Trafford

Born during the December quarter 1898 in the Blackburn R.D. - ref: 8e/368,
the son of Edward and Jane Ann Kilburn (nee Hammond).

1901 Census - 152 Railway Terrace, Padiham, Lancashire.   Son - aged: 2 -
born: Blackburn, Lancashire.    Head of household - Edward Kilburn -
Married - aged:  34 - occ: Farmer's Labourer - born: Walden, Yorkshire. 
Also - Jane Ann Kilburn - Wife - aged: 36 - born: Darlington, Co. Durham. 
Plus 5 siblings.   The family are listed as KILLBURN.

1911 Census - 25 Green Lane, Padiham, Lancashire.   Son - aged: 12 - occ:
Part-time Scholar and employed in a Cotton Factory.    Head of household -
Edward Kilburn - Widower - aged:  46 - occ: Carter to Builder - born: West
Buston, Yorkshire.   Plus 5 siblings.  His mother had died just before the
1911 Census - aged: 47.

The family later resided at 10 Warwick Street, Burnley. Lancashire, from
where Nelson enlisted having lied about his age to enable him to enlist.

He was lost when the RMS Royal Edward was sunk.   At the time, the Royal
Edward was being used as HMT (Hired Military Transport). It left Avonmouth
on the 28th July 1915 with 1,367 men bound for Gallipoli as reinforcemennts
for the British 29th Infantry and with members of the Royal Army Medical
Corps.  She arrived at Alexandria, Egypt on the 10th August, then
unescorted, sailed for Moudros on the island of Lemnos, a staging point for
the Dardanelles.     At 09.15 hrs on 13th August, she was sunk by a torpedo
from German U-Boat U-14 in position 36.13N, 25.51E, 6 miles W from
Kandeliusa in the Aegean Sea and sank in under 6 minutes.

Royal Edward was able to get off an SOS, so the Hospital Ship Soudan whom
she had previously passed that morning, returned to the scene and rescued
440 men.  Two French destroyers and some trawlers rescued another 221. 
Royal Edward's death toll was in excess of 900 and was high, due in part to
the speed in which she sank, but also that a boat drill had just been
completed with the majority of the men being below decks re-stowing their
equipment.