarah Lightbody, who were married in 1872 in Govan, Lanarkshire.

The 1881 Census records the family living at Monreith Cottage, Mochrum. Thomas’s father, Thomas, aged 36, worked as a Stone Mason, while his mother Sarah, aged 35, was at home caring for their children, Matilda (8) and Thomas (1).

By the 1891 Census, the family had moved to Bridge Cottage, Mochrum. Thomas’s father, now 46, continued working as a Stone Mason, and his mother Sarah, aged 45, was managing the household. The children present were Thomas (11) and Hannah (8), both attending school. Also living with them was Sarah’s father, William Lightbody, a 68-year-old retired shoemaker.

Swansea Prison Registers

The next surviving record for Thomas appears in the Swansea Prison Registers. On 13 November 1908, 29-year-old Thomas was convicted at Neath Court for Lodging Out and sentenced to 10 days’ hard labour at Swansea Prison. His occupation is recorded as Joiner.

1911 Census

By the 1911 Census, Thomas was boarding at 9 William Street, Mumbles, in the home of Walter Willmet. He was 30 years old and employed as a Carpenter. Later that year, he married Mary Elizabeth Latimer of 10 Westbourne Place, Mumbles.

Military Service

Attestation Records

Thomas enlisted in April 1915, joining the Royal Engineers, 210^th Field Company as a Private. He was promoted to Lance Corporal in 1917, and on 30^th October 1917, he was awarded the Military Medal for bravery. Although his exact citation does not survive, the date of the award places his action during the later stages of the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele), when Royal Engineers were carrying out essential work under extreme danger. The 210^th Field Company was heavily engaged in maintaining and repairing trenches, communication lines, and duckboard tracks amid relentless shellfire, deep mud, and severe weather. Acts of bravery that typically earned the Military Medal included repairing vital positions under fire, ensuring the passage of troops and supplies, rescuing the wounded, or working in exposed areas to maintain operational routes. Thomas’s award was almost certainly for courageous conduct during one of these hazardous engineering operations in support of front-line troops.

Death and Burial

Thomas Brown, M.M.
St Omer Souvenir Cemetery, Longuenesse
credit - findagrave

Lance Corporal Thomas Brown, M.M., died on 28^th June 1918 at the 2nd Australian Casualty Clearing Station, having suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen. At this time, the 210^th Field Company, Royal Engineers, was operating in the region around St. Omer, an important supply and medical centre used by the British Army during the aftermath of the German Spring Offensive. Field companies were heavily engaged in repairing damaged roads, bridges, railways, and communication lines; constructing and reinforcing defensive positions; and supporting the movement of troops as the British prepared for renewed operations later in 1918. Although St. Omer lay behind the front lines, it was still vulnerable to enemy shelling, snipers, and aerial attack, and casualties among Royal Engineers were common in both forward and rear areas. Thomas’s wound suggests he had been carrying out engineering duties in an exposed location when he was hit. He was evacuated to the Casualty Clearing Station but died of his injuries on 28^th June 1918.

He was buried at St Omer Souvenir Cemetery, Longuenesse.