Stocksbridge Wesleyan
Methodist (Deepcar)
Commemorating those who died in WW1 and WW2
WW2 Roll of Honour.
Photo © Sally Jowitt, by permission
WW1 Roll of Honour.
Photo © Sally Jowitt, by permission
PRO PATRIA
ERECTED BY THE CONGREGATION OF THIS CHURCH TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN PROUD MEMORY OF
The Great War 1914-18
WHO MADE THE SUPREME SACRIFICE
ALSO IN GRATEFUL ACKNOWLEDGEMENT FOR THE LIVES OF THOSE WHO WERE SPARED TO US.
ALSO IN PROUD MEMORY OF
Tom Hanwell
Norman Jackson
Albert Kaye
Victor Hugo Mate
Thomas Henry Mate
Albert Rolfe
Walter Wadsworth
William Everitt Webb
WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR 1939-1945
Note: the spacing on the WW1 memorial, and the fact that the final name is not in alphabetical order on the list implies that this name – Charles Cyril Spivey – was added later. This is because he died in 1921; his name was also added on at the end of the Roll of Honour on the Clock Tower.
Pro Patria means “for one’s country.”
The Imperial War Museum records that the WW1 Memorial was dedicated on the 16th April 1920 and re-dedicated 16 April 1950, but the dedication service actually took place on Saturday 16th October 1920.
“There was a good congregation in Stocksbridge Wesleyan Church, on Saturday [16th October], at the unveiling of the war memorial tablet, erected by the congregation and friends of the church to the memory of the men who made the supreme sacrifice in the Great War. The service opened with the hymn “Praise to our God whose bounteous hand,” after which the Rev. W. H. Small offered prayer. The choir sang ‘Crossing the Bar.’ The lesson, read by Mr. E. Bradwell, was from ‘The Wisdom of Solomon.’ The congregation then joined in the singing of the memorial hymn ‘For all the Saints.’
“The sermon, delivered by the Rev. E. J. Scott, was appropriate in the many sympathetic tributes and allusions made of those who by their great sacrifice had served their God and Country. The Rev. W. H. Small also spoke of the fine qualities of our men. The anthem ‘What are these’ was rendered by the choir.
“Coun. F. Coultas, in addressing the congregation before the unveiling, said that this was an event of more than passing interest, as the names inscribed on the tablets were those who had been connected or had passed through our Sunday School. Mr. Coultas then unveiled the tablet.” The ‘Last Post’ was sounded by Mr. C. H. West and the National Anthem was sung. A tea was held in the Schoolroom after the ceremony, to which about sixty of the demobilised men connected with the Church and School had been invited. A photograph of each of the fallen was afterwards presented to the next-of-kin (and it is a shame I have not been able to track them all down).
A list of names was printed, which for some reason did not include Eric Gill, who is on the plaque, and it also did not include Charles Cyril Spivey, who did not die until 1921.
From The Penistone, Stocksbridge and Hoyland Express Saturday 23 October 1920, p8
The WW2 plaque was dedicated on Sunday evening, the 16th April 1950 by the Rev. J. Austin. Deepcar Men’s and Women’s branches of the British Legion attended, along with Stocksbridge Old Brass Band. This would be when the re-dedication of the WW1 memorial took place, as mentioned above.
I am told that the church published a list of names before the Great War had ended, but I have been unable to track this down. In a Souvenir Booklet published in 1918 to celebrate the Chapel’s 50th Anniversary, the following paragraph was placed on page 24:
Great War. We wish also to place on record – That this is the forty-third month of the great European War. That Russia is in the throes of Revolution. That the destruction of German Militarism, which we are aiming at, is not yet accomplished
Gunner William Bramwell 189234
159th (Devon) Heavy Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery
Died in an accident 19 July 1919, Germany
Also commemorated on St. Matthias Church War Memorial and The Clock Tower
Buried Cologne Southern Cemetery, Germany
William was born on the 25th July 1897 to Thomas Dakin Bramwell and his wife Ann Marsh. He was baptised at the Wesleyan Chapel. William survived the War but died in a swimming accident in 1919 whilst serving in Germany, a week before his 22nd birthday.
William was born in the vicinity of The Friendship Hotel and his father was a boot and shoe maker and dealer. By 1901 they had moved to Derwent House on Lancaster Road, Stocksbridge and young William was apprenticed to his father. He enlisted in the army on the 11th January 1916 at the age of 18 years and 6 months. His Service Record tells us that he was 5’ 7” tall, weighed just over 9 stone, had dark brown hair, a fresh complexion and grey/brown eyes. He had scars on his right thigh and was working as a boot repairer and clogger. He was sent to France on the 19th May 1918. He survived the war, and returned home on leave in March 1919. Unfortunately, he forfeited 3 days’ pay for overstaying his leave; he should have reported at Victoria Station on the 18th March but did not do so until the 21st March.
It seems tragic that, having survived the war, he died in a swimming accident on the 19th July 1919. William was part of the Army of Occupation in Germany and was billeted in Portz, near Cologne. The men had gone down to the Rhine, and William was seen to dive off the boathouse into the river, but he very soon got into difficulties and drowned. His body was not immediately recovered. A Court of Enquiry was held on the 12th August to look into the circumstances of his death, with witnesses being called to give accounts of what they saw. The Court heard how the current was very strong at that point, and, although he could swim, it seems the current was too powerful and that he was caught in a strong undercurrent. No one was close enough to help him, and although a boat was launched, it was swept down by the current and almost capsized. All the men had been warned that the place was only safe for “powerful swimmers,” that there was no safe bathing in the vicinity, and that the men should not go to swim alone. They had been told that the Rhine was dangerous to swim in, and there were no life-belts or ropes available. The Court was of the opinion that William “was drowned accidentally, having understated the strength of the current and particularly the undercurrent, and that no blame can be attached to anyone […] notice should be erected at this and other dangerous places on the Rhine.” His body was recovered on the 15th August. He was buried in the Cologne Southern Cemetery and he has a Commonwealth War Graves headstone with the additional inscription, “It is the Lord. Let Him do what seemeth him good.” William was awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal.
When the Stocksbridge Wesleyan Sunday School held its 57th Anniversary service that August, the pulpit was draped in memory of William (Willy), and also of the late Arthur Garnham, who had been connected with the School for 43 years.
Airman 2nd Class Thornton Brooke 43573
5th Squadron, Royal Flying Corps
Killed in Action: 5 February 1918
Also commemorated on St. Matthias Church Memorial, Bolsterstone War Memorial, The Clock Tower
Buried Roclincourt Military Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France
Thornton was born on the 12th June 1894, the son of William Brooke and his wife Mary Ellen Spencer. He was baptised at the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel. The family lived at Moorland View, on Low Lane (now Victoria Road), which I think is at the bottom of Brook Row. William was the founder of the Pot House Sanitary Pipe Works. Thornton started working for his father, and in 1911 he was an office boy, later becoming a partner in the business. He joined the forces on the 11th December 1915, enlisting at Stocksbridge. He was 21 years and 6 months old. Thornton started off as a Private in the Army Reserve and was posted to the Royal Flying Corps as an Air Mechanic Class II in August 1916 and at some point was sent over to France.
On the 2nd February 1918 the local newspaper contained a paragraph that the R.A.O.B. (Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes, a fraternal charitable organisation) had sent out Christmas gifts to local soldiers, and Thornton was one of the men who had written letters thanking them. Three days later he was killed in action when a shell exploded whilst he was performing his duties. According to his obituary, he was a wireless operator attached to the Siege Battery.
Thornton was buried in Roclincourt Military Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France. His parents chose an inscription for his headstone: “All that I have is now no longer mine and I am not my own Lord, I am thine.” He was 23 years old. He is also remembered on his parents’ headstone. His father William died in 1920 aged 68 and was buried at Bolsterstone on the 2nd February. Thornton was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
Photo: Penistone, Stocksbridge and Hoyland Express 23 February 1918, p6
Leading Seaman Sidney Burgin Z/4177
Tyneside, Anson Battalion, Royal Naval Division, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve
Killed in Action 15th July 1918
Also commemorated on The Clock Tower
Buried Mailly Wood Cemetery, Mailly-Maillet, France
Sidney was born at Deepcar on the 10th December 1895 to Thomas Knott Burgin and his wife Helen nee Hoole. They lived at Carr Head and Thomas was a miner. Thomas died in 1911 aged just 40 and when the 1911 census was taken his widow was living at 1 Moorhouse Row, Old Haywoods with her children including Sidney who was 15 years old and working as a trammer in a coal mine. She married again at Doncaster in 1913 to Charles Hurworth and she took her children to live with him in Bentley.
Sidney’s Service Record is available at Findmypast and has a very comprehensive list of his movements and changes in rank. He enlisted on the 13th April 1915, and his records tells us that he was 5’ 6 ¼” tall, with light brown hair and brown eyes and medium complexion. He also gave his religion as Wesleyan, that he had been a miner, and that he couldn’t swim.
Sidney went to France in 1916 and had some leave home from 30th December 1917 until 13th January 1918. He was killed in action “as a direct result of enemy action” on the 15th July 1918. He was 22 years old. He was buried at Mailly Wood Cemetery, Mailly-Maillet, France, and his headstone has the additional inscription “Dearly remembered, but sadly missed.” He was awarded the Victory Medal and the British War Medal.
Private Oliver Crapper 2134
5th Battalion, Australian Infantry
Died of wounds 11 August 1915 whilst serving in the Gallipoli Campaign
Also commemorated on the Clock Tower
Buried at Sea and commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial, Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey
Oliver was born locally but he emigrated to Australia and served with the ANZAC forces. He had been born at Spink House on the 22nd March 1871 and baptised at Bolsterstone. His parents were Alfred Crapper and Emma nee Helliwell. The family moved to Hive Yard, near the Friendship Hotel before moving to 114 Haywoods Park. When the 1911 census was taken Olive was 20 years old and working as a coal miner. In 1894 Oliver married Ann Turner and they lived at The Royd, Deepcar. They had a son, Fred, in 1898 but he died before he was a year old. Another son was born in 1900 whom they named Norman.
By the time their daughter Jessie was born in August 1902 they had moved to Castleford, West Yorkshire, where Oliver worked as a miner. On the 2nd September 1903 Oliver went out to the U.S. alone, heading for a friend called Arthur Smart, who lived in Force, Pennsylvania. He sailed on the S.S. Haverford from Liverpool, arriving in Philadelphia PA eleven days later. Perhaps he had hoped to move his family over there at some point, and if he had, perhaps he would not have lost his life in the War. He returned to England, however, and instead decided to emigrate to Australia. He set sail from London on the 13th October 1910, travelling 3rd class aboard the Geelong, bound for Melbourne. He was again travelling alone; his wife and two children joined him the following year, departing from London on the Themistocles on the 16th February 1911, a voyage that took 65 days. The 1914 Electoral Roll places them in Koyuga, near Echuca, in the state of Victoria.
Oliver attested at Echuca on the 5th March 1915 at the age of 43 years and 11 months. He was 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighed just under 10 stones, had a fair complexion, grey eyes, and a scar on his left shoulder. He gave his occupation as farmer, and stated his religion to be Church of England, not Wesleyan Methodist. He joined the 6th Reinforcements of the 5th Infantry Battalion of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) at Echuca. He embarked aboard H.M.A.T (His Majesty’s Australian Transports) A40 “Ceramic” at Sydney on 25th June 1915 and was taken onto the strength of the 5th Battalion at Anzac Cove on the 5th August 1915. Oliver was fatally wounded just five days after joining his Battalion. He was shot in the legs on the 10th/11th August 1915 and transferred to the Hospital Ship Gascon. He died on the 11th August and was buried at sea the same day at Gaba Tepe.
Note: also known as Kabatepe, Gaba Tepe is a headland overlooking the northern Aegean Sea on the Gallipoli Peninsular in northwestern Turkey. It was the site of an Ottoman artillery battery which constantly harassed the ANZAC troops around Anzac Cove to the north throughout the Gallipoli Campaign. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabatepe [Wikipedia 8.11.25.]. His name is commemorated on the Lone Pine War Memorial on the Gallipoli Peninsular.
His pension records survive, and an inventory of his personal effects tells us that he had a disc (ID tag), Testament (Bible), shaving brush, razor, knife and some stationary.
Photo: 1915, copyright expired, public domain https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1729224
Sergeant Harry Firth 50039
1st Canadian General Hospital, Canadian Army Medical Corps
Killed by enemy aircraft 19 May 1918 aged 36
Also commemorated on The Clock Tower, St. Matthias Church War Memorial and on his parents’ headstone in Bolsterstone Churchyard
Buried Étaples Military Cemetery, France
Harry Firth was born in Stocksbridge on the 7th July 1883 to Thomas Firth and his wife Eliza Ann nee Willis. He was baptised at the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel but he later joined the Salvation Army and gave that as his religion on official forms. Thomas had been born in France because his father had gone out there to work at Samuel Fox’s umbrella factory in Amiens. Harry worked as a joiner / builder.
In 1911 he emigrated to Canada, sailing from Liverpool and arriving in Halifax, Nova Scotia on the 22nd March. On the passenger manifest he declared that he intended to reside there permanently, and there was a stamp that said “British Bonus Allowed.” This indicates that he was a British immigrant for whom the Canadian government would pay a commission to the steamship booking agent in the UK. It was a government incentive to encourage agents to sell tickets to suitable immigrants (he would not have received this bonus himself). He was bound for Ontario and intended to work as a farm labourer and that he was also a Salvation Army Officer.
Harry enlisted in Halifax, Nova Scotia on the 2nd November 1914, joining the Army Medical Corps, Regimental Number 0746 on the 5th November. His Attestation Record records that he was 5’ 3¾” tall and had blue eyes, brown hair and a fresh complexion. His religion was Salvation Army and next-of-kin his father Thomas Firth of Horner House.
On the 18th February 1915 he arrived at Salisbury Plain in England and was transferred to No. 1 General Field Hospital C.A.M.C. with a new Regimental Number of 50039 in February. This was at Netheravon, a village on the River Avon about 4 miles north of the town of Amesbury in Wiltshire, within Salisbury Plain.
In his book Poppy People (revised edition), Michael Parker quotes from the 1st Canadian General Field Hospital’s War Diary, May 1915: The experience of the 1st Canadian General Field Hospital in common with that of the rest of the Canadians camped upon Salisbury Plain during the winter of 1914/1915, was particularly wretched. A combination of gales and rainstorms converted the soil above the chalk into liquid mud, while the incessant passage of heavy motor transport made otherwise good roads into a quagmires. The ground surrounding the hospital marquees became passable only for those with rubber knee boots. The site was found to be unsuitable for “the proper performance of the functions of a General Hospital,” and it was relocated nearby.
As an example of what the hospital had to deal with, the 1st’s War Diary dated 1st February 1915, just before Harry’s arrival, records that the previous month there were 22 deaths, with 13 of those from Epidemic Cerebro Spinal Meningitis, 7 from Pneumonia and Broncho-pneumonia, and 1 Cardiac case [one cause of death not mentioned]. 419 patients were admitted suffering from venereal disease and 128 patients were discharged. 128 major operations were carried out including 14 on hernias, 14 on mastoids [ears], and 12 on appendixes. There was also a dentist on the site.
Harry and the 1st Canadian General Field Hospital left Netheravon on the 13th May 1915 and marched to Arnesbury Station en route to Southampton and on to France. It was pouring with rain. The War Diary reported that, “When the good ship ‘Trafford Hall. pulled out of the slip at Southampton Docks at 5pm it was still drizzling rain in a monotonous, persistent way, and so most fittingly, our departure from England’s shores was a practical reminder of the cold, rain, and mud that had made Salisbury Plain a name to be remembered by all who had undergone the rigour of an unusually wet and cold winter in England.” They arrived to take up station in Étaples on the 1st July 1915. Harry was granted 5 days’ leave on 24 November from Étaples. He was granted a Good Conduct Badge in November 1916.
On the 16th August 1916 Harry made a Will, which said that in the event of his death, he bequeathd all his property (with one exception) to his mother, and appointed Arthur Lewis of 128 Greenlaw Avenue, Toronto, Canada, trading as “The Arthur Lewis Realty Co.,” as his Attorney, who would settle his Canadian effects and see that his mother received them. Arthur Lewis’s son, also called Arthur, was bequeathed a silver cornet and case.
Harry was granted 14 days’ leave on the 1st December 1917 and he returned to England and got married. How he met his wife-to-be isn’t known, but she was born in Stocksbridge and was living there when the 1911 census was taken.
Harry married at Bolsterstone Church on the 4th December 1917 to Ann Elizabeth Dyson, daughter of Dan and Lydia Dyson. She was 30 years old and lived at Lowood Villas, Deepcar and was the head mistress of the infants’ department at the Works School. Harry was 36 and his occupation “soldier.” The local newspaper reported that the wedding as “quiet,” and that they honeymooned in Buxton. He was back in France for Christmas.
In January 1918 he was appointed Clerk, with a pay rise and a 20 cents “field allowance.” He was also promoted to Corporal and in May he was appointed Lance Sergeant on the 6th May. This was not a promotion as such because it was a temporary appointment, not a permanent rank. He would have been given the authority and duties of a sergeant but typically continued to be paid only as a corporal. It could have led to a permanent promotion to sergeant later but sadly Harry was killed on the 19th May 1918 when the hospital was bombed by enemy aircraft.
Michael Parker quotes the following from the War Diary of the 1st Canadian General Hospital for 19th May: “At the close of what had been a peaceful Sunday enemy aircraft came over the camp in large numbers, at 10 pm. The hospital was wrapt in slumber when the planes were immediately overhead. The raid was obviously planned to take place in relays and during the first part stage the part that suffered most was the sleeping quarters of the personnel particularly that of the N.C.Os and men. A number of bombs, incendiary and high explosive, were dropped in the midst of the men’s quarters. Fires were immediately started which offered a splendid target for the second part of the attack. The scene was immediately converted into a conflagration and charnel house of dead and wounded men. Bombs were also dropped on the Officers and Sisters quarters, buildings being wrecked. The S.E. part of the Sisters’ quadrangle was completely wrecked by a bomb, the inmates being killed and wounded. While the work of rescuing the wounded was going on the enemy continued to drop bombs. Two of the hospital wards received direct hits and patients were killed and wounded. The portion of the staff and personnel that had escaped injury immediately attended to the needs of those who had been hit. Sisters and Officers were in attendance upon their wards in a very short time, and while the raid was in progress the operating-room Staff were working on the cases injured. The devotion to duty, with absolute disregard for personal safety, that was exhibited by all ranks is highly commendable.” The report goes on to relate that a Captain and a Sister, together with 51 other ranks, were killed in the raid and a further Captain, six Sisters and 45 other ranks were wounded. 8 patients died and a further 31 were wounded.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s website states that the area around Étaples was the scene of immense concentrations of Commonwealth reinforcement camps and hospitals. It was remote from attack, except from aircraft, and was accessible by railway from both the northern and the southern battlefields. In 1917, 100,000 troops were camped in the sand dunes and hospitals, which included eleven general hospitals, one stationary hospital, four Red Cross hospitals and a convalescent depot that could deal with 22,000 wounded or sick.
Harry was initially reported missing before being confirmed to have died and was buried at Étaples. He was 36 years old. He has a CWGC headstone with the additional inscription “Saved by Grace.” This phrase also appears in a Memoriam notice placed in the local newspaper on the anniversary of his death in 1919: “And I shall see Him face to face, And tell the story ‘Saved by Grace.’”
His widow was living at Mayfield Terrace, Deepcar, though I am not sure where this is. When the 1921 census was taken she was living with her widowed mother Lydia at Haywood Lane, along with her sister Edith. Both sisters were teachers at the Works Council School.
© Claire Pearson 2025
The Wesleyan Methodist Chapel was built at Deepcar in 1868. There were two memorial plaques, naming the fallen in WW1 and WW2. After the Primitive (West End) Methodist Chapel at Horner House, Stocksbridge, closed in 1974 (it is now the Rugby Club) their WW1 memorial plaque was moved to the Deepcar Chapel. However, this too has now closed and is a private dwelling, so both its memorial plaques and that of the “Prims” Chapel have been re-located to Christ Church, Stocksbridge (formerly the Congregational Church, or “Congs”).
Private David Ernest Gill TR/6/2471 later 97901
2nd Battalion, Sherwood Foresters (Notts & Derbys Regiment)
Died of Wounds 29 May 1918, Belgium aged 19
Also commemorated on the Bolsterstone War Memorial and The Clock Tower.
Buried Esquelbecq Military Cemetery, Nord, France.
David was the son of Willie Gill and his wife Mary nee Longden of Bolsterstone and both he and his brother Eric Longden Gill died in the War; both are remembered on the Stocksbridge Wesleyan Methodist Church Memorial. He joined up on the 26th March 1916 but was not called up for service until the following year. He joined the Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire Regiment on the 9th March 1917 at the age of 18 years and 2 months.
He was admitted to the Military Hospital in Rugeley Camp, Cannock Chase in April 1917 suffering from Cerebro Spinal Fever (meningitis). He was treated by lumbar puncture and injections and was discharged 81 days later on the 25th June on a month’s sick leave.
He was sent to France in January 1918 and was wounded on the 21st May; his record says that he suffered from gunshot wounds to his left arm, shoulder and face, and had a fracture to his left leg. He died of his wounds in Belgium on the 29th May 1918. His possessions – dice, photos, and a cigarette case – were sent on to his sister at the family home, Holly Bush [Hollin Busk], Bolsterstone. His headstone bears the additional inscription “Greater love hath no man than this.”
2nd Lieutenant Eric Gill
2nd/4th (Hallamshire) (TF) Battalion, York & Lancaster Regiment (no service number is given in the CWGC records)
Killed in action 30 November 1917 aged 26
Also commemorated on Bolsterstone War Memorial and The Clock Tower
Buried Lebucquiere Cemetery Extension, Pas de Calais, France.
Eric was the son of Willie and Mary Gill of Bolsterstone and both he and his brother David Ernest died in the War. David was 19 years old and Eric was 26. An obituary was printed in the local newspaper the following month which said that Eric had joined up about 18 months ago, and that he was formerly on the staff of the British School. “He was a very enthusiastic church worker, a teacher in Sunday School, a member of the choir, and was highly esteemed throughout the neighbourhood.”He was buried in Lebucquiere Cemetery Extension, Pas de Calais, France and his headstone bears the additional inscription “Until the day dawn and the shadows flee away.”
Private Walter Johnson 40967
South Wales Borderers
Killed in Action 18 October 1918
Also commemorated on the Clock Tower
Buried Busigny cemetery, France
In his book Poppy People (the revised edition), Michael Parker had been unable to find anything out about Walter, and thought that he might have been born locally in 1893 to Robert Johnson and his wife Minnie nee Wilson who lived at Brick Lump, Hunshelf Bank. The 1911 and 1921 census returns had not been released when Michael did his research, and I have been able to ascertain that this is the wrong Walter. I found him on the 1911 census, aged 17 years old and working in Fox’s as a “steel rail worker.” However, I also found him on the 1921 census, alive and well. Michael hadn’t been sure he had the right Walter, and there were far too many results in the various searches he carried out to check each one. So, with the benefit of the 1911 and 1921 census returns, and the new online birth indexes at the GRO and parish baptisms at Findmypast, I have finally been able to identify the correct Walter.Walter had been born at Grammar Street, Walkley in 1896 and was the son of Walter Johnson (a gas stoker, born Essex c1870) and Rosa Hazell (born London c1872). The 1911 census records Walter living with his family at 197 Ford Lane, Stocksbridge. He was working for Fox’s in the engine room. At some point they moved further towards Sheffield, to Rawson Street, which is just off Penistone Road and not far from Grammar Street. It seems as if Walter senior continued to work for Fox’s, whilst Walter junior went to work for Hadfield’s.Walter enlisted in the army in February 1917, joining the South Wales Borderers. I don’t know why he didn’t join a local regiment. On the 21st April 1917 he married Kate Alice Olive Simpson at St. Bartholomew’s Church on Langsett Road. His address was 29 Rawson Street, and his occupation was soldier. Kate was living at Cottam Street, not far from Rawson Street. Walter was 21, and Kate was three months off her 21st birthday.In May 1917, after three months’ training, and a month after his marriage, he was sent to France. The local newspaper for 27 April 1918 reported that Walter had been wounded in his left arm by a bullet from a machine gun, but that he was “progressing favourably” in Norwich Hospital. The report mentioned that he had formerly attended the Stocksbridge Wesleyan Church. Having survived this ordeal, he was sent back to France, but this time he was not so lucky; he was killed in action on the 18th October 1918, less than a month before Armistice Day. His death was announced in the local newspaper, and a short obituary was also published with a photograph. His parents announced his death, and at the same time placed an “In Memoriam” notice for their son John Henry, who had died at Lodge Moor Hospital on the 15th November 1917 aged 4 years and 9 months. There was no mention of Walter’s wife in the notice, and she does not appear to have placed her own notice in the newspapers. She married again in 1920 to Henry Croxton. Walter was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
Photograph: printed in the Penistone, Stocksbridge and Hoyland Express 27 April 1918, p6
Gunner Alec Attwood Leather 84503
151st Siege Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery
Killed in Action: 19 May 1918
Also commemorated on local memorials at The Clock Tower and St. Matthias Church War Memorial.
He is also remembered on his mother’s gravestone, and on those of his paternal grandmother Ellen Leather and his maternal grandparents Thomas and Jane Stokes.
Buried Nouex-Les-Mines Communal Cemetery Extension, Pas de Calais, France
Alec was born at Haywoods Park on the 16th July 1898 to John Henry Leather and his wife Florence Kate Stokes. He was baptised at the Wesleyan Methodist chapel a few weeks later. His mother Kate had been born in West Bromwich in 1871 to Thomas Stokes and his wife Jane Attwood. She was only a year or two old when her parents moved to Deepcar. She married John Henry Leather in 1894. Alec was born a year later, but he was only around 16 months old when his mother died in November 1896. He was then brought up by his maternal grandparents at 110/111 Haywoods Park. He followed his grandfather into the painting and decorating trade, and his grandmother ran a corner shop from home. His father John Henry Leather married again in 1903 to Ada Howson.Alec attested into the Royal Regiment of Artillery (Royal Garrison Artillery) on the 10th December 1915. His service record tells us that he was 5’ 9” tall and weighed 140 pounds (10 stones); he had a mole on his right arm and two scars on the back of his neck.After six months he was posted to France, and was there from the 14th June 1916 until he was killed in action on the 19th May 1918. He was buried in the Nouex-Les-Mines Communal Cemetery Extension, Pas de Calais, France. The local newspaper printed a photograph along with the notice of his death, and noted that the Major in command wrote in his letter to Alec’s family that he “was one of the best men in the battery.” The newspaper also noted that Alec had spent all his life with his grandfather, Mr. Stokes, and that prior to enlistment he had assisted him in his business.A list of his effects was included in his service record. Parts of it are too faded to read, but his possessions included 2 cigarette cases, 2 knives, a pipe, a matchbox, 2 pairs of scissors, a pencil, a cap badge, various razors and a razor strop (for sharpening them), a shaving brush, mirror, pocket book, wallet, Testament (Bible), 2 razors, Testament, shaving soap, dice, letters, photos and cards. Alec was awarded the British War and Victory Medals.
Gunner Amos Perkins 156061
244th Siege Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery
Killed in Action 13 September 1917 aged 28
Also commemorated on The Clock Tower
Buried Artillery Wood Cemetery, Leper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium [“Leper” is the historical English name for the Belgium city of Ypres in Flanders]
Amos Perkins was born in 1889 to William Perkins and Hannah nee Elliott. He married Hannah Lindley in 1912 and worked as a butcher at the Co-op. Amos had been born in Oughtibridge but his family lived on Victoria Street and then on Victoria Road at a house called South View. Their first child, Eric, was born locally in 1913 but by the time their second child, Marjorie was born, in 1914, they were living in Stockport, Cheshire. A third child, Hannah, was born in Stockport in 1916. Amos’s army service record does not appear to have survived, but it is known that he enlisted in Stockport. Hannah had moved back to this area by 1918; daughter Marjorie died here in 1918 aged three. When Amos was killed she was living at Holly Bush (Hollin Busk), and the 1921 census places her at 138 Manchester Road, Deepcar.Amos would have probably gone over to France in January 1917, and he was killed in action later that year, on 13 September. This could have been at the Third Battle of Ypres. He was buried in the Artillery Wood Cemetery at Ieper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium. In his book Poppy People (revised edition) Michael Parker writes that Hannah never recovered from the death of her husband and that she always set a place for him at the table at mealtimes. The children were apparently raised by her Lindley relations. Reporting his death, the local newspaper noted that Amos was employed in the butchering department at the Co-operative Stores and that he was the fourth person from that department who had given up their lives for their country. Amos was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
Private Willie Sanderson 36411
8th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment
Killed in Action 7 June 1917
Also commemorated on The Clock Tower and Deepcar St. John’s Church War Memorial
Commemorated at: Ypres (Menin Gate) War Memorial
In his book Poppy People, Michael Parker had been unable to uncover anything about Willie, there being many W. Sandersons who could have fitted the bill, but recently released records have enabled me to find out who he was and add some personal details to his bio. The Pension Ledgers revealed that Willie had a wife, Blanche, and once I knew that I was able to research his life.Willie had been born in Oughtibridge in 1895 to Thomas Sanderson and his wife Ann Ellen nee Hands. They lived behind the Filesmith’s Arms on Langsett Road. After his father died in 1906, Ann Ellen moved to Wortley Road, Deepcar, and when the 1911 census was taken, Willie was working in Fox’s in the axle mill. In 1912 she married again to a widower called Jonathan Spooner. Willie enlisted into the York & Lancaster Regiment at Birdwell, later transferring to the Yorkshire Regiment. His service number also changed at some point. His service record doesn’t appear to have survived, so it is not known when he joined up, but when he married Blanche Ibbotson in February 1917 he was already a soldier.In fact, it seems that he joined up in November 1914, when he was recorded as one of the great many men being treated for dysentery in September 1916, the record book noted that he had been in service for 1 year and 10 months. First World War Soldiers’ Medical Records, stamped 30th Casualty Clearing Station [at Findmypast].Willie was killed in action on the 7th June 1917 and has no known grave. He had been married just four months. He is remembered on a stone panel at the Ypres (Menin Gate) War Memorial in Belgium. He was awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal.
Private Benton Shaw 2356
1st/4th (Hallamshire) (TF) Battalion York & Lancaster Regiment
Killed in Action 9 October 1916 two months short of his 23rd birthday
Also commemorated on local memorials at: Bolsterstone, The Clock Tower and Deepcar St. John’s Church
Buried Étaples Military Cemetery, France
Benton Shaw was born at The Royd, Deepcar, on 22nd December 1893 to James Thomas Shaw and his wife Emily nee Pickford. When he was still a child, his family moved to the Attercliffe/Darnall area of Sheffield. They stayed there from around 1895 until 1909. They were living at Park View, Deepcar when the 1911 census was taken; Benton was working as a trammer in a coal mine. When Benton was killed they were living at 90 Haywoods Park.He enlisted into the York & Lancaster Regiment in Sheffield in 1914 and was sent to France. The local newspaper reported in July 1915 that he had been wounded in “a recent engagement,” as had several other men from the same company; Private Willie Ackroyd, Private Herbert Marsden, Private Harry Ridal and Private Ernest Taylor. Benton had been shot in the shoulder, and Herbert Marsden had been wounded by shrapnel in his head. Benton was said to be “going on nicely” in a home for convalescent soldiers at Le Havre, France. Having recovered from this injury, Benton was once again in the thick of things. But he was wounded again on the 7th October and died from his injuries two days later in the 20th General Hospital in Amiens. His elder brother had just been home on leave before leaving for the front again.The local newspaper printed extracts from Benton’s last letter home in its edition of 16th October 1915.“My dear parents. I hope you will not think I have forgotten you with not writing to you before, but I really have not had the time. I came up here with the entrenching battalion on Thursday noon, and we were travelling in those rotten cattle trucks all Saturday night, so you can guess we were all ready to get out when we reached our destination. Out battalion was in the trenches at the time we landed here, so we stayed the night at headquarters, and then came into the trenches last night and joined the lads again. It does not seem like it did before I got wounded, for there are a lot of old faces missing, and a lot of new ones in their places; but, still, it is not so bad to be amongst the boys again. We are in the trenches and supports for 24 days, and then we go out for 12 days’ rest, so it will seem a long time for the twenty-fourth day to come, as this is only the third day towards it. The position we are in at present is a treat compared to the one in which I got wounded, and by what the lads tell me it stands need to be, for they have had it very bad since I went away. Our company had a very severe blow one time when they were in reserve, for a shell dropped right in the midst of them, so you can guess for yourself what it is like in this part of the line. I had the pleasure of witnessing a duel in the air last Thursday morning between an English and a German airman, which ended in the latter being brought to earth with a crash. We were laid down in our tents having a rest previous to starting our journey, when he heard the sound of machine-gun fire, and thinking it strange we all went out of the tent, and saw the aeroplane duel. Our airman managed to get over the German some way or other (after having fired a round or two at him), and he succeeded in dropping a bomb right on top of him, and of course then put the finishing touch to him, and down he came toppling over times out of number till he reached earth, not half a mile away from us; but they would not let us go and look so we gave vent to our feelings with cheering the English airman to the echo. Well I am very glad to say I am still in the pink of condition, and I hope you are all at home. Give all the children a big kiss from me, and remember me to all the neighbours.” He was awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal.
Photo printed in the Penistone, Stocksbridge and Hoyland Express 30 October 1915
Private Ernest Tingle 53746
1st/8th Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales’s Own)
Killed in Action: 30 September 1918 aged 19
Also commemorated on The Clock Tower, Deepcar St. John’s Church and Bolsterstone War Memorials
Buried Masnieres British Cemetery, Marcoing, France
Ernest Tingle was born in Deepcar on the 17th September 1899, the only son of Edwin Tingle and his wife Harriet nee Widdowson. Before joining up in Sheffield, Ernest worked for the Stocksbridge Co-operative Society. He was only nineteen years old when he was killed in action in France, shot by a sniper on the 30th September 1918. He died less than two weeks after his birthday and less than two months before Armistice Day. His mother had died in 1916 aged just 40, leaving his father mourning both the loss of his wife and his son. His father married again in 1919 to Annie Rich. Ernest was buried in the Masnieres British Cemetery at, Marcoing, France and an additional personal inscription was added that reads, “Angels are guarding our dear one, we know we shall meet him again.” He was awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal.
Photo printed in the Penistone, Stocksbridge and Hoyland Express 19 October 1918, p6
Private George Whittaker G/19234
9th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment
Killed in Action 4 November 1918
Also commemorated on The Clock Tower, Deepcar St. John’s Church War Memorial and Bolsterstone War Memorial. Buried Villers-Pol Communal Cemetery Extension, France
George was born on the 1st May 1899 to Alfred Whittaker and his wife Ruth nee Burkinshaw. They lived at Old Haywoods, Deepcar. George enlisted in Sheffield but for some reason was not in a local regiment; he was first a Private in the Royal Fusiliers, service number G/81829,and when he died he was serving as a Private in the 9th Battalion of the Royal Sussex Regiment. George would have been conscripted when he turned 18 in mid-1917. He was killed in Action on the 4th November 1918, one week before Armistice Day and is buried at Villers-Pol Communal Cemetery Extension, France. The personal inscription on his headstone reads, “Until the Day Breaks.” He was 19 years and months old. George was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. His family – his mother and father and his two sisters Gertie and Hilda – placed In Memoriam notices in the local newspaper for several years on the anniversary of his death. In 1921 they wrote, “a daily thought, an everlasting sorrow.”
Private Joseph Whittaker 29843
13th Labour Corps, Durham Light Infantry
Killed in Action 9 January 1918
Also commemorated on the Clock Tower.
Buried Duhallow A.D.S. Cemetery, Ieper, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium
Formerly 5024 K.O.Y.L.I. although the CWGC notes that he was Private J. Whittaker 29843 Durham Light Infantry 25th Works Battalion and under the heading “Secondary Unit” that he transferred to 169728 13th Company Labour CorpsService Number 169728 also appears to have been attached to a Joseph H. Whittaker who was 40 years old when he enlisted 1 October 1916 into the Y&L Regiment. The Army could find no trace of Joseph Whittaker in the Y&L records.
This is the most challenging piece of research I have ever done in regard to the names on our local war memorials, and I am still not sure of all the facts. Writing in his book Poppy People (revised edition) Michael Parker thought that Joseph might have lived at Haywood Park with his grandmother Harriet Whittaker. I don’t think he was certain of this, and neither was I for a while. Even the army were unsure, confused him with two other men. In the end, Joseph’s Service Record, confusing thought it is, contained a letter from his brother Frank, which helped to confirm the identity of the Joseph Whittaker on our local war memorials.
Joseph was born on the 10th December 1886 to Benjamin Whittaker and his wife Martha Ann Butcher. His brother Frank had been born in 1879. When the 1891 census was taken Benjamin was recorded as being married, but his wife was not with him. He and his sons were living with his mother Harriet. I couldn’t find Martha Ann on the 1891 census, though there is a possibility she was recorded at the Wadsley Asylum. Benjamin died in 1897 and he and Frank were still living with their grandmother at Haywood Park when the 1901 census was taken. I have been unable to find Joseph on the 1911 census, but his brother Frank had married and moved to Hoyle Mill, Barnsley.For some reason Joseph did not join a local regiment. Michael Parker wrote that Joseph joined the York and Lancaster Regiment with the service number 169728 and this number is repeated on the websites Soldiers Died in the Great War and The CWGC. HOWEVER, on some pages of Joseph’s Service Record this number is allocated to a Joseph H. Whittaker, who was 40 years old when he enlisted with the York and Lancaster Regiment on the 1st October 1916. The next record on the roll is for Joseph Whittaker but the service no. is illegible. It seems the army too had got confused because there are letters dating from after Joseph was killed saying there was no trace of Joseph serving with the Y&L and that a mistake had been made, confusing him with Joseph H. Joseph enlisted on the 7th March 1916 aged 29 years and 2 months. His casualty form records him being transferred to the Y&L but this seems to be an error. There is a great deal of paperwork, often duplicated and often confusing, not to mention faded and illegible, but what I can be certain of are the details his brother had for him when he wrote in 1919 asking for news; he gave his details as Pte. J. Whittaker 29843, 13th Labour Corps, Durham Light Infantry. He wrote from his address at Hoyle Mill on the 1st September 1919 saying, “A line to ask you if you can tell me the whereabouts of 29843 Pte. Joseph Whittaker 13 Coy. Labour Corps from whom we have heard nothing since January 1918. He has no parents and I his brother would like to know if he is living or dead.” This lack of communication is because the Army had notified the wrong person about Joseph’s death. They had written to the father of a soldier called Henry Whittaker, who lived in Leeds, to tell him that his son had been killed. Much paperwork was generated by this, and several letters are in the file from Henry’s father, venting his frustration at trying to get answers about the mix-up. Given the above confusion, I am not sure if the many misdemeanours in the Service Record relate to Joseph Whittaker or Joseph H. Whittaker (sometimes referred to as Joseph A. Whittaker!). I do not want to blacken Joseph’s character should this not be him, but I include it because I think it is of interest. This soldier obviously did not want to be a soldier, and I am sure we can find some sympathy for him. The service number is 169728 Labour Corps, but the name as recorded is both Joseph and Joseph A.
Joseph was stationed at Clipstone Camp, a huge army training camp near Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, which housed tens of thousands of soldiers. It was built in 1915 and was a complex of wooden huts, trenches and shooting ranges, and also had a hospital and a church. He was in in trouble from almost the day started at Clipstone until the day he went to France, receiving many stoppages of pay and detention orders. Offences included malingering, refusing an order (several times), using obscene language to an N.C.O., deserting, losing his equipment, breaking out of barracks and remaining absent until arrested by civilian police at Rotherham, being improperly dressed on parade, being AWOL (several times), attempting to break out of camp without a pass, attempting to travel from Mansfield to Worksop without a pass, reporting as sick without a cause, and being absent from parade (several times). Another sheet is included but this is for J. A. Whittaker, 13 Labour Co., enlisted October 1916, Service Number obscured. It is for offences “in the field” but is it for the same man? There is a list of similar offences beginning 11 September 1917, ending with “killed in action” 9 January 1918. Offences were: having a dirty kit at inspection, being absent from parade, being in a dirty and verminous condition, neglecting and causing a shirt and blanket to be destroyed.
Joseph was posted to France from the 20th August 1917 and he was killed in action on the 9th January 1918. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission notes that Private J. Whittaker 29843 of the Durham Light Infantry 25th Works Battalion was buried at Buried Duhallow A.D.S. Cemetery in Belgium. Michael Parker wrote that Duhallow was an Advanced Dressing Station whose accompanying cemetery contains (amongst many others) the graves of 41 men of the 13th Company Labour Corps. who were killed when a German aircraft dropped a bomb on an ammunition truck in January 1918; these men are buried in Plot II, which is where Joseph was buried. This could be how he met his demise.
Guardsman George Woodcock 24914
3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards
Killed in Action 4 December 1916
Also commemorated on the Clock Tower
Commemorated at Thiepval Memorial, Somme, France
Also remembered in Leicestershire at: All Saint’s Church, Kimcote cum Walton; Baptist Chapel, Walcote cum Kimcote; Memorial Hall, Walton cum Kimcote.
George Woodcock was born in Stocksbridge in 1894 to Robert Woodcock and his wife Emma Jane nee Faulkner who had married at Bolsterstone Church 10 June 1894. Robert died in October 1895 when George was only a year old; he was only twenty years of age. When the 1901 census was taken young George was with his maternal grandparents Joseph and Jane Faulkner at 78 Haywood Park. His mother was working as a housekeeper to John Bradbury who lived next door. Emma Jane had been born in Stocksbridge but her parents came from Lutterworth in Leicestershire, and when the 1911 census was taken she was living in Walton, Lutterworth. George was with her, aged 16, and working as a farm labourer. Several more children had been born to Emma, but no father was in evidence. George enlisted into the Grenadier Guards at Lutterworth early in the war, and was killed in France on the 4th December 1916. He has no known grave, and is commemorated on a panel at the Thiepval Memorial, Somme, in France. As well as being remembered on our local war memorials he is also remembered on three more in the vicinity of Lutterworth. He was awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal.
Gunner William James Woodhead 46608
24th Trench Mortar Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery
Died of Wounds 28 March 1916 aged 35 France & Flanders
Also commemorated on The Clock Tower and St. Matthias Church War Memorials
Commemorated at Lijssentoek Military Cemetery, Belgium
William James was born at 60 Haywoods Park, Deepcar on the 20th November 1880, the son of William James Woodhead and his wife Harriet nee Spivey. His father died in 1888. By the time the 1901 census was taken, William James junior had joined the army and was resident at the Defensible Barracks at Pembroke Dock in Wales. He was a gunner in the Royal Garrison Artillery. By the time the 1911 census was taken he was back with his family at Haywoods Park, working as a labourer in the steelworks. His mother died in 1913. William’s Service Record does not appear to have survived, but we do know that he went back into the Royal Garrison Artillery as a Gunner. “Soldiers Died in the Great War” records that he was born at Batley, which is untrue, and that he enlisted at Dewsbury, which I have not been able to verify.Not much is known about his time in the RGA, but there is a record of him being hospitalised with influenza in November 1915. He died of wounds on the 28th March 1916 aged 35 and is commemorated at the Lijssentoek Military Cemetery in Belgium. William was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal as well as the 1914-1915 Star. The latter was issued to men who saw service in any theatre of war between 5th August 1914 and 31st December 1915. All three medals were sometimes irreverently referred to as Pip, Squeak and Wilfred.
Sapper Charles Cyril Spivey 476773
Royal Engineers
Also commemorated on the Clock Tower and Bolsterstone War Memorial
Known by his middle name of Cyril
Died 3 November 1921
Buried in Bolsterstone Churchyard
Cyril’s name is on this War Memorial, but it is out of alphabetical sequence, having been added on at the end of the Roll of Honour. The same thing has happened with his name on The Clock Tower. This is because he died after hostilities had ended. However, his death was still related to his war service, meaning he was entitled to be listed on the memorials. Because he survived the War, his details do not appear on the databases Soldiers Died in the Great War, or the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, but his Service Record is available.
Charles Cyril was born on the 2nd August 1891 at Old Haywoods, Deepcar, and was the son of John and Ann. His mother ran a grocer’s shop from their home on Manchester Road. Cyril worked as a bricklayer’s labourer before enlisting, and three months after War broke out he married Ellen Hague at Bolsterstone Church, on the 1st November 1914. A son, Cyril Reginald, was born in 1916. Cyril enlisted at Sheffield on the 7th June 1915, joining the Royal Engineers. His age was given as 23 years and 10 months. He had light hair, blue eyes, a fair complexion and was between 5’ 7½ and 5’ 9” (reports vary), and his vision and health were said to be good.
After his training, Cyril sailed to France in mid-November 1915, seeing service in France, the Dardanelles and Egypt. He was invalided home six months later on the 2nd June 1916 suffering from heart disease. This had first become apparent the previous month. He was officially discharged at Chatham on the 14th November 1917 as being “No longer physically fit for War Service.” The medical opinion was that his illness was “not the result of, but aggravated by, service during present war.” He went to work as a boiler firer and then as a ganister breaker for Gregory Reddish & Co.’s Silica Firebrick manufacturers at Deepcar.
Cyril was awarded the Silver War Badge, which was issued on the 5th February 1918. This was an award given to British service members during World War I who were honourably discharged due to wounds, illness, or age, allowing them to prove their service to a public that sometimes harassed them with white feathers, thinking them to be cowards. He was also awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal
Tragedy struck on the evening of Thursday 25th July 1918 when Cyril Reginald was killed whilst playing with other children in the road. The car belonged to the Empire Trading Stamp Company and was being driven by George Derry Evans, of Langsett Road. He had seen the children in the road and had sounded his horn, but young Cyril stepped back towards the car and was killed instantly. He was two years old. At the inquest, the driver was exonerated from all blame, and the verdict was “Accidental Death.” In 1919 Cyril and Ellen had another child, a daughter they named Ada.
Cyril’s Army Service Record contains medical reports. He was admitted to the Wharncliffe War Hospital at Middlewood with infective endocarditis, a rare and potentially fatal infection of the inner lining of the heart. On the 30th October 1921 he was discharged at his own request, and against the advice of doctors, but he was said to have been “very anxious to spend his last weeks at home” and was “very seriously ill.” He died on the 3rd November and was 30 years old. Cyril and his father John died within a few hours of each other at Cliffe View Cottage, Haywood Lane. Both died of heart disease. Cyril’s cause of death was valvular heart disease and congestion of the lungs, whilst his father’s was heart disease and oedema. John was 30 years old. They were buried together in the same grave. Cyril’s obituary noted that he was “actively connected with the Wesleyan Chapel.” Cyril wasn’t eligible for a CWGC headstone because he died a couple of months after the cut-off date of 31 August 1921.
Cyril’s brother Vincent Joseph of Ash Lane was the informant of both his brother’s death and his father’s, being present at the death in both cases. Tragedy had struck in January 1919 when his 20-year-old daughter Minnie, a teacher, died from burns she had sustained at her home.
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