THE GRAVE OF BOY 1ST CLASS A.A.KING d. 1901

Written by Godfrey Dykes

© RN Communications Branch Museum/Library

As a pre-requisite for reading this page you should first read Shotley Gate Burial Ground

  In referring to the link above, you will have already read about the extremely poor condition of this boys grave headstone, which has weathered the storms of the last 108 years and paid the price for doing so. Unlike all the other grave headstones in this cemetery which were made for the navy, paid for by the navy and erected by the navy, this one was erected and paid for by his grieving parents. It marks the start of the burial site for indeed he was the first boy to buried here after the arrival of Ganges, redeployed to Shotley from the West Country. Because of this historic fact, it is a very important grave and especially so for all who served in that ship/establishment from 1900 until 1976.

  On finding this grave, I wanted to do something to restore it to how it might have looked when the headstone was first placed in 1901. To say the very least, its present state would be covered by those much used three letters of BER, meaning beyond economical repair. Above all else a new head stone would have to be a facsimile of the old both in dimensions and in the words used by the original stonemason, or at least, what remains legible, although instead of using sandstone which is rapidly flaking away, a more durable material would be used either marble or polished granite.

  I set about fulfilling my aspiration by first seeking a cost, and I approached an undertaking company in my home town of Bury St Edmunds. The cost of manufacture and engraving plus transportation and erection was, as expected, quite high but within reach of my ballpark budget figure, so the next step was to seek the necessary permission.

  My first approach was to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission [CWGC]. They [Mrs Julie Somay] very kindly pointed out that despite the grave being in a CWGC cemetery and maintained as such, the Commission only dealt with periods of the two world wars which they define as 4th August 1914 to 31st August 1921 and 3rd September 1939 to 31st December 1947 - meaning that they are not dealing with any of the casualties of later wars and in particular those of Iraq and Afghanistan. They have no jurisdiction over A.A. KING's grave and therefore they regretted that they could neither comment upon or assist with any suggestion about his grave. However, they were kind enough to refer me to the Services Personnel Veterans Agency at RAF Innsworth in Gloucester where I communicated with one of their executives, a Miss Jeanette Gavin.

  Miss Gavin stated that their department was responsible for deaths occurring from 1948 onwards [and thus those of later than WW2 wars]. From the days of the original Imperial War Graves Commission [which became the CWGC] i.e., 4th August 1914 to this very day, there has been continuity of caring for the dead, but before 1914 there was no such organisation.

  Moreover, she wasn't sure who dealt with the deaths in 1901 or prior to 1914. This was academic in this case for the following reason. Since it was the parents of A.A. KING who placed the original headstone above their sons grave, the matter is private and personal and totally outside the remit of any organisation notwithstanding its mandate or dates covered. I would need to seek-out the family of A.A. KING and thereafter [with their approval] make an application to the Bishop for permission to enter the churchyard to replace the stone which would almost certainly require a rededication blessing.

  Although the engraving on the headstone tells me that the boy came from Felixstowe the name KING is just about as ubiquitous as is the name SMITH. It took me three whole days [each of eight hours] to conduct all kinds and types of searches and I will add that I am au fait with genealogy searches.

  It is an almost impossible task to find this family after over 100 years. The GRO and the BDM Indexes helped of course and I was able to get off to a good start with his birth certificate details [Born and registered in the HOE District which is in Norfolk in October 1883, certificate number 2a 637] and his death certificate details [registered in the Ipswich district of SAMFORD in March 1901 when aged 17, certificate number 4a 570]. However, his first mentioning would have been in the 1891 census and this is really when all the search problems started. By the time of this census Aaron would have been eight years old and there is no accurate mention of him or his family, at least that is, in the England census. It is possible that Aaron was an only child and that the family either died out or moved away from the East Anglia areas. Certainly there are far too many King's in the area to ask questions of them all.

  So, sadly, it looks as though the grave stone will turn to dust and be lost for all posterity. Nothing can be done without his family's approval and acquiescence, and if there is no longer a family in being or there is but it is not traceable, time and the inevitable consequences of the weather will reduce the headstone in the very near future back to being a slab of sandstone [i.e., with no inscription] and eventually, though after a much longer period, to grit and rubble

  There I must leave the story which far from being forgotten , will be put on the back burner of my heart and my mind.

RIP Aaron and God Bless.

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Update:

By Ken Sutton, Curator/Webmaster:

  On the 18th November 2022 I received an email from Faye Bedford, who lives in Australia. Faye has been undertaking some family tree research and has found that A.A. King is a relation of hers. The original story was written by Godfrey (Jeff) Dykes circa 2009 and although Jeff has now retired from his excellent research into all things Royal Navy I will pass on this email to him. The following is the text of her email:

   Quote I saw a notice posted on a Facebook site 'GEORGE family from Norfolk' that I am an admin for, looking for info on A.A. KING. I have recently been researching the name KING as they are related to my GEORGE family from Norfolk. I came across A.A. KING while searching on line and wondered if he fitted into my extensive family tree. He does though distantly; 4th cousin x 2 removed I have done some work on Aaron's line and can probably fill in a few of the blanks you have on him. Aaron's father is George William KING born 1848 in Winterton who served in the Royal Navy. George lost two brothers at sea, Benjamim KING in a gale in 1860 and another, Aaron KING in 1875. George probably felt very strongly about ensuring his own son Aaron had a proper headstone after losing two of his own serving brothers. The KING family were/are strongly attached to the sea. Many generations of them were beachmen or served in the Merchant or Royal Navy. As far as finding closer relatives to Aaron, our group could put the word out on various Facebook sites. I am sure someone will come forward. I have found people don't even know they are related to someone unless they have created a family tree of their own or are given some names of close ancestors. Anyway, I hope this info helps. I am also keen to contribute to Aaron's headstone. I am sure, others will be too once they know how they are connected. Unquote

  Furthermore Faye also sent me copies of various records of Aaron's family which I list here:

A transcript of Aaron Alfred's records does not show the year Aaron was born but does show that he was baptised on the 16 Dec 1883. His residence at this time was Isle of Grain, Kent. However, in the 1891 census Aaron is listed as being aged 7 and being born in 1884 which doesn't fit in with his baptism date

Aaron's father was George William King born 1848 in Winterton, Norfolk and his mother was Matilda King born 1851 also in Winterton, Norfolk.

The 1881 census shows Aaron's father George living in the Coastguard Station, 6 Southchurch, Rochford, Essex. At that time his family consisted of his wife Matilda, and three children; Benjamin George, Ellen Elizabeth and James Henry.

The 1891 census shows Aaron living with his father age 43 and mother age 40, in the Coast Guard Buildings, Trinity Road, Minster in Sheppey, Sheppey, Kent, England and at that time was 1 of 7 chidren. His siblings were Bengamin George age 14 born in Ireland, Ellen Elizabeth age 12 born in Ireland, James Henry age 10 born in Shoeburyness Essex, Lydia M age 5 born in Queenborough Kent, John R age 3 born in Queenborough Kent, and Mabel A age 0 born in Sheerness, Kent. Aaron is listed as being aged 7 and born in 1884.

Faye also sent information regarding Aaron's father:

George William King

  George's parents were Benjamin King 1807 to 1881 and Lydia George Flaxman 1814 to 1850.

  George served in the Royal Navy and the Coast Guard and records (ADM 139/694/29385) list him with a Service Number of 29385A and show that his First Service Date was the 1st January 1873 and that his First Ship Served On was the Lord Warden. His Last Service Date was the 31st January 1884 and the Last Ship Served On was the Colemouth with a Service Number of 50554.

  The 1901 census, taken 31st March, the same month that Aaron passed away shows George, age 53 living in Colneis, Woodbridge, Felixstowe, Suffolk.

  The following are the original documents kindly sent to me by Faye:(click on an image to enlarge it).

Transcript of Aaron's records	1891 Census	1881 Census	1881 Census
Admiralty records	Note: Middle name wrongly transcribed. Admiralty records.	Admiralty records	George's parents

Very many thanks to Faye Bedford for providing the plethora of information on Aaron Alfred King and his family