If the golfing part is correct then he was probably an assistant as the coverage of all the Scarborough clubs seems to have no gaps over the period. If verified, he will then probably appear here in the assistants’ list without a link. I do want to stress that the death of an assistant is not seen as less important than that of a full professional and, indeed, the PGA, with whom I have collaborated closely on this project, will commemorate both on their plaque planned for later this year. The AGCFS website fulfils many roles but the main one seems to be visitors identifying old clubs. An assistant’s name will not appear on a club: that is the only reason full professionals are covered in more detail.

The military details are sadly, though, all too familiar. Ernest, with the Roman god of the forest middle name I rather envy, Silvanus, was born in the 2nd quarter of 1894 to William and Mary. He appears with his parents and siblings on the 1911 census at 18 Britannia Street, Scarbourgh, aged 16, with no profession recorded.

He enlisted in Leeds and joined the 10th Battalion, King’s Own (Yorkshire Light Infantry). He was killed on 4 October 1917 but, presumably without confirmation, hence the newspaper report nine months later, and, similarly, without, known grave as he appears on the Tyne Cot memorial in West Vlaanderen.

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