THE granddaughter of a Marshchapel soldier – who worked as a postman after having his arm blown off during the First World War – believes it is "important" the stories of those who fought are not forgotten.
Elaine Greenwood, 58, of Sea Dyke Way, still has photographs of her grandfather William Massingberg Osbourne taken during his time in the forces.
They, together with photographs of his life after the war, which he shared with his wife Gladys Emily Burgess and their four children Ruby, Cyril, Desmond and Joan – who later gave birth to Elaine – are among her most treasured possessions.
However, she was only nine or 10 years old when William died and he never shared with her what it meant to serve in the First World War, as he was often private about his involvement. She still has an original tag that has his surname and a service number on it, but feels that perhaps many of his memories were too horrific for him to recall.
She said: "He did have a garden shed that had odd bits and pieces from the war, including a book called The Western Front: Then And Now and he did say that he served in a number of places featured in the book."
The dinner lady added: "The Burgess side of my family were really big on farming around the area and between my grandparents they must have been quite well-off, because the 1901 census shows that they had servants.
"My grandmother's family also ran the village post office and that's where my mum used to work. She kept the photos of my granddad in the family, including ones that show he became a postman after the war, despite having his left arm blown off.
"I think, looking back, the fact that he lost his arm and just got on with it by putting it in a sling is incredible – especially when you consider that nowadays he would have probably been given a prosthetic limb.
"I do recall a rather funny story when he was slightly merry and rode his bicycle into a ditch, but he was well known in the area after the war.
"I think it's important that we remember those who fought in the war. We have no idea what they went through but many gave their lives for the country. My grandfather may have lost friends during the war and I know that later into his life he would get flashbacks of the conflict when it would all come flooding back to him. But what he and many others did during the war was something we should all be grateful for."
ON THE WEB: For more memories, visit www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/firstworldwar
