Frederick Room was born in 1888 in Dunstable, Bedfordshire the third child born to Samuel Room and Elizabeth Bandy who had a family of eight together. The children were: Lily, Samuel, Frederick, Edith, Willie (William) James, Arthur, Frank and Kate. His mother Elizabeth died in 1902 and his father married a second time to Elizabeth Janes, with whom he had another child named Freddy. Frederick’s younger brother Willie was killed just a month after him on the 25th March 1918, when fighting with the Royal Welsh Fusiliers. His brother-in-law, Alfred Luck was also killed in the Great War in 1916 and his biography appears on this site.

In 1901, Frederick aged thirteen, worked as a "Metal Sorter", whilst his father, mother and older brother all worked in hat making, a major source of employment in the Luton and Dunstable area for over 200 years. By 1911 he had moved to the Hemel Hempstead area and was living with his in-laws at 6 Two Waters Road, Boxmoor and working as a "Rag Sorter" for George Joseph Deacon on the Marlowes. The paper industry relied on a constant supply of 'rags' which were converted into pulp to manufacture high quality paper and George Deacon's business was one of a number supplying John Dickinson at Apsley and the British Paper Company. It was a supply source in decline by the time Frederick did the job as wood pulp was replacing rags as the prime raw material in the paper manufacting industry.

Frederick had married Edith Amy Luck in 1908 and soon afterwards, they had their first child named for his father, who sadly died shortly after his birth. Better news followed and in 1911 they had a daughter called Annie. She was followed a year later by Henry Frederick and finally in 1916, Frederick Charles arrived.

It is not known when Frederick enlisted but it was probably in 1915 under the Group (Derby) Scheme or following the passing of the Military Service Act in 1916. He did not go to France before July 1916 because that is when his unit, the 4th Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment, was send to the Western Front. Assuming he was in France in 1916, he would have fought at the Battle of Ancre in November, the final phase of the Somme offensive where the 4th Bedfordshires lost 190 men.

In 1917 he would have seen action at Arras in the Second Battle of the Scarpe in April and again in the Second Battle of Passchendaele in October. Once more these encounters resulted in heavy casualties for the Battalion; 274 at the Scarpe and 264 at Passchendaele. Having come through the horrors of Passchendaele, the 4th Battalion marched back to France and billets near Metz and then to Beaulencourt south of Bapaume in late January. During the first two months of the year, Frederick spent time in the trenches but mercifully, it was a relatively quiet spell and casualties were light during the month.

On the 19th February, the 4th Bedfordshires were relieved following a tour of duty in the trenches and the Battalion War Diary simply records “1 O.R. Killed”. This casualty was in fact Frederick, but no information is available to explain the circumstances of his death. However, given he was the only soldier to die, it may well have been the work of a German sniper.

His official death date was Wednesday, 20th February 1918.

Frederick is Remembered with Honour on Thiepval Memorial, Somme, France, Pier and Face 2 C.

He was 30 years old when he died.

Frederick was eligible for the British War Medal and the Allied Victory Medal.