George was born in Woodham Ferrers about 1887 and in 1891 was living with his father William, an agricultural labourer and mother Ann in The Street next door to The Eagle public house. William died in 1897 and was buried in St Mary’s Churchyard 23 December of that year.
The 1901 census gives the address as The Village and by that time George is a journeyman baker aged fourteen still living with his widowed mother.
George married Clara Naomi Beckwith at St John the Baptist Church, Danbury on 14 August 1909 and they subsequently had their first child Francis George on 25 November 1909 who was baptised at St Mary’s on 9 March 1910. The 1911 census gives their address still as The Street next door to Eagle House, the pub having closed in 1898. George’s mother was then living with her daughter and family in Maldon. George was working as a baker’s assistant. They subsequently had Charles Henry who was born 22 November 1911 and baptised at St Mary’s 28 January 1912 and Edna May who was baptised at St Mary’s on 23 February 1913.
By 1916 the family had moved to Ramsden Heath where Geoffrey William was born on 23 December 1913 and baptised at St Mary the Virgin, Ramsden Bellhouse on 8 July 1918.
Conscription was introduced in Britain in January 1916 for single men aged between 18 and 41 and this was extended to married men in May of that year. At some stage George enlisted at Chelmsford when he gave his address as Ramsden Heath, and was posted to the 1st Battalion The Essex Regiment.
George was killed in action on 23rd August 1918 less than three months before the war ended. The 1st Battalion Essex Regiment had been involved in several engagements during 1917 and , following the German Army’s spring offensive which started on 21st March 1918, they were involved in the Battle of Ancre on The Somme on 5th April. On 23rd August the battalion was ordered to attack the German lines near the village of Achiet le Grand and take the strategic Arras to Amiens railway during which engagement they came under heavy machine gun fire and George was killed in action. He was buried at Adanac (Canada spelt backwards) Military Cemetery, Miraumont on The Somme along with several other men of the 1st Battalion.
A record of the medals he was awarded has not been found but he would have been entitled to the British War and The Victory Medals.
Sadly Clara did not long survive him dying of Spanish Flu and pneumonia on 24th October that year the day after their six year old daughter Edna May and just two months after George was killed. This left their three other children orphaned. The 1921 census shows that the two boys Francis and Charles were living with their maternal grandparents at Hyde Farm, Danbury and the youngest Geoffrey living with his mother’s sister and her husband Charles Linnett, the informant for the deaths of Clara and Edna.
Woodham Ferrers War Memorial also has a W Bennett serving but surviving and this is likely to be George’s older brother William.