Acting Petty Officer Frederick Thomas Sollis (1899-1959) lived in Wickhamford for nearly two years and attended Badsey School from April 1906 until February 1908 (his name appearing as Frederick Thomas in the Infant School register and as Thomas Frederick in the Mixed Department register). He was born in Great Hampton, Evesham, on 18th December 1899.
Frederick joined the Royal Navy (No. J58016) on 29th August 1916. He was sent to the training establishment HMS Impregnable as a ‘Boy Class 2’. Promoted to ‘Boy Class 1’ on 16th March 1917, he was posted to the super-Dreadnought battleship HMS King George V on 31st May 1917. He rose to Ordinary Seaman on 18th June that year and Able Seaman on 5th April 1918. After the Armistice he served on a number of ships before his service record ends in November 1922. In May 1919, his record shows that he was promoted to Acting Petty Officer. A later service number for Frederick Sollis was SS124492.
Frederick died in Brisbane, Australia, in 1959.