SPRATTON LOCAL HISTORY SOCIETY

Ernest Pateman was born in Brixworth on 23 March 1895, the son of Samuel Pateman, a groom, and his wife Charlotte. When Ernest left school he worked for a blacksmith and received a good reference from his Brixworth employer when he joined the army in 1914.

He joined the Royal Army Service Corps and was allocated to the Horse Transport section because of his skills as a blacksmith. After a brief period of training he worked at various stations as a shoeing smith, until he was discharged as medically unfit for further service in February 1916.

Ernest married Violet Manning from Spratton in 1916 and the couple lived in Spratton for the rest of their lives. Violet died in 1953 aged 57 and Ernest died in September 1969 aged 74. They are buried together in the new parish cemetery in Spratton.