Private Arthur Herbert Sharman
Northamptonshire Regiment 83818
Arthur Sharman was born in 1875 in Apethorpe and married Julia Fitzjohn on 28th August 1899, at St Mary’s Parish Church, Woodnewton. They moved into the cottage in the yard behind Chapel House (now Cairn Cottage), and we know by the 1911 census they had five children.
When the war started in 1914, it had become obvious that it was not possible to continue fighting by relying on voluntary recruits, so the Government issued a poster “Your Country Needs You”, to try and attract more men. By December 1915, Arthur had enlisted at Apethorpe to join the Northamptonshire Regiment. It was not until March 1917, that he was called up and joined the 929 AEA Unit. He spent the first 13 days at the Barracks.
Very little is known about Arthur’s Military life, but paperwork showed that he embarked at Folkestone on 25th March 1917, and disembarked later that day at Boulogne, so we know that he did a tour of duty in France. He was discharged on 15th March 1919, from this Regiment.
He returned to Woodnewton and took part in family and village life. He died in 1934, but the cottage stayed in the hands of the Sharman family until the last member died in 1976.
2019