A WOMAN with deep roots to Millbrook is reaching out to the local community in the hope of uncovering long-lost family connections and piecing together the story of a remarkable – and heartbreaking – chapter in the village’s past.

Wendy Phillips has been retracing the footsteps of her great-grandparents, Jessie and James Warren, who once lived at 71 Millpool Head. It was in that modest house they raised ten children – a bustling household filled with the noise and energy of a large working family.

But for the Warren family, Millpool Head was also the beginning of a story marked by sacrifice.

Two of the Warren sons, Percival and James, left that address to fight in the First World War – and neither returned.

Percival Warren, who served with the 1st/7th Battalion, London Regiment (formerly the Duke of Cornwall Light Infantry), was awarded the Military Medal for bravery. He was killed in action at the age of just 26 during fighting near Ypres. His name is commemorated on the Menin Gate in Belgium – a memorial Wendy visited with her family.

Just six months after Percival’s death, his brother James was killed in action during the Battle of Cambrai. He is remembered on the Cambrai Memorial in France.

Closer to home, both brothers are honoured on the Celtic memorial in the grounds of All Saints Church.

While Wendy has been able to trace the brothers’ military history, questions about the wider Warren family remain unanswered.

The Warren children were: Jessie, George, Bertram, Percival, James, Winifred (Wendy’s grandmother), William, Carrie, John and Janie. Wendy knows that her grandmother Winifred and her sister Janie eventually moved away from Millbrook, but she wonders whether other siblings remained in the area and whether there may still be Warren descendants living locally today.

Another mystery surrounds her great-grandparents’ later years. Family members recall that Jessie and James Warren moved from Millpool Head to a detached cottage “by the river” when they were older. However, no address has been found, and surviving relatives can only remember that it was near water.

Wendy is now appealing to local residents, historians and anyone with knowledge of Millbrook’s past to help fill in the gaps. She is particularly keen to:

“Families move away, memories fade, and records can be hard to find,” Wendy said. “But Millbrook has such a strong sense of history. I’m hoping someone might recognise the Warren name or have information tucked away in old documents or family stories.”

For Wendy, this search is about more than genealogy. It’s about honouring the memory of two young men who left a small Cornish village to serve their country – and ensuring the story of the busy household at 71 Millpool Head is not lost to time.

Anyone with information about the Warren family is encouraged to contact Wendy by email [email protected]