VIMPANY, sons of Whitecroft who fell in WW1, RIP. (General)

by Jefff , West London, Middlesex, Monday, February 25, 2013, 19:14 (4284 days ago)

While browsing a wellknown auction website I have just seen a WW1 vintage newspaper clipping reporting the death of Private Eddie Vimpany of the Gloucestershire Regiment. The photo shows a very young man in uniform and states he's from Whitecroft near Parkend, but gives no more detail instead referring to other related stories in what is presumably a Forest newspaper. His cap badge looks like the Glosters and not the South Wales Borderers (see below).

I have searched this site's PRs but cannot find a Baptism for this lad who cannot be much over 20 years judging by the photo. I cannot find any clearly related prior threads on this site, or references elsewhere in the site, perhaps as the Vimpany name is a little unusual.

I have found this PR which may be his father, I'm sure the photo is of a much younger man.

Record_ID: 4200
Entry_Number: 793
Year: 1872
Month: Jan
Day: 7
Parents_Surname: VIMPANY
Child_Forenames: Herbert Edward
Fathers_Forenames: Richard
Mothers_Forenames: Ann
Mothers_Surname:
Residence: Yorkley Court
Occupation: Farmer
Officiating_Minister: J. F. Gosling
Event: Baptism
Memoranda: Sponsors Edmund Vimpany Richard Vimpany Frances Elizabeth Vimpany
Notes:
Register_Reference: P57 IN 1/3
Page_Number: 100
Parish_Chapel: Bream
Soundex: V515

I cannot find a likely Birth for young Eddie on FreeBMD or GlosBMD.

??

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Searching the CWGC site for Eddie only gave the following Vimpany WW1 Burial despite trying surname variations. Altho Eddie could mean Edmund rather than the more obvious? Edward, the different Regiment suggests this is indeed a different man.

Remembered with Honour, Belgian Battery Corner Cemetery.

In Memory of Private Edmund Vimpany 42251, 6th Bn., South Wales Borderers who died on 8 August 1917 Age 20.
Son of Thornton Richard and Emma Vimpany, of Whitecroft, Lydney, Glos.

http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/93114/VIMPANY,%20EDMUND

Here is his Baptism:

Record_ID: 146988
Entry_Number: 504
Year: 1897
Month: Jan
Day: 10
Parents_Surname: VIMPANY
Child_Forenames: Isaac Edmund Parsons
Fathers_Forenames: Thornton Richard
Mothers_Forenames: Emma Gemima
Mothers_Surname:
Residence: Pillowell
Occupation: Grocer
Officiating_Minister: J Bond Vicar
Event: Baptism
Memoranda:
Notes:
Register_Reference: P245 IN 1/12
Page_Number: 63
Parish_Chapel: Parkend
Soundex: V515

This is the nearest possible record I can find from FreeBMD & GlosBMD.

Surname Given Name District Volume Page Transcribers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Births Dec 1901
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vimpany Ernest Edmund Abergavenny 11a 37 eilie
VIMPANY Ernest Edmund Abergavenny 11a 37 jimbo

Abergavenny is certainly the correct area for the Borderers, as is the Forest too of course, although why is his Army age younger than his real age ?

Perhaps this is indeed "our" Eddie, but if so why the wrong cap badge ?. Perhaps(as is possible) he changed Regiment at some point during the War, his Medal Card would show this but I don't have access to that information.

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I hope someone else can please help honour these brave sons of Whitecroft, thankyou.

R.I.P.

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UPDATE:

Searching the National Archives site gives only one E.Vimpany record, this Medal Card summary suggests the above records do belong to one man, the Regiments and Numbers all match, so altho he'd originally enlisted with the Glosters by the time of his death he was in the Borderers:

Reference:WO 372/20/154240
Description: Medal card of Vimpany, Edmund
Corps Regiment No Rank
Gloucestershire Regiment 26851 Private
South Wales Borderers 42251 Private
Date: 1914-1920

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/SearchUI/Details?uri=D6490209

I cannot read the actual Card, doing so should confirm whether & when this Soldier was Killed In Action.