Thomas Collier was born in Houghton Regis in 1890 and was one of eight children born to Edwin and Elizabeth Collier.  In 1914 he married Margaret Annie Reed in Luton and they had one son, Ralph.

He joined the army in December 1916 as a private in the Royal Army Veterinary Corps and, after training, was drafted to Salonika, serving at both Vardar and Monastir principally attending wounded and sick horses.

Whilst on this front he contracted malaria and made a good recovery. However, on his way home on leave he developed a chill at Southampton. He was sent to the No 4 War Hospital there in the hope the chill would pass in a few days. But, perhaps due to his previous illness, pneumonia set in and he died. Margaret and Ralph travelled to see him just before he passed away.

He died on October 9th, 1918, at the age of 28. Thomas's body was brought home the following Saturday for burial in St Thomas's Churchyard, Stopsley. A funeral service conducted by the Vicar, the Rev G. H. C. Shorting, took place there on Monday, October 14th, 1918. Thomas is also commemorated on the Stopsley War Memorial.