Arthur Mervin Belbin

Story:
Arthur Mervin Belbin was born in Shaftesbury, Dorset, on 29th April 1897, the son of John Belbin and Clementine Amelia Belbin (née Maidment).   He lived his early life with the family at 63 High Street, Shaftesbury.  He enlisted originally with the Territorial Force of the Dorsetshire Regiment as a Private on 14th November 1915 (Service No. 3679).  He was promptly discharged a day later on 15th November 1915 on the grounds he was unlikely to make an efficient soldier and there was some doubt about his age.  He tried again and re-enlisted with the Royal Flying Corps on 25th April 1916 (Royal Air Force from 1st April 1918) (Service No. 26798).  He rose to the rank of Corporal Mechanic with 204 Squadron.  It is not known where be served but he was discharged on 28th March 1919.  He qualified for the Victory and British War medals but no record can be found. By the 1921 Census he was living with his parents at the family home in Shaftesbury working as a Carpenter.  He married Elsie Maud Wingfield in Blandford, Dorset, in 1922 and they had three children.   By the 1939 Register he was living at 18 Woodside Road, Guildford, Surrey, and was described as a Registered Master Builder.  It is not known why his marriage ended but he re-married, to Rosa Guti, in Guildford, Surrey in 1948.  He died in St. Luke's Hospital, Guildford, Surrey, on 12th June 1964 and his funeral was held at the United Reform Church, Shaftesbury.  His brothers, Frederick Percy Walter Belbin and Harold John Belbin, also served in the conflict.