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Pte. James Jepson MM.
British Army 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment
from:Darwen, Lancashire
Private James Jepson was my grandfather. He was born in Darwen, Lancashire on 1st December 1886 and joined the 2nd Essex Regiment in 1904 after both his parents had died and shortly after his elder brother William had joined the 1st Essex Regiment. He never spoke of his military service but I have memories of him mentioning being at Dover Castle and on another occasion asking my father to remove a small piece of shrapnel from his upper lip as the shrapnel was coming out through the skin and snagging his razor while shaving. He was awarded the Military Medal but never mentioned it. His records in the National Archive were lost during the Second World War and there is no mention in regimental records. Pte Jepson was promoted to sergeant then reverted to the rank of private but regimental records give no further details. He was awarded three good conduct stripes and officially injured twice.
On leaving the regiment after the war he was employed as a miner near Leigh in Lancashire before returning to Darwen in 1925 where he worked as a postman until retiring. With special thanks to Ian Hook, curator for the Essex Regimental Museum in Chelmsford, for providing information on my grandfather's regimental service.
