Frederick Austin was born on 25th December 1895 at Burslem, and christened on 28th January 1896 in Tunstall, Staffordshire, to parents George Austin, born c.1855 at Tunstall, and Eliza Jane nee Bradley, born c.1857 at Burslem. They were married at Cobridge on the 3rd April 1875. 

The 1881 census sees George aged 26 working as a Potter, wife Eliza Jane aged 25, and children Clara J aged 3, born 16th November 1877, and baby Ernest c 1880, along with lodgers William Bradley Potter aged 21, Joseph Bradley Potter aged 19, and Emma Bradley General Servant aged 17 all living on Davenport Street, Burslem. 

In the 1891 census, George and Eliza Jane are residing at 218 Chadderton Road, Westwood in Oldham, where George is employed as an Agricultural Agent. Present also are Eliza Jane, Clara aged13, Ernest aged 10, Minnie aged 4, and George 3 months old, born in Oldham. 

The census of 1901 shows Frederick living at 23 Scotia Road, Burslem, as a 4-year-old with his mother, Elizabeth, described as Head. Also present are Clara Jane, aged 23, a Potter's Lithographer, Ernest, aged 20, a Potter's Printer, Minnie, aged 14, a Pottery Lithographer, Annie, aged 6. * Eliza Jane seems to use the name Elizabeth from this point. ** Annie Austin was born in Oldham in 1894, whilst a year later, in 1895, Frederick was born in Burslem. 

From the 1891 census, we lose track of George Austin, Frederick's father. 

The census of 1911 shows Frederick now living at 14 Lorne Street, Burslem, as a 15-year-old employed as a Polisher in a pottery. Also present are Elizabeth, aged 54, Head. Elizabeth states she has, by this point, been married for 35 years and had had 10 children, 5 of whom had died. As George, the baby born in Oldham in 1891, is not cited since the 1891 census, we can assume he died. 

Living with Elizabeth Austin were two of the remaining children, Minnie, aged 24, a Pottery Lithographer who had married John Peake in 1909, now aged 27, an Assistant Engineer at Brickworks, and Leslie Thomas Peake, a grandson aged 5 months, and Annie, aged 16, a Pottery Warehouse Worker. 

Clara Jane Austin, working as a Potter Lithographer, married William Henry Kelsall in 1903, and both were living at 32 Louise Street, Burslem, with their 6-year-old daughter Doris May.  

Ernest Austin had moved out and potentially married. 

The 1921 census shows Fred's widowed mother Elizabeth, aged 64, living as a lodger at 195 Hamil Road, Burslem, with her daughter Clara Jane, aged 43, a pottery worker, and husband William Henry Kelsall, aged 43, a pottery worker, along with their 16-year-old daughter Doris May, who worked as a typist for a Pottery firm. 

There are no surviving service papers for Frederick, so we must piece together his military service from multiple other sources. Firstly, from Commonwealth War Graves records, we see that he is recorded as being killed in action on the 4th October 1917. If we examine the War Diary of the 152/153 Field Company Royal Engineers, we can see that they were, on the 4th October 1917, involved in the 3rd Battle of Ypres and were involved in an attack carried out by the 37th Division. Royal Engineers supported the 8th Lincolnshire Regiment, 8th Somerset Light Infantry, 10th York Lancaster Regiment, and the 4th Middlesex Regiment to secure the road from Jute Cotts South of the Ypres Menin Road. Much fighting took place, and British troops were subjected to almost continuous shell fire. The job of the Engineers here was to blow up enemy dug outs, 3 parties of 10 Sappers and 1 Sergeant under the command of 1 Lieutenant armed with guncotton mobile charges took on this task. It was during this fighting that Frederick was lost. 

Contemporary articles in the Staffordshire Sentinel state that official news of his death was received by his mother and that he had enlisted for service in November of 1915. He was previously employed at the Royal Doulton factory. 

Sapper F. Austin, Burslem. Mrs. Austin, 189, Hamil-road, Burslem, has received official news that her son, Sapper Frederick Austin, Royal Engineers, has been killed in action. He joined the Army in November 1915, before which he was employed by Messrs. Doulton and Company, Burslem. In a letter to Mrs. Austin, an officer states that Sapper Austin was always cheerful and willing to perform his duties. 

His Medal Index Card provides 2 service numbers, 486566 and T1871. This would indicate he was first in service with a Territorial unit and was subsequently renumbered. 

Numerous addresses exist within these sources, but all relate to Hamil Road, Burslem, at numbers 187, 189, and 195, the latter provided by the CWGC.

WW1 record of Soldiers Effects shows a Gratuity was paid on the 11th August 1919.

He was entitled to the British War Medal and Victory Medal.

Frederick has no known grave and is remembered at the Tyne Cot memorial on panel 8. He is also remembered on the Royal Doulton Kilngate Memorial, Burslem.

SOURCES

Parents' marriage: Indexes created from Anglican Parish Registers held at Staffordshire Record Office; Stafford, Staffordshire, England & Ancestry.com. England, Select Marriages, 1538-1973 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.

Birth: Ancestry.com. England & Wales, Christening Index, 1530-1980 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2008.

1881 census:  Class: RG11; Piece: 2712; Folio: 22; Page: 38; GSU roll: 1341650

1891 census The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891; Class: RG12; Piece: 3302; Folio: 11; Page: 13; GSU roll: 6098412

1901 census Class: RG13; Piece: 2593; Folio: 154; Page: 20

1911 census, The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911

1921 census The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; 1921 Census Returns; Reference: RG 15/12622, ED 8, Sch 50; Book: 12622

https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000347/19171107/068/0003 

Forces War Records, UK, WWI, British Army Medal Roll Index Cards, 1914-1920 (https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/publication/932/uk-wwi-british-army-medal-roll-index-cards-1914-1920: accessed 4 Apr 2026), database and images, https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/publication/932/uk-wwi-british-army-medal-roll-index-cards-1914-1920 

Forces War Records, UK, WWI, Pension Ledgers and Index Cards, 1914-1923 (https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/publication/1019/uk-wwi-pension-ledgers-and-index-cards-1914-1923: accessed 4 Apr 2026), database and images, https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/publication/1019/uk-wwi-pension-ledgers-and-index-cards-1914-1923

Forces War Records, UK, WWI & WWII, Commonwealth War Graves Commission Death Registers, 1914-1921 and 1939-1947 (https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/publication/1286/uk-wwi-wwii-commonwealth-war-graves-commission-death-registers: accessed 4 Apr 2026), database and images, https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/publication/1286/uk-wwi-wwii-commonwealth-war-graves-commission-death-registers

https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/sub-image/619373805/austin-frederick-uk-british-army-registers-of-soldiers-effects-1901-1929 

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11848999/frederick-austin. 

https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/846587/frederick-austin/

Photos obtained from Find My Grave