George Lush Died 24th November 1916
George was born in March 1891, the son of Herbert and Mary (nee Jacobs). He was born in Wokingham and lived there throughout his childhood on the Easthampstead Road. He was the second of their 4 children. Herbert was a coach builder. At the age of 20 in 1911 George was working as a clerk to a builder. George’s father Herbert lived in ‘Homelea’ on the Easthampstead Road; he was a wheelwright and a coachbuilder (1911 Census). The Lush Brothers of Wokingham made coaches for King Edward the seventh, Prince Christian of Schleswig Holstein and the Empress of France.
George joined up in Wokingham and rose to the rank of Sergeant in the 1/4th Royal Berkshire Regiment. We do not know if he had joined up before the war as this was a regular battalion. He died on 24th November 1916, presumably during the later stages of the battle of the Somme and his name is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial to the missing. He was 25 years old.
An obituary appeared in the Reading Mercury on 9th December 1916. A letter had been written to his parents from an officer in the regiment and this is quoted in the newspaper:
“He was killed as a result of a shell landing in the trench which was blown up and when extricated, life was extinguished. Your son was a most capable NCO and will be greatly missed by his comrades. He was popular with all. We all send you our deepest sympathy”. The newspaper continues: ‘Before the war Sergeant Lush was engaged in the County Council offices at Worcester and was a keen cricketer. The parents of 3 out of 6 adjoining houses on the Easthampstead Road have now lost a son in the service of their country during the present war (C Rideout, A Leader and G Lush)’.
This reminds us once again how much the war affected our community.
Name: LUSH, GEORGE
Rank: Sergeant
Regiment/Service: Royal Berkshire Regiment Unit Text: 1st/4th Battalion.
Age: 25
Date of Death: 24/11/1916
Service No: 2529
Additional information: Son of Herbert and Mary Jane Lush, of “Homelea”, Easthampstead Rd., Wokingham, Berks.
Grave/Memorial Reference: Pier and Face 11 D. Memorial: THIEPVAL MEMORIAL
“Homelea”, Easthampstead Rd., Wokingham, Berks.
The Lush family were also involved in the Victoria Arms on Star Lane (now known as the Easthampstead Road). A website in 2012 tells us: ‘The original house was one of a pair of late 18th century brick tenements in Easthampstead Road, then known as Star Lane. In 1847 the beer house was bought by Hewetts Brewery. In 1851 Henry Baldwin bought the adjacent property and expanded his main business, building coaches, not merely their wheels. The business flourished, but in 1861 it was sold to George Lush. George Lush did so well that within a few years he was supplying coaches to the Royal Family. The pub and the coach-building firm were run by the same family until 1907. The last licensee and coachbuilder was Frank Lush’. Frank was George’s uncle and brother to Herbert.