Edwin Walter Cox was born in Bethnal Green, London in 1894 and baptised at St Simon Zelotes church on the 12th September in the same year. He was the second and youngest son of Albert Henry Cox and Emma Larbey. Edwin, known as Ted, had two older siblings, Albert Henry and Emma.

When Ted was born the family were living at 186 Devonshire Street in Bethnal Green and his father was employed as a Vellum Binder. Albert may already have been working for John Dickinsons Ltd., but this was certainly the case by 1901 when the family had relocated to 10 Featherbed Lane, Two Waters, Apsley. His older brother Albert was also working as a Vellum Binder with John Dickinsons.

When Ted left school in 1907 he started work with Pemsel and Wilson Ltd.. Arthur F Pemsel had established this business as the first motor bus company to serve Hemel Hempstead. The bus took passengers from the Posting House at the junction of Bury Road and Marlowes to Boxmoor station. By 1911 however, Ted had joined his father, brother and sister Emma at John Dickinsons, where he was employed as a General Porter. The family had also moved by this time and was living at ‘Apsley View’ on Ebberns Road, Boxmoor.

Ted attested at Hemel Hempstead in late August 1914 and enlisted with the 2nd Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment. The 2nd Battalion was in South Africa at the outbreak of war and was immediately recalled to England, landing at Southampton on 19 September 1914 and forming part of the 'Immortal' 7th Division in the 21st Brigade. The division left Southampton on the 5th October 1914, and disembarked in Zeebrugge two days later.

In the meantime, Ted was undergoing his basic training at Harwich and it was not until March of the following year that he was sent to France. He disembarked on 17th March 1915 and by the 22nd March he had joined with the 2nd Bn. near Laventie and was assigned to ‘C’ Company, 9th platoon.

He soon saw his first action in the trenches late in March and shortly afterwards he wrote to his brother Albert giving a quite detailed description of the dangers apparent from German snipers’ “The German snipers are crack shots”’ and some near misses which he experienced. Extracts from the letter were published in the Gazette in April 1915.

By the 11th May the 2nd Battalion had moved to Festubert and for the next four days was engaged in trench improvement works and night patrols. All this in preparation for the planned assault on the 16th May. It was during this activity that Ted was mortally wounded.

One Corporal Arthur Wesley Joyce wrote a touching letter to Ted’s parents describing the circumstances of his death and offering solace for the loss of their “bright happy lad”. The contents of the letter were published in the Gazette shortly after Ted had died. It states that he had been wounded in the head on 13th May at about seven o’clock in the evening and that “no hopes were entertained of his recovery from the first”. Ted was moved to a clearing station but sadly died of his wounds a few days later on Sunday, 16th May 1915.

Ted is Remembered with Honour at Chocques Military Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France where he is interred in Plot I C 5. The inscription on his headstone, requested by his father Albert, reads: “I’M BUT A STRANGER HERE HEAVEN IS MY HOME”

He is also commemorated on the John Dickinson memorial in Apsley.

Ted was only 20 years old when he died.

He was eligible for the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal and the Allied Victory Medal.