Current Information:

Born-Stratford

Loos British Cemetery, France

13th Essex were formed in West Ham and were known as the ‘Hammers’. They arrived in France in November, 1915 as part of 100 Brigade, 33rd Division but in December of that year they transferred to 6 Brigade of 2nd Division. On 5th March, 1916 they moved into the support line facing Lens. The winter had been a particularly cold and wet one on the Western Front and that night a party of 8 men slept in a nearby cellar which had a coke brazier in it. The fumes from this asphyxiated the men as they slept and the next morning they were all discovered dead, except for the man nearest to the door and he died the following day. Samuel Mayo was not one of those who died in the cellar but he was killed in action later in the day, probably as a result of shell fire.