Victor Charles Pratt; Gunner, Royal Field Artillery.

Cap badge of the Royal Artillery

Victor was born in Melton on 17th September 1885, the eldest son of Charles and Mary. By 1911, Victor had married Evelyn Clara Martin and they were living on Melton Road with their baby daughter Sybil May. His occupation was shown as being a horse dealer.

In 1915, Victor and his family were living at Hall Farm, Melton, and, on the 1st December, he enlisted in the Royal Field Artillery in Woodbridge. As a married man, he was put into the reserve until mobilised on 15th July 1916 when he joined the 5th Reserve Battery at Forest Row in Sussex. Two months later, he was discharged from the army under King’s Regulations Paragraph 392 (iii)c “Not likely to become an efficient soldier.”

In 1939, Victor was living at Hill Crest in Woodbridge, still working as a horse dealer, as well as a special constable.