WISEMAN, Oliver
No. 17870, Lance Corporal, Oliver James WISEMAN
Aged 26
5th Battalion, Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry
Died of his Wounds on Thursday 30th May, 1918
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Born in Moulton in Q4-1891 [Newmarket 3b:517] , the 6th son of George and Mary Ann WISEMAN (nee BAILEY) of Gazeley Road, Moulton. His elder brothers were:
Lias, born Tuddenham 1869, John born Higham 1871,Herbert born Higham 1873, William born Moulton 1882 and Ben born Moulton 1888, and his sisters were Alice
born Tuddenham 1879 and Kate born Moulton 1884. 1901 census...His mother had died in 1896, and Oliver and his widowed father were with his sister Susannah and her husband George BATES and at Brick Kiln Stud, Exning. Also there were brother Ben and domestic servant Lily BOND [19]. 1911 census...His father [64] had re married to Lily BOND [27] and they were at 2 Belgrade Villas, Lacey's Lane, Exning with Oliver [19] a house painter and a new half brother for Oliver, Reginald WISEMAN [4] born Exning. Oliver married Minnie Hilda EDWARDS of 2 Fern Villas, Exning Road, Newmarket on 5th January 1918 at St Martins Church, Exning. His son was Jack Oliver WISEMAN. |
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He enlisted early in the war according to the Exning Roll of Honour. The Newmarket Journal of 28th August 1915 reported that he was wounded. That wound must have mended.
"Our Exning Heroes" states he was born in Exning, but all records show Moulton. Oliver enlisted at Warley in Essex. It seems very likely he was wounded in the early days of the "Kaiserschlacht", the Spring Offensive, when on March 21st 1918, the Germans began their last ditch attempt at winning the war. The 5th Oxon and Bucks were certainly involved then Oliver's entry in"Our Exning Heroes" reads as follows: Wiseman, O.J. Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry Lance-Corporal Oliver James Wiseman was born and brought up in Exning, and received his education at the Council School. He was a painter by trade, and was apprenticed to Mr. Peek at Newmarket. He was also clever at carving, and used to spend a good deal of his spare time in this interesting pursuit. On January 5th, 1918, he was married in Exning Church, to Minnie Hilda Edwards, an old schoolmate of his, and he leaves one little child. A few days after his marriage he left for France, and before many weeks had passed was very severely wounded in the abdomen. He was brought home to England, and from the first little hope was entertained of his ultimate recovery, and, after two months' suffering, he died in King George's Hospital, London at the age of twenty-seven. He was buried at Brookwood Cemetery, Woking. |
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