The ground was cleared by the 3rd and 7th Divisions on the 14th July, 1916, and an Advanced Dressing Station was established at the Copse. The cemetery was begun about the 20th July, and it remained in use until April 1917. It was used again for two burials in August, 1918; and after the Armistice, 1,149 graves were brought in from smaller cemeteries and from neighbouring battlefields. Almost all the concentrated graves are those of men who fell in the summer and autumn of 1916.

The cemetery now contains the graves of 1,475 soldiers from the United Kingdom, 30 from New Zealand, 17 from Australia, and one from South Africa. The unnamed graves are 416 in number, and special memorials are erected to 36 soldiers from the United Kingdom, known or believed to be buried among them. Other special memorials record the names of nine soldiers from the United Kingdom buried in Mametz Wood Cemetery, whose graves were destroyed by shell fire.

The following were among the burial grounds concentrated into Flatiron Copse Cemetery :-

Caterpillar Cemetery, Montauban, in "Caterpillar Wood". It contained the graves of 21 soldiers from the United Kingdom who fell in July, 1916, and of whom 12 belonged to the 6th and 7th Gordons.

Cross Roads Cemetery, Bazentin, near the cross-roads at the North end of Bazentin-le-Grand. Here were buried 15 soldiers from the United Kingdom and four from New Zealand who fell in 1916-1917.

Mametz Wood Cemetery, outside the Western edge of Mametz Wood, in which 18 soldiers from the United Kingdom were buried in 1916.

Quadrangle Cemetery, Bazentin, between Bottom Wood and Mametz Wood, named from a small rectangular copse. Here were buried in 1916, 32 soldiers from the United kingdom and three from Australia, of whom 22 were artillery.

Valley Cemetery, Montauban, between the Briqueterie and Maltzhorn Farm, in which 72 soldiers from the United Kingdom were buried in August and September, 1916.

Villa Wood Cemeteries No. 1 and No. 2, Contalmaison, near a small copse North of Mametz Wood. They contained the graves of 62 soldiers from Untied Kingdom who fell in 1916.

Number of Burials by Unit

Cpl. E. Dwyer V.C., Cross of St. George (Russia), 1st Bn. East Surrey Regiment. Died 3rd Sept. 1916.Aged 20. Grave III. J. 3 An extract from the "London Gazette" dated 21st May 1915, records the following: "For most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty at "Hill 60"( Ypres Salient) on the 20th April 1915. When his trench was heavily attacked by German grenade throwers he climbed on to the parapet and, although subjected to a hail of bombs at close quarters, succeeded in dispersing the enemy by the effective use of his hand grenades. Private Dwyer displayed great gallantry earlier on this day in leaving his trench, under heavy shell fire, to bandage his wounded comrades"

Gnr. Thomas Joseph Greenan, 6950. 22nd Bde. Australian Field Artillery. Killed in action 31st July, 1916. Aged 25. Born in Omagh, Co. Tyrone. Son of Peter and Ellen Greenan of 12, Loretto Terrace, Springfield Rd., Belfast Ireland VII