Shop in Whitbread Avenue [Z1306/10/71]
Tuesday 25th January 1916: yesterday we heard of the award of a
DCM to Company Quarter Master Sergeant Bell of Luton. Today we complement that
with the award of a Military Cross to an officer from Bedford – Lieutenant P
Whittemore of the 2nd Battalion. It was gained by very gallant conduct at the
second battle of Ypres. He and others in the trench had been gassed, but when
the Germans reached the trench he and a few others had partially recovered, and
he led a very gallant defence, beating off the attack and killing a large
number if the enemy.
Lieutenant
Whittemore is the second son of Mrs E Whittemore of 31 Althorpe-street,
Bedford, and is a Bedfordshire boy, having been born at Cotton End. He joined
the Bedfords about twenty years ago and was in South Africa at the time of the
last war. He has served in various other parts of the King’s Domains and at the
beginning of the War was Regimental Sergeant Major of his Battalion in South
Africa. His first spell in Flanders was for three weeks about Christmas 1914
during which time he was gazetted as a Second Lieutenant in his own Battalion,
a signal honour. He came back to England wounded in the chest and it was some
months before he left again for the Continent. After another month in action he
was gassed at Hill 60 and has now been in France a few months for his third
spell. Lieutenant Whittemore’s wife and family reside in Whitbread-avenue and
he has two brothers serving.
