Jimmy’s grave, Fermoy, 1910
This is a photograph of Jimmy’s funeral in Fermoy, Ireland, in August 1910 after he died of pneumonia. He was buried with full military honours in the local cemetery.
The floral tributes and the large gathering of mourners bear witness to his popularity as recorded in the ‘Digest of Services’ [D/DLI 2/2/15]. In fact, some of the old sergeants, who had been with him in Egypt 25 years earlier, travelled from County Durham to be present at the service.
The inscription on his grave read ‘In loving memory of Bandsman James Francis Durham, 2nd Bn., the Durham Light Infantry who died on August 8, 1910. Erected by the Officers, NCOs and men of the Battalion. Jimmy Durham was adopted by the Battalion after the Battle of Ginnis 1885 and specially enlisted in the Durham Light Infantry, May 23, 1899′.
