Pte Charles Henry Pearson, 43204, 6th Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment, was killed in action on the Somme on February 17th, 1917. He was aged 32, the youngest son of Kent farmer George Pearson.

Prior to enlisting, he had been for four years a salesman and window dresser in the drapery department of Blundell Bros' department store, where he was known as Tony. He was one of 30 of the firm's employees who had joined up.

He was called up to the Colour as a Derby recruit about a year previously and was posted to the 4th Bedfords (26953). After 16 weeks training at Felixstowe he was drafted to France and attached to the Northampton Regiment.

In November 1916 it was feared that Charles had then lost his life when one of his chums wrote from the Front that he was afraid "poor old Charlie had gone under" as they could not find him. But a later letter from Pte Pearson said he had been taken from the battalion and placed in charge of German prisoners and had become an officer's servant.

During his time in Luton, Charles had lodged with Mrs Dalley at 32 Grove Road and had become a member of the Wednesday Hotspurs football and cricket teams, and was associated with the football club in the year they won the Wednesday Cup and Shield. One of his chums at the time was the Hotspurs' football chairman and Luton Town cricketer Horace Dunham, who was killed in action in 1916.