Transcript

of

Thomas Gray Skardon [Obituary]

Trans. Devon. Assoc., vol. 44, (1912). pp. 41-42.

by

Maxwell Adams (Ed.)

Prepared by Michael Steer

The obituary was presented at the Association’s July 1912 Exeter meeting. Notice of Colonel Skardon’s death appeared in The Lancet for February 3rd, 1912, p. 328; and in Crawford’s Roll of the Indian Medical Service (1615-1938), vol. 1, p.163. (available through Google Books). His residence Simla, stands on a small wooded hill at the junction of Tanners and Dartmouth Roads at Goodrington. It was built in about 1870 and in 1885 purchased by “retired Surgeon Major Thomas Gray Skardon”. It was in its day (since ruined), a fine eight bedroomed house overlooking the sea at Goodrington, More information is available the Paignton History website. His obituary may be found in a copy of a rare and much sought-after journal that can be downloaded from the Internet Archive. Google has sponsored the digitisation of books from several libraries. These books, on which copyright has expired, are available for free educational and research use, both as individual books and as full collections to aid researchers.

Lieut.-Colonel Skardon was born in 1836, and belonged to an old Devonshire family. He received his first commission in January, 1860, in the Bengal Army, and after serving twenty-five years in India in the Indian Medical Service, retired with the rank of Brigade-Surgeon Lieut.-Colonel in 1886, and settled at Paignton.
He was a strong Evangelical Churchman, and was associated with the late Colonel Wright and others in the building of Christ Church, Paignton, being Hon. Secretary of the Building Committee for some years. He was also greatly interested in the Bible Society and missionary work.
He joined the Association in 1893, and was a regular attendant at its Annual Meetings until recent years, when he was prevented through ill-health from being present.
He died at his residence, Simla, near Paignton, on 24 January, 1912, in his seventy-sixth year, and was buried at Maker on the 29th of the same month.