Arthur George Waller (born Grimwood)

Private - Service No. 7162 - 2nd Battalion Norfolk Regiment

Private - Service No. 45840 - Royal Defence Corps

Driver - Service No. T/41674 - Royal Army Service Corps

Arthur George Waller was actually born Arthur George Grimwood, the illegitimate son of Jane Elizabeth Grimwood, on 14th April 1887 in Stoke Holy Cross, Norfolk where she was living with her parents. In 1891 Jane married Robert Waller from East Carleton and they settled in Swardeston Lane, Lower East Carleton where they had four children, Herbert (1895), Ellen (1897), Margaret (1899) and Frederick (1901) with a fifth, Edward, coming along in late 1903, after the family had relocated to Drayton, Norfolk. From the time that Robert and Jane married it appears that Arthur Grimwood became known as Arthur Waller. Robert Waller died, in Norwich, in mid 1905 leaving Jane with his five children, all under the age of 11 and Arthur already having left home. Early in 1908 Jane married once more, this time to a William Clarke, in Norwich and they settled in Nicholas Street (near St Stephen's Square) but not before they had one more son, Bertie Clarke, born some six months earlier. Jane died in the 1930s, in Norwich.

About the time his stepfather, Robert, died, Arthur Waller joined the army, enlisting in the Norfolk Regiment. Unfortunately none of his service records survive but it is possible to piece together some of his time in the army from what documentation still exists. We do know that he was serving in India with the 2nd Battalion of the Norfolk Regiment at the time of the 1911 census, the regimental history suggesting they were station somewhere near Bombay. At what stage before WW1, if at all, Arthur completed his service and joined the reserves is not known but we do know that he was on active war service from 16th August 1914, within days of the outbreak of the war. Where he served is not known but if he was still with the 2nd Battalion at the outbreak of war he would have seen service in Mesopotamia (Iraq). He did receive the 1914 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal and, at some stage during the war, transferred to the Royal Defence Corps. On 27th July 1918 he transferred to the Royal Army Service Corps. These transfers out of the Norfolk Regiment might suggest an injury of some kind rendering him no longer fit for active serving abroad but, in the absence of any records, this is mere speculation.

We do know that, at the least, Arthur was home on leave towards the end of 1915 as he married Alice Ellen Calver in Norwich. Alice was the second of six children of Fred Edgar Calver and his wife Alice (Palmer), both of Norwich. Arthur died on 30th July 1964 in the Norfolk & Norwich Hospital while still living in Lower East Carleton where he had lived since leaving the army.

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