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George Ferguson WWI

@georgeferguson.bsky.social

Day-by-day account of WWI from the diaries of George Ferguson, Liverpool Scottish. Fuller accounts at https://georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 1h ago

William Campbell: 'An almost unconditional peace would be accepted by the boys here. The tragedy of it, boys losing brothers and pals in a way unrealisable by those who are in England. The enemy must be in the same state.' georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/27/2...

27 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire, machine gun fire and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 29 August. CommentaryIn France, the …

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · yesterday

William E. Rae: ' I am very lucky to lose only an eye; that's nothing when you think of the escapes one has had. I have three delightful little holes in the arm, but these are only minor affairs.' georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/26/2...

26 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire, machine gun and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 29 August. CommentaryMore accounts of tho…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 2d ago

'Operated on my leg (Right).' While in hospital, George was circumcised. This operation was frequently performed on soldiers, both as a hygiene measure and as a preventative strategy against sexually transmitted diseases. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/25/2...

25 August 1916

Operated on my leg (Right). Commentary When he was injured on 9 August, George had recorded a graze to his knee, a machine gun catching his left leg, and a clean slit in his right calf caused by a …

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3d ago

William Campbell of the Liverpool Scottish wrote 'On night manoeuvres. Digging trenches. One never knows what will happen, who will be part of the price in the next attack.' The person who paid the price on this day was Thomas Harrocks. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/24/2...

24 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire, machine gun and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 25 August. William Campbell of the Liverp…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 4d ago

"The Liverpool Scottish have been in some of the thickest fighting and it is not surprising that they have suffered. Many of the lads who were billeted in Blackpool last winter are wounded, others are missing, and a few have lost their lives." georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/23/2...

23 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire , machine gun and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 25 August. The impressions given in the …

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 5d ago

FINCHETT – August 9, killed in action, Private J. H. Finchett, Liverpool Scottish. (My brave hero, God alone knows how much I miss him.) – By his loving Wife and Child, 17 Hawthorne-grove, Litherland. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/22/2...

22 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 25 August. More accounts of deaths and injuries were t…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · last wk.

Visiting the wounded at Frensham Hill Hospital. Often, there was no conveyance in which to make the journey of four miles to the hospital. A woman who arrived by the last train had to walk four miles with a baby in her arms. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/20/2...

20 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire and a bayonet and did not write in his diary again until 21 August. He doesn’t mention having any visitor…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · last wk.

John William Meehan played football for Darwen FC, signed for Brentford in 1913, then played for Stalybridge Celtic FC before enlisting in the Liverpool Scottish. He was wounded on 9 Aug and died of his wounds on this day in 1916. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/19/1...

19 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 21 August. Staff Nurse Kate Rosina Sturt of the Queen …

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · last wk.

Rex Kingsley was wounded and taken prisoner during the attack at Guillemont. He was treated in the Prisoners’ Hospital, St Quentin by nuns who had no medical facilities. The hospital consequently had high mortality and he died a few days later. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/18/1...

17 August 1916

Still unable to walk or stand. George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire, machine gun fire, and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 21 A…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · last wk.

Men were smitten as they clambered up, and rolled down in their death agonies, but still their living comrades kept pressing on urging each other forward by loud cries for vengeance on the slayers of ‘Pals’. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/17/1...

18 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 21 August. Back home in Liverpool, news of the Liverpo…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 2w ago

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire, a machine gun and a bayonet. He would, presumably, have been wearing hospital uniform – his first time in trousers rather than a kilt for almost two years. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/15/1...

15 August 1916

George was in Frensham Hill Military Hospital being treated for wounds from shellfire, a machine gun and a bayonet. He did not write in his diary again until 21 August. Also in the hospital at the …

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 2w ago

"To Calais. S.S. Dieppe from Calais to Dover. Train to Frensham Hill, Surrey." After 640 days in France and Belgium (minus a week’s leave) George was finally back in England. Would he recover in the hospital and be able to walk again? georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/14/1...

14 August 1916

To Calais. S.S. Dieppe from Calais to Dover. Train to Frensham Hill, Surrey. Frensham Hill Military Hospital around 1916. Surrey History Centre, Woking PC/66/24 After 640 days in France and Belgium…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 2w ago

"Evacuated from No 8 Red Cross Hospital. Train from Boulogne." In the UK, newspapers were not reporting the scale of the losses on the Somme. The Liverpool Scottish experience of going over the top was only hinted at in 'Killed in Action' columns georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/13/1...

13 August 1916

Evacuated from No 8 Red Cross Hospital. Train from Boulogne. Interior of ambulance train at Boulogne. Photograph by A. H. Crook IWM Q14760 Back in the UK, censorship meant that newspapers were not …

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 2w ago

"Under XRay Marked for Blighty." Campbell: 'Oh the sights I have seen. It all seems a haze of drama, murder. I have been over the top in a charge. It was hell. How any man lived through it is a mystery. My feeling before going was beyond words.' georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/12/1...

12 August 1916

Under XRay Marked for Blighty. Commentary Just what George, like so many other soldiers, had been hoping for – the chance to return to the UK for treatment and the hope there would be no need to re…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 2w ago

"Dull morning. Legs pain a little. hopes of Blighty." George's right leg had been damaged by a bomb, and his left leg by machine gun fire on the Somme two days earlier. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/11/1...

11 August 1916

Dull morning. Legs pain a little. hopes of Blighty. Commentary George was hoping his wounds would result him being sent back to England. His diary is usually so understated that ‘legs pain a …

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 2w ago

"Down in hosp. train to Etaples. Arrive at No. 8 Red Cross Hosp. Watch people from… Glorious day." For the moment, George was alive; no one was bombing him; no one was shooting at him; for the first time in weeks he was in a bed with sheets. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/10/1...

10 August 1916

Down in hosp. train to Etaples. Arrive at No. 8 Red Cross Hosp. Watch people from… Glorious day. Commentary Wounded in both legs and his back, George’s charge at Guillemont had ended with him…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"CAMPBELL – In memory of Sergeant R. D. Campbell (Liverpool Scottish), killed leading his platoon at Guillemont, August 9, 1916. (Never forgotten by his sincere Pal, Sergeant Geo. Ferguson.)" georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/09/d...

Dick Campbell, 1895–1916

George’s best friend in the Liverpool Scottish was Richard (Dick) Dougald Campbell. Dick (2608 / 355254), whose middle name is sometimes given as Dougal or Douglas, was born in 1895, so was a…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"4.10 leave trench & advance In the first wave struck in back In the second wave knee grazed. In the third wave machine gun catches my left. Threw bomb at emplacement & crawl in, wounded also in right calf by a bomb. Clean slit. Shot in left leg" georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/09/9...

9 August 1916

4.10 leave trench & advance In the first wave struck in back In the second wave knee grazed. In the third wave machine gun catches my left. Threw bomb at emplacement & crawl in, wounded als…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"Stand to. News that we are to take part in the attack tomorrow. Move up at 8.30 Shelled passing through the 'Valley of Death' Enter trenches 10 to 4." August 1916. The Liverpool Scottish prepare to go over the top – and everything goes wrong. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/08/8...

8 August 1916

Stand to. News that we are to take part in the attack tomorrow. Move up at 8.30 Shelled passing through the ‘Valley of Death’Enter trenches 10 to 4. Commentary Almost 14 months after th…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"Rest camp near Somme. Drilling in afternoon (building bivouacs. Attack by portion of our Div. on Guillemont. Some progress made." William Campbell: Stuck in trenches like rats awaiting the shells. It is not war, it is murder. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/07/7...

7 August 1916

Rest camp near Somme. Drilling in afternoon (building bivouacs. Attack by portion of our Div. on Guillemont. Some progress made. From the Battalion Diary:On the 7th, orders were received that Batta…

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Longtail News@longtail-news.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Feed: "Stand Up For Southport" By: Andrew Brown on Monday, June 29, 2026

Military band with bagpipes and drums wow crowds as they play on Carousel at Southport Armed Forces Day

An acclaimed military band playing bagpipes and drums while spinning round on the historic Silcock’s Carousel was one of the highlights of the 2026 Southport Armed Forces Day. The Liverpool Scottish Regimental Pipes and Drums, wearing with their famous kilts, sporrans, caps and medals, were hugely popular with a large crowd which quickly formed to […]

standupforsouthport.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"Relieved by the 7th. Shelled on the way to Church." Dan Davies of the Liverpool Scottish left for France on 4 July 1916, arrived there the following day, and was killed by a German shell on the 6th, his first day in action, at the age of 23. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/06/6...

6 August 1916

Relieved by the 7th. Shelled on the way to Church. Commentary The Brigade Diary noted that orders had been received to move the Liverpool Scottish, together with Brigade Headquarters and the 5th Lo…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"Strafing all day. Our trench receives attention. On duty till 3 a.m. 5a.m. watch French searchlight & planes after Hun aircraft." WOOD – August 5, at 6pm, killed instantaneously in action, aged 20 years. Private W. J. (Willie) Wood georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/05/5...

5 August 1916

Strafing all day. Our trench receives attention. On duty till 3 a.m. 5a.m. watch French searchlight & planes after Hun aircraft. Commentary William Campbell of the Scottish (at this point nearb…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"Dull day. Strafing all day. Heavy bombardment at night." Anniversary of Britain's entry into WW1 – for George in 1916 today marked two years of war. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/04/4...

4 August 1916

Dull day. Strafing all day. Heavy bombardment at night. Commentary William Campbell of the Scottish (at this point nearby with the 1/9 KLR) wrote in his diary:Today, 2nd anniversary of the war. I a…

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George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 3w ago

"Glorious day. Bathed down at the Water Store. Allies strafe huns very heavily through the night, but get very little reply." On the fringes of the Somme, George pressed three honeysuckle flowers between the pages of his diary at this point. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/03/3...

3 August 1916

Glorious day. Bathed down at the Water Store. Allies strafe huns very heavily through the night, but get very little reply.[George pressed three honeysuckle flowers between the pages with entries f…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 4w ago

"Heavy artillery duel. Up at night in charge of covering party in front of our lines near Trones Wood & in front of Guillemont. Terrific shelling. Many narrow escapes arriving through Valley of Death" A very dangerous assignment for George. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/02/2...

2 August 1916

Heavy artillery duel. Up at night in charge of covering party in front of our lines near Trones Wood & in front of Guillemont. Terrific shelling. Many narrow escapes arriving through Valley of …

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com

George Ferguson WWI@georgeferguson.bsky.social · 4w ago

"Huns strafe us morning noon & night with their heavies but we are well dug-in and all tight. Glorious day. Beaucoup aeroplanes up." The Somme: In August 1916, 131 of the Liverpool Scottish would be killed, with hundreds more wounded. georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com/2026/08/01/1...

1 August 1916

Huns strafe us morning noon & night withtheir heavies but we are well dug-in andall tight.Glorious day.Beaucoup aeroplanes up. Commentary William Campbell of the Liverpool Scottish, temporarily…

georgefergusonliverpool.wordpress.com