b. 31/05/1888 Harborne, Birmingham. d. 27/07/1970 Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.
DATE OF AM ACTION: 14/10/1916 France.
Frederick was one of six children of Alexander and Annie Emma Smith (nee Minty), and grew up in Harborne, Birmingham. After schooling, he became a consulting engineer in Cheltenham. On the outbreak of World War I, he was commissioned into the Royal Flying Corps as a 2nd Lieutenant. He was promoted to Lieutenant shortly after his AM action. He was presented with his medal on 13th April 1918 at Buckingham Palace. He married Mary Paget Hardwick and lived in Cheltenham for the rest of his life. He was a founder member of the AM Association in 1966.
AM CITATION:
At an aerodrome in France, on the 14th October, 1916, a bomb accidentally exploded in the mouth of a dug-out forming a bomb store, which contained a large number of bombs packed in wooden cases and a quantity of rockets. Two men were killed by the explosion, and another man, who was severely injured, was thrown down into the store. Dense volumes of smoke issued from the dug-out, and there was great risk of a further explosion. Lieutenant (then 2nd Lieutenant) Smith, on hearing a call for help, immediately entered the dug-out, followed by Serjeant Rhoades, and succeeded in rescuing the wounded man, who would otherwise have been suffocated.
BURIAL LOCATION: UNKNOWN.
LOCATION OF MEDAL: UNKNOWN.
