1914-12-01sg

It was a scene that would sadly become all too familiar in Hamilton, as it would in many parts of the world.

On November 30, 1914, Mrs. Charlotte Jowett, who resided at 177 Macnab street north, received word of the death of her son.

Her son was drummer in the 1^st battalion of the Grenadier Guards, and was serving at the front when he met his death. He had been a member of the Grenadier Guards for some years before the war, and had not joined his mother, brother and three sisters who had emigrated to Canada, settling in Hamilton.

As noted in the Hamilton Spectator, Mrs. Jowett received the notification through the war office :

“Accompanying the notification was an autograph letter from Lord Kitchener, which read as follows : ‘The King commands me to assure you of the sincere sympathy of his majesty and the Queen in your sorrow.’

“Mrs. Jowett, who has been a resident of this city for some time, will receive the heartfelt sympathy of the community in her loss.”¹

¹ “Her Son Dead : Mrs. Jowett Notified Her Boy Was Killed in Action”

Hamilton Spectator.  December 1, 1914.

Other than the notification, and the accompanying message from Lord Kitchener, Mrs. Jowett received no information as to when, where and how her son was killed.