4613/202049: Pte John Wilfred Hipkiss (1/7th,
2/7th, 2/8th & 2nd Battalions) The
Worcestershire Regiment.
At present, little is known about John Wilfred Hipkiss. His
MIC showing no specific theatre of war, the fact he was issued 2 service
numbers during his time with the Worcester’s (4613 & 202049) and that he was entitled to the BWM and
Victory medal pair (This proves his entry into the war early into 1916) The
roll of the BWM and Victory pair reveals he served in a number of battalions;
1/7th, 2/7th, 2/8th and
finally the 2nd battalion.
What the MIC does not state (and this is not unusual) is
that John was awarded the Military Medal. He is mentioned in the London Gazette
of the 14th May 1919, so nearly five months after the end of the
Great War. His Military Medal card only states that the award was won with the
2nd Battalion for actions in France. It is with his later service
number (202049) that John won the MM.
There are sadly no general records that now exist for John’s
service (i.e. service papers online) but there is a slight possibility that he
may be mentioned within the Worcester Regiment archives or battalion war
diaries – This is something not yet done. It is likely that John was awarded
the MM for either late actions in 1918 (During the last stages of the German
offensive ‘Operation Michael’) or as a general award for good continuous
service, above and beyond, during his time with the Worcester’s.
His London Gazette entry states him as being from
‘Netherton’, this is a small (at that time) industrial village, nestling some 2
miles out of Dudley in the West Midlands.
Early research shows him being from a Canal workers family
(This is a common trade for the area at that time; Netherton being attached to
the large network of canals that helped found the Midlands as a major
industrial centre)
The medals were court mounted, as the original ribbons were
long gone, sadly the victory is an erased replacement. The location of this is
unknown – Has anyone seen it?
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