George Henry Stokes

Story:
George Henry Stokes was born at East Orchard, Shaftesbury, Dorset, on 8th January 1889, the son of William Stokes and Emily Stokes (née Andrews).  George spent all his early life in and around nearby Back Lane, West Orchard.   He married Florence Dora Dimond in Yeovil, Somerset, on 11th July 1910. There appear to be no children of the marriage.  George enlisted on 12th December 1915 but was not mobilized until 4th January 1917 when he joined the 3rd Battalion of the Coldstream Guards as a Guardsman (Service No. 21354).  He served in France & Flanders from 30 Dec 1917 and, whilst there, was reported missing on 13th April 1918.  It was not until 27th December 1918 that it was reported he had been captured and become a prisoner of war.  He was discharged on 7th October 1919 and awarded the Victory and British War medals.   The 1921 Census shows him living at 21 Glanville Road, Yeovil, working as a Leather Dresser for a local glove manufacturer but by the 1939 Register he was living at The Post Office, High Street, Stoke-under-Hays, Yeovil, Somerset and now employed as a Sub-Postmaster.  He died in the Summerland Hospital, Yeovil, on 16th August 1962.