| Administrative History | Elijah William Burrows was born in 1891 in Mapperley near Ilkeston. Elijah’s father was Head Gardener at West Hallam Hall, where Elijah also worked as a labourer. Elijah’s experience in the war was extremely traumatic. Like many thousands of soldiers, Elijah suffered shell shock, and after twice deserting, he was transferred to the Northamptonshire Fusiliers, Labour Corps. The Labour Corps ‘was manned by men who had been medically rated below the "A1" condition needed for front line service. The units were often deployed for work within range of the enemy guns, sometimes for lengthy periods’. In October 1917, Elijah was admitted to a mental hospital in Scotland, and he spent much of the rest of his life in similar hospitals. He died in 1984. |