S/14482 Pte James Prentice Gow, 5th Bn, Cameron Highlanders

497 men died on the 10th November 1918, one day before the end of the war to end all wars. S/14482 Pte James Prentice Gow of the 5th Battalion, Cameron Highlanders was one of those 497 men. He died of wounds.

James was born in Glasgow, was living there when war was declared, and enlisted there. His number indicates that he enlisted in November 1914 and that he'd therefore survived unscathed for nearly four years by the time he was killed. Pages from James's service record survive at the National Archives in London and the following information is taken from these.

He enlisted at a Glasgow recruiting office on the 9th November 1914, giving his age as 22 years and 62 days and his occupation as clerk. His next of kin is recorded as his mother, Mrs Jemima Gow of 14 Parkhouse Lane, Duke Street, [Dennistoun] Glasgow.

James joined the Cameron Highlanders at Inverness on the same day and was posted to the 3rd Battalion the following day. He remained with the reserve battalion until the 22nd February 1915 when he was posted to the 2nd Battalion on arrival in France. He remained overseas until 10th December 1916 and then returned to England with cellulitis in his arm, remaining there until 7th May 1917. He returned to France for a second time on 8th May 1917 and joined the 7th Battalion in France the following day. Later that month he was posted to the 5th Battalion. He wasn't there long however, before he was returned to England again on 17th August that year. He returned to France for the third and final time on 21st June 1918.

James's service record states that he died of gunshot wounds to the groin and abdomen at the 11th General Hospital at Wimereux. He'd sustained the wounds on the 1st November and therefore must have been in a great deal of pain when he died. He is buried in Terlincthun British Cemetery in France.

At the going down of the sun, and in the morning, WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.

Sources:

Ancestry.co.uk (MIC)
Army Ancestry
Army Service Numbers 1881-1918
Commonwealth War Graves Commission