John entered the war in France on 18th August 1914. On 24th May 1915 orders were given that, when shelling commenced NCO’s & men in billets were to go down into lower rooms and where possible into cellars. Shelling commenced around 8.35 p.m. on the 24th, by a German armoured train, with the first shell striking the hospital, hitting the brickwork by the side of the front entrance of A Block, at the junction of tiled pavement and wall, making a hole about 2 feet in diameter & 1 ft deep. Some of the men whose duty it was to upload incoming ambulance cares were around this door and a few others were in the vicinity. Though the hole made was small, the explosive effect was considerable, with the shell splintering into small fragments and as a result wounding some of the men. John was one of them, sustaining slight shell wounds to both his legs. He was evacuated back to the UK then developed secondary haemorrhage and died under anaesthetic in Birmingham General Hospital. An inquest was held on 19th July 1915. John was the son Mr and Mrs Potter of 52 Colomb Street, East Greenwich, London.