PAINTER, Thomas

Thomas Painter came from Blackheath and volunteered for the Worcesters. He was sent to the 1st Battalion which by 1916 had been deeply involved in the Battle of the Somme from the first day. In 1917 it took part in the advance to the Hindenburg Line in the Spring and again in the Third Battle of Ypres. It was in action on the difficult first day and on the 16th August at Westhoek. Two months were then spent in a quieter sector at Ploegsteert Wood but they returned to the front line at the shattered village of Passchendaele on the 19-20th November. They reached the trenches amid heavy shelling and four men were killed in the perilous journey. One of these was Private Thomas Painter who is commemorated on the Tyne Cot, Blackheath and Halesowen Memorials.