GM1914 First World War Stories by Archives+

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION

TRAGEDY ON THE HOME FRONT: MUNITIONS EXPLOSION IN ASHTON

‘GOOD DAY AND GOOD LUCK’

STOCKPORT SCHOOLS AND MILITARY HOSPITALS

A NURSE’S STORY: PHYLLIS NIELD OF STOCKPORT

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS: WARTIME LETTERS TO A STOCKPORT HEADMASTER

THE SAD STORY OF SHADRACH AND ANNIE CRITCHLEY; A WW1 TRAGEDY IN WESTLEIGH

THE LUSITANIA

THE BIRKENHEAD CASE – WRIGHT ROBINSON AND CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS

BROTHERS IN ARMS – FRANK AND LAURENCE PRENDIVILLE

WWI: AN ARMENIAN STORY

SHOT AT DAWN AND AN APPEAL FOR FORGIVENESS – A MOVING STORY FROM BOLTON’S ARCHIVES

HOWITZERS IN WESTHOUGHTON

‘DOING THEIR BIT’ – WOMEN MUNITIONS WORKERS IN BOLTON

ZEPPELIN OVER BOLTON

BELGIAN REFUGEES – FINDING SANCTUARY IN ROYTON

‘THE OLDHAM SUFFRAGIST’

THE TANK BANK IN OLDHAM

BELGIAN REFUGEES IN STRETFORD

SIR JOHN LEIGH OF ALTRINCHAM

SECOND LIEUTENANT MARK HOVELL, MA (1888-1916)

A SALFORD STORY – JACK TRENBATH

90 2

INTRODUCTION TO GM1914 2014 marked the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. The Greater Manchester Archives and Local Studies Partnership realised that they held a wealth of information on the Great War in their collections, so working together they set up a volunteersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; project to research and share some of the stories from their archives. Making use of the power of social media, a blog, GM1914, was set up. GM1914 has been used to share stories from the Greater Manchester area for the past two years, and it is hoped that it will also be a resource for the future, publicising the fascinating historical information held in the local collections of Wigan, Tameside, Stockport, Salford, Trafford, Bury, Oldham, Bolton, Rochdale and Manchester. Volunteers from a wide range of ages and backgrounds have been exploring collections, seeking out the personal and local stories relating to the Great War. From diaries, letters and newspaper articles there are tales of torpedoed ships, eye witness accounts from the trenches and munitions factory fraud.

Photograph collections provide a picture of men in uniform and women at work. There are images of war horses in France, camel troops on the eastern front, hospital patients and training camps. The Greater Manchester Record Office alone has uploaded over 3000 World War One photos onto its Manchester Archives Flickr photostream. These photographs and documents reveal some unexpected aspects of the war, especially on the home front. They tell us personal stories rather than official versions of wartime history. We have stories about the experiences of the German community living in Manchester at the outbreak of the war. Oldham tells of the warm welcome given to Belgian refugees at the beginning of the war. Conscientious objectors as well as local pals regiments have all been represented in our blog posts. The last veterans who fought in the war are no longer with us, but they have left their stories in archive documents and photographs. We can bring these stories to life again, and share them with present and future generations.

Link to blog: http://gm1914.wordpress.com/ 4

TRAGEDY ON THE HOME FRONT: MUNITIONS EXPLOSION IN ASHTON

This blog post was written by Laura Earnshaw, a volunteer at Tameside Archives and Local Studies.

Ashton Munitions Explosion, Wednesday 13th June, 1917 There is a story in my family that my Great-Great Aunt was seated in the dentists’ waiting room, and as she got up and went through the door to the surgery, the waiting room blew in! Beyond this family legend, I had not heard of the Ashton Munitions Explosion until a few weeks ago; this is something I truly appreciate about this blog; that local histories and stories are now finding a new audience! I have predominantly researched the event from The Ashton Munitions Explosion 1917 written by amateur historians, John Billings and David Copland, and held at Tameside Local Studies and Archive Centre. I also looked at the original news stories, as reported in the Ashton Reporter (dates 16/06/17; 23/06/17; 30/06/17; 07/07/17; 14/07/17; 28/07/17), though these were mainly ‘shock’ stories of the horrific injuries of the dead and wounded, and the destruction caused by the explosion.

What Happened? The Hooley Hill Munitions factory was located on William Street, in the Portland Place Ward of Ashton-under-Lyne, next to the canal. The Ward was the site of several mills and businesses, and around 2000 houses.

Illustration: A drawing of the layout of Hooley Hill Mill, The Ashton Munitions Explosion 1917

On the afternoon of Wednesday 13th June, Chief Chemist and co-founder of the Hooley Hill Rubber and Chemical Company, Sylvain Dreyfus, was in the nitrating house with chemist Nathan Daniels, when the mixture in nitrator No.9 began leaking, catching fire as it fell on the wooden staging surrounding it. Fellow chemist Frank Slater immediately attempted to roll the barrels of T.N.T out of the building to avoid an explosion, but he succumbed to the fumes and collapsed; lab assistant John Morton raised the alarm, and removed Slaterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s collapsed body, as the factory set alight, detonating 5 tons of T.N.T. The Hooley Hill Rubber and Chemical Company opened in March 1915 by Sylvain Dreyfus and Lucien Gaisman. Originally contracted to produce 10 tons of T.N.T a week, by 1916 they delivered 22.5 tons weekly, as need grew. Billings and Copland suggest that the entrenchment and machinery of the First World War meant that high explosives were needed in greater volume than ever before. The State could not produce enough ammunition with its existing factories, so, with the formation of a new Ministry of Munitions in 1915, with greater powers, it could increase private 6

contracts to produce the T.N.T required for the increased munitions, explosives and artillery used. Indeed, 76 million tons was produced in 1917, compared to the half a million tons produced by Britain in 1914. One such contract was won by Dreyfus and Gaisman in 1915, for their new factory in Ashton-under-Lyne.

Illustration: Plot of the damage wrought by the explosion, made on 1909 map of Ashtonunder-Lyne.

46 people were killed by the explosion on the 13th June 1917, as the nitrating house set on fire, detonating 5 tons of T.N.T and igniting two gasometers in flames. 120 people were hospitalised, with another 300-400 more with minor injuries caused mainly by the windows shattered in the surrounding mills.

The Hooley Hill Mill itself was obliterated, the waste acid tanks blown into the canal.

Railway workers on the adjacent line were killed outright, and the tracks themselves bent. Of the school children playing nearby, who had come to see the explosion, eleven died from injury. The glass windows in the surrounding mills blew in, injuring workers inside; windows in shops in King Street in Dukinfield were also reported as shattered. Clayton’s Mill caught fire, and Bridge End Mill collapsed. Houses were peppered with debris: approximately 100 were demolished, though the Ashton Reporter stated that Spring Grove Terrace “caught the full force” (16/06/1917). The sewage works were also damaged, and the gas works were eventually shut, due to pipe damage. Of the men near the nitrating house, John Morton survived, as did Frank Slater, though he was burnt in the explosion. Unfortunately, Nathan Daniels died four days later, from burns sustained: Dreyfus was cut in two by the explosion, and only identified by his initials in his clothing.

Sleeping in’ tag for Cecilia Pathson, who slept at West End School when her house was damaged

The Ashton Relief Fund It is difficult to convey the full extent of the devastation wrought by the explosion – The Ashton Reporter described the area as “square mile of desolation” (16/06/17). The Mill had blown up at around 4.30pm on 13th June. By the evening, Ashton Town Council had created three sub-committees to deal with the after-effects of the tragedy, overseeing the burials of those killed, and the feeding and housing of the homeless, of which there were approximately 2000. Mayor Alderman Heap had also founded the Ashton Relief Fund to raise money to compensate those affected, until such a time as the insurance money could be paid. Indeed Lord Beaverbrook gave the first £500 – he had been sent by the government as a “representative to assist in the provision of state compensation”. As Max Aitken however, he had been elected as MP for the Ashton Unionist Party constituency, and served until his peerage in 1916. To raise money for the Fund, poems were sold and charity concerts and Cricket matches put on. George Formby Sr. even performed at the Theatre Royal on the 30th June, and held an auction afterwards. By August 1917 £10,000 had been 9

raised to feed, accommodate and be distributed to those affected: when the Fund was closed in June 1919, ÂŁ11,700 had been given in support to those wounded or families left without a home or breadwinner by the explosion, until the Government could arrange compensation. The Government had previously covered the cost of Third Party claims at the Silverton Munitions Explosion in January 1917, an incident which killed 69 people. On the 25th June the Ministry of Munitions announced that it would pay third party claims at the Ashton Munitions Explosion and an office was set up at Clarence Arcade, Stamford Street.

Paper handkerchief to commemorate the Ashton Explosion 13th June 1917

The public funerals for those killed were held on Sunday 17th June. The corteges were stationed in front of the Town Hall, with the flags at half-mast. The horse drawn funeral and mourning carriages were accompanied to the cemetery by the Town officials, Council members, clergy, and the bands of the Manchester Regiment and Salvation Army, with crowds of around 250,000 people following behind with mounted police. The families only, attended the funerals at Dukinfield Cemetery, 10

while 10,000 “sightseers”, paid 3d to the Ashton Relief Fund in order to see the remains of the factory site.

The mass funeral held for the victims

Inquest and Inquiry A Government investigation into the cause of the explosion was undertaken by Dr. Edward Edgar, “government scientist and inspector”. Sylvain Dreyfus had been experimenting with a new technique of creating T.N.T before the explosion, though he had kept the details secret until he could determine if it would work. Though the report did confirm that this new method of production did increase instability, it must be remembered that the Government at the time had no powers to determine how T.N.T was produced by its private suppliers, and was only entitled to monthly inspections of new munitions factories while they were under construction, or if they were behind in production. It must also be remembered however that the proprietors of the Hooley Hill Mill did take safety precautions. The Mill had fireproofing measures, the wooden decking surrounding the nitrators was an acknowledged danger, and, with the increased production of T.N.T by the factory, steps had been taken to remedy this. Labour and materials were scarce, however, 11

and though Dreyfus had prioritised it, the Ministry of Munitions did not issue ‘priority certificates’ as the replacement of woodwork was not “absolutely necessary”, only desirable. Work was thus slow. Following the investigation, a Secret Report was produced on the 16th August 1917, the conclusions of which agreed with the verdict of the public inquest on the 12th July, a month previously. The conclusion of ‘Accidental Death’ after the nitrating pan boiled over, causing a fire and explosion was reached by both the Inquiry and the Public Inquests (Sylvain Dreyfus, death certificate, Billings and Copland, Notes, page 46). The site of the Hooley Hill Rubber and Chemical Company was put up for auction on 9th December 1918, with the remaining T.N.T sent to Wales for destruction. The Ashton Reporter (30/06/17) printed letters from soldiers serving abroad responding to news of the munitions explosion in Ashton-under-Lyne, including responses from ‘former Ashtonians’ living in Canada. The outpouring of grief and the support offered to those who had lost loved ones, homes or jobs was phenomenal in this tragedy in Ashton’s wartime history.

Sources o The Ashton Munitions Explosion 1917 by John Billings and David Copland, published by Tameside Leisure and Heritage Division, Tameside MBC, 1992 (ISBN 0904506177) o The Ashton Reporter o Items held at Tameside Local Studies and Archive Centre

‘GOOD DAY AND GOOD LUCK’

This blog post was written by Laura Earnshaw, a volunteer at Tameside Archives and Local Studies. In researching the Dukinfield branch of the Queen Mary’s Needlework Guild, I have read wonderful, poignant and sometimes humourous letters from men at the front line of the First World War, writing their thanks to the Mayor and the Guild ladies for the clothing parcels they had received. These letters are snapshots of individuals, and their experiences, but they are also a testament to the women of the Needlework Guild, and their work under the Chairmanship of Mrs. Kenyon. The Needlework Guild was known to the men by different names; for example, Private W. Crosdale refers to it as the “Queen Mary’s Guild Fund for Soldiers and Sailors”. The Guild aimed to make up a parcel of 2 shirts and 2 pairs of socks, and some scarves, to send to the Dukinfield soldiers and sailors serving in the war, via their wives and mothers. In researching the Guild, I learned of its long history providing clothing for those in need. Formed in 1882 by Lady Wolverton, by 1897 the future Queen Mary had become its patron. It was re-named the Queen Mary’s Needlework Guild in 1914, and with branches throughout the Empire, began making and sorting clothing for troops. Dukinfield volunteers formed the Dukinfield Volunteer Defence Corps in September 1914 – later the 5th VB Cheshire Regiment. This patriotic spirit and great sense of kinship is evident in the soldier’s letters, and it is perhaps not surprising that Dukinfield had an active Needlework Guild, supplying hundreds of shirts and socks to soldiers and sailors. And it is also unsurprising who was chosen to chair this organisation! Elizabeth Hannah Kenyon was the wife the Mayor of Dukinfield George Henry Kenyon. Eight times Mayoress, upon George’s sudden death in May 1917, Mrs Kenyon became Mayor herself until November 1917. Much involved in political and public life in the Boroughs, she worked on the Ashton Board of Guardians, becoming its first Lady Chairman in 1922, and standing on various children’s, hospital, and enfranchisement committees. She was a JP for Cheshire, a councillor,

and in 1919 was granted the Freedom of the Borough, and was still performing Mayoress duties for her son the Mayor, upon her death in November 1935, aged 82. Hundreds of letters were received by the Guild; addressed to ‘Mrs Kenyon and Ladies’, many refer to them as the “Comforts Fund” (Corporal H. Redfern), highlighting how keenly the goods were welcomed! The weather was bad in France, and hot in Egypt, yet many men went weeks without a fresh change of clothes. The useful nature of the parcels was thus important – but not to be under-estimated was the joy of knowing that people at home remembered them and cared about the “vacant chairs” (Pte J. Dean).

A letter received on specialist YMCA paper

Another letter giving thanks for a package received

Perhaps the most surprising discovery was the lack of censorship. Perhaps I have been too influenced by my familiarity with censorship during the Second World War, but I was shocked by the sheer amount of information the men included in their letters, especially in the first years of the War. Pte J. Hinchcliffe, for example, mentioned that he had been in Ypres for four months. When evident, the censorship seemed patchy and un-coordinated. Was it perhaps left to the Battalion officers, rather than strictly enforced? While Pte Harry Brown informed the Guild that “we are strictly forbidden to mention anything appertaining to the atrocities of war” and this is well-held to, there are massive inconsistencies. Sergeant J. Wheatley for instance, had his regiment censored, but not the dates or weather reports he included; Pte J.S. Wright stated exactly when he was heading to the Front Line! Some letters had words pencilled out; others have signatures at the end – the censor’s perhaps? Only one example of the pre-printed cards is included in the collection (below). Perhaps we would benefit from greater research on censorship in the First World War in light of the above.

An example of the pre-printed cards provided to soldiers with which to write home

I have been proud and humbled to read letters that where often actually written in the trenches. Pte J. Hill’s letter (below), for example, begs that Mrs. Kenyon excuse his writing, as he is dodging shrapnel. What has struck me most on was their conversational tone. The men talk about their family, their experiences on the Front, and typically, the weather! They are sincere and grateful: even those who were injured around the time they received their parcel, or were taken as Prisoners of War, took the time to write. They are polite and respectful to the Mayoress, and Mayor, and the Ladies, but more than that, there is a wonderful upbeat nature among the harsh realities of war; a combination embodied in the closing line from a letter by Pte J. Clegg – “Good Day and Good Luck”.

Page 1 of Pte J. Hillâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s letter

Page 2 of Pte J. Hill’s letter, excusing his writing, and wishing the reader a “Good night” Sources o DD356, letters and postcards received by Mrs Kenyon, Mayoress of Dukinfield, 1915-1917. o Photographs taken by Tameside Local Studies and Archive Centre.

STOCKPORT SCHOOLS AND MILITARY HOSPITALS This blog post was written by Amanda Swann, a volunteer at Stockport Local Heritage Library and

Archives. In researching the effect that the war had on schools in the Stockport area through the logbooks held in the Heritage Library archive, I discovered that one of the biggest disruptions to everyday school life in the area was the acquisition of school buildings by the War Office for use as military hospitals. This began to affect Stockport in March 1915, with the Stockport Advertiser reporting on Friday March 26 1915 that the Mayor had been asked by the Military Authorities which schools could potentially be used as hospitals if required. It was also reported that accommodation for 750 beds might be needed across the borough. The suggested schools were inspected for their potential use, being noted as “new schools with good light and ventilation and [which] from every point of view would make good hospitals”. The schools eventually taken for use as military hospitals in Stockport were St George’s school in Heaviley, Hollywood Park and Alexandra Park schools in Edgeley, and Greek Street Secondary School. The first patients are reported as being admitted into these military hospitals in July 1915 (Stockport Advertiser, Fri July 2 1915, p.5).

Greek St High School as military hospital

When the schools were taken for use as military hospitals in March and April 1915, it was agreed that the children from the affected schools would be distributed amongst other schools in the area. The Council Infants School logbook notes on April 1 1915 of a meeting with the “Chairman of the Primary Education Committee (Mr J Forster, J.P) […] at 4 o’clock on Tues aft next, the 6th instant, at No 2 Committee Room, Town Hall, to consider the best arrangements to be made for instruction of scholars in schools affected by Military Hospital considerations”. As a result of meetings such as this, the affected schools began sharing school premises with remaining schools in the borough, and operating their timetables on what was known as either a twoshift, double-shift or four shift system. The two schools operating on this system would each take a morning and afternoon session, dividing the school day into 4 sessions for 2 schools. The logbooks for Edgeley Council Infants School, who took on pupils from Alexandra Park Juniors School, and St Peter’s School, who took on pupils from Hollywood Park School, record the changed timetables accommodating the altered system, from which they alternated between earlier and later shifts on a term-by-term basis.

Edgeley School logbook with timetable 20

The transition to sharing the school premises between two different schools seems to have, understandably, initially caused some disruption. As the opening and closing and hours of the schools were extended to accommodate the growing numbers and need for alternating shifts, an effect could be noted on both attendance and progress within the lessons. Just one week after St Peter’s School had switched to a double shift system in order to accommodate Hollywood Park School in the week ending 16 April 1916, the logbook notes that “The under-fives do not attend well in the mornings 8.30am being early for them”. A few weeks later, on June 4, the St Peter’s logbook again notes that the “early meeting of school affects attendance greatly”. This on-going disruption and routine sense of change to the school lives of affected pupils continued until September 1919; the significant amounts of injured soldiers needing treatment requiring the continued use of school buildings as hospitals until nearly a year after the conflict ended. The logbooks reveal a sense that this constant changing of attendance times became a routine aspect of school life, presumably lasting for some pupils for the entire duration of their attendance there. Edgeley Council School notes the changing of times every term, for example, throughout 1918 and 1919 as “in accordance with custom”. The Stockport Advertiser also reports, in August 1919, of a delay in the return of the school buildings occupied as military hospitals to their original occupants. Whilst the townspeople had no desire to unduly remove the injured who had fought so bravely for their country, the length of time between the discharge of patients and closing of the hospitals seemed excessive. On August 22 1919, an article in the Stockport Advertiser states: “There has been no desire as far as Stockport is concerned to unduly rush the military authorities, but when we know how long the hospitals have been empty of patients, and the delay in removing equipment and handing the schools back to the local education authority, there seems very good cause for complaint.” The buildings are reported as being closed down as hospitals as far back as May of that year and yet still remained unable to allow children to return there for their education at the beginning of the new school year in September. In the words of the reporter: “Stockport was very patriotic in regard to placing its best school buildings at the disposal of the military authorities, and undoubtedly the education of the children suffered through the lack of accommodation caused by the withdrawal of these schools – a regrettable but unavoidable effect – but there should be no excuse for any department withholding buildings from their legitimate purposes a moment longer than is necessary” (Stockport Advertiser, August 22 1919, p. 4). This continued and prolonged disruption must have undoubtedly have impacted upon the lives of those 21

trying to move from the horror of the conflict, serving as an extended reminder of those injured or lost.

Alexandra Park Council School Military Hospital patients and staff

However, it seems, from looking at some of the logbooks for the schools directly affected by the acquisition of buildings for military hospitals and other schools in the area, that the sharing of school premises and the disruption this brought may have served as a reminder of the sacrifice many men were making for them and their country and drawn together those at home. A feeling of community seems to have been evoked amongst the disruption caused by the transformation of school buildings into hospitals, which led to the sharing of school premises. The increased presence of soldiers within the area as patients within the hospitals also seems to have evoked an appreciation for the soldiersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; sacrifices and a willingness to show gratitude. The logbook for another local school, Brentnall Street Infants School, records a number of charitable donations and sending of gifts to the wounded soldiers in the local hospitals including collections of eggs sent to Greek St and St Georgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hospitals on September 22 1915, March 22 and July 6 1916, and February 23 1917. The Stockport Advertiser also reported at the beginning of the occupation of 22

school buildings as military hospitals in April 1915 of the co-operation and unity required by the local community in relation to this, stating that: “The times demand that there should be a spirit of co-operation in all matters which are for the benefit of the state or the individual and particularly should it be so in a case [where schools are being used as hospitals and] where the authorities are handicapped as a result of the war, and are endeavouring to ‘carry on’ as usual” (Stockport Advertiser, Friday April 9 1915, p. 7) The newspaper also highlighted the impact the sharing of schools was having on the schoolchildren in relation to the wider context of the conflict taking place overseas. On April 16 1915, in an article outlining how the children had settled into their new school routines, the Stockport Advertiser reported that one of the notable effects of the new system was that the children “are realising how they can play their part in the war” and that “the way in which everyone settles down so quickly to a new mode of life is one of the surprising features arising out of the war”. It’s particularly heart-warming to read the positivity reported to arise out of difficult and challenging circumstances such as these.

Hollywood Park Military Hospital, 1916 Another instance of the human nature of the effects of World War I can be found in the appreciation showed by the pupils of Alexandra Park School and their hosts 23

during the war, the Edgeley Council Infants School, during the time the schools were occupied as hospitals. The Edgeley Council school logbook notes on September 12 that “‘Our late guests’, the Alex Park teachers and scholars have returned to their own school. During the whole of the time they were with us, a period of 4 years and 4 months, a true spirit of comradeship was maintained”. Two weeks later, on September 26 1919, the admiration felt towards their ‘late guests’ is reciprocated by Alexandra Park Junior school: “This afternoon we have received from the teachers and scholars of Alex Park Junior School, a beautiful picture. The letter accompanying the picture asks us to accept it as a ‘token of appreciation and kindness shown to them during the time they were our guests 1915-19’”. It is instances such as this that reveal the toll on everyday life the First World War had, away from the trenches, and highlight the extraordinary ways in which war reveals the true benevolence of people to help their community and country.

Alexandra Park Council School Military Hospital, 1915

Sources

o The Stockport Advertiser o Edgeley Council Infants School logbook B/MM/4/13 &/!4, Stockport Archives o St Peter’s School logbook B/M/4/35 & /39, Stockport Archives o Brentnall Street Infants School logbook B/MM/4/19, Stockport Archives 24

A NURSEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S STORY: PHYLLIS NIELD OF STOCKPORT

This blog post was written by Clare Connolly, a volunteer at Stockport Local Heritage Library and Archives.

Red Cross Badge STOPM.2009.495 This was the County/Branch badge belonging to Phyllis Nield who volunteered with the Red Cross in Stockport to care for wounded soldiers during World War I. These badges were awarded to officers and members of branches of the British Red Cross and its voluntary aid detachment. In 1909 the War Office issued the Scheme for the Organisation of Voluntary Aid. The British Red Cross and the Order of St. John combined to form the Joint War Committee (JWC) and provide additional support to the Territorial Forces Medical Service in the event of conflict. For this purpose the county branches of the Red Cross organised units known as voluntary aid detachments (VAD). Both men and women were recruited and while the male detachments trained in first aid only, the women were also required to train and pass examinations in nursing.

The term VAD was used to describe all personnel serving in the system but was particularly associated with the nurses. By the outbreak of World War I there were approximately 50,000 women volunteering as VADs. The Joint War Committee administered both auxiliary hospitals and convalescent homes and a large amount of the work of the VADs involved caring for wounded soldiers in these institutions. Private homes were in some cases converted into temporary military hospitals including large houses and stately homes. VADs wore Red Cross armbands and were encouraged to carry their identity cards to show they were Red Cross workers, therefore giving them the protection of the Red Cross in case of invasion. This is a photograph of Phyllis Nield taken with other nurses and soldiers in the garden of her family home ‘Inglewood’ in Davenport Park, Stockport. The soldiers had been invited by her father Robert H. Nield, a local businessman who was a piano merchant in Stockport. He owned Nield and Hardy’s music shop of St Petersgate, Stockport, which later moved to Underbank.

Phyllis Nield is on the middle row, second from the right. Her sister Marjory is on the back row, second from the left. The above includes Phyllis’s four sisters who lived with their parents Robert and Elizabeth at ‘Inglewood’. The census reveals that in 1911 Phyllis was 16, her older sister Marjory 17, Dorothy was 7 and twins Joyce and Winifred were 5. At the time the photograph was taken Phyllis would have probably been in her early twenties and her younger sisters are at the front of the group. The photographer was John Clarke Morten who Phyllis later married. 26

In Stockport the VAD headquarters were located at Buckau House on Wyatt Street in Heaton Norris and the branch commandant was Miss Janet McClure of Norris Bank. St John’s Ambulance also assisted in the work of the VAD and their headquarters were based at Rechabite Hall in Higher Hillgate where the commandant was J.J. Orme. Lectures were given to VADs at the Technical School once a week and general practice was given at Buckau House. Stockport played an important part in the care of injured soldiers. By the end of the War at least twelve hospitals had been utilised or established for this purpose. There was a direct train service from London and soldiers arrived at both Stockport and Manchester stations. In his book ‘The Dark Cloud: Stockport Life in the Great War 1914-1919’ David Kelsall describes the military hospitals and their role in Stockport. Stockport Infirmary reserved a number of beds on the outbreak of the War and these were needed within a few days, soldiers being cared for both by regular nurses and VADs. By July 1916 48 beds had been reserved for the wounded. The injuries sustained in the Battle of the Somme, which ended in November 1916, led to the use of a new extension wing with 100 beds being set aside for the soldiers. A number of buildings were converted into military hospitals, for example, within three days of the declaration of war it was announced that Pendlebury Hall orphanage on Lancashire Hill was to be converted into a Red Cross Hospital. There was a public appeal from the Red Cross for items such as blankets, crockery and bed clothes and for help from those with First Aid Nursing certificates. In total 1811 men were cared for at this hospital. In March 1915 four local schools were converted into hospitals and these were the most recently built schools in Stockport with improved facilities: Alexandra Park, Hollywood Park, St George’s and Vernon Park. The children attending these schools had to move to other, now overcrowded, schools in the area. By the end of 1916 North Reddish Council School was in use as a military hospital and near the end of the War also Cale Green School. In November 1915 a second Red Cross hospital opened at the Wesleyan School in Heaton Mersey. In addition Stepping Hill Hospital reserved nine wards for the injured soldiers and by December 1915 it had 250 beds held for this purpose. Stockport had two shell shock hospitals by September 1918, both located in Brinnington, and this led to the establishment of the Stockport Special Shell Shock Hospital Fund. The Town Hall was eventually needed to house the injured soldiers and additional hospitals in the area supplied rest huts for the men. Phyllis Nield married John Clarke Morten in 1925. He served in the War and wrote a series of letters to his family in Davenport, Stockport which have since been 27

published in the book ‘I Remain Your Son Jack’. He attended Stockport Grammar School and enlisted with the Manchester Regiment in 1914, serving with the 1st/7th (Territorial) Battalion. The first reference to Phyllis in his letters came in 1917 after a period of leave in Stockport and it is likely that their families knew each other. This may have been the period of time when the photograph at ‘Inglewood’ was taken. John Clarke Morten died in 1948 and Phyllis in 1986 after which time the letters were discovered.

Sources

o World War I collection, Stockport Museums

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS: WARTIME LETTERS TO A STOCKPORT HEADMASTER

This blog post was written by Natasha Hirst, HLF Archives and Libraries trainee at Stockport Local Heritage Library and Archives. When I started cataloguing three boxes of archives labelled ‘Miscellaneous Schools’ I never expected to find anything we could use for the World War I centenary. The collection itself is fascinating, but amongst it was a discreet white envelope labelled ‘WW1 letters’ and inside was a bundle of letters which were written by serving soldiers back to their old headmaster, Joseph Goodison. There are twelve letters in total, there is at least one letter written during each year of the war, the experiences and depth of description vary greatly from soldier to soldier, and the letters were sent from several different fronts.

Joseph Goodison was the headmaster of Higher Brinksway School from 1884 to 1924, his obituary in the Stockport Express in 1935 described him as having a “wonderful and extensive influence” over his pupils, his “kindly counsel was a precious heritage” and “he loved every child in the school”. The newspaper also reported his attributes of “kindness, generosity, justice and fair play” all of which make it easy to understand why his old scholars chose to write back to him. The letters themselves also offer some clues, with J. Duxbury writing “[my niece] said he always reads the letters to us that he gets from the soldiers” and H. Wild wrote “the reason I write to you, is that I know how you like to hear from your old scholars”. There are also mentions of Mr. Goodison having sent the soldiers newspapers, and their having received parcels from St John’s Methodist Church, where Mr. Goodison was an active parishioner. Mr Goodison’s only son Frank was also a soldier in WW1, and some of the letters mention him, sending their best wishes.

Frank Goodison with the football team, Higher Brinksway Council School c. 1909

An eye-catching letter was written by Private John Goudy, writing from France in November 1916. He encloses a carefully written poem, from the accompanying letter we can gather that Goodison requested he send it. He wonders if it is worthy of publication, and comments that the weather conditions are severe. Goodison clearly 30

liked the poem, as he read an extract from it during a speech he gave at the National Union of Teachers’ meeting in 1917. In his notes for the speech he wrote “A Stockport lad who fought with so many other Stockport lads at Thiepval… sent a poem which he composed in his earliest free hour after Thiepval battle, to his former teacher.”

The poem reads: Thiepval 1916

The hell was born,- on a July dawn – “To win or die our youth was laid”, On that red morn, o’er dew just born, 31

Neath early sky our charge was made. Pleased, – the Carnage Spirit O’er shells that fell, On Thiepval’s dead, And weeping o’er the sea, And the mournful Spirit Of an absent bell, – “Tolled to the tread Of sleeping o’er the lee. The pine trees fell, in the Pine Trees’ Dell, – Loud did thunder Britain’s mighty guns, Thro’ shot and shell, – with Hero yell, Thro’ the thunder Britain’s might sons. The carriage spirit smiled With it’s grinning head. On fierce hell, Raging on and neath the sod, And lips of morn that smiled – At Eve were dead, – “And heroes fell On earth – To rise to GOD.” John Goudy – France, 1916.

Goudy’s poem speaks of Thiepval, a French village on the Somme which was occupied by the Germans as a fortress. It was attacked by the British on the 1st July 1916. The village was completely flattened by the bombardment, but the Germans occupied the deep cellars of houses, so their machine guns were protected and they put up a strong resistance. There were heavy losses, and it was September before Thiepval was taken. One of the largest memorials to the missing is located at Thiepval.

A little about the poet… We have found that John Goudy was born in 1893, the son of John Smith Goudy and Margaret Leatham. His father was an Irish-born wheelwright, and the family moved from Ireland to Kettleshulme somewhere between 1886 and 1891. They then moved to Whaley Bridge, before moving to Stockport, and at the time of the 1901 census were living on Vulcan Street. Aged 18 John was a boarder with a family in Levenshulme, Manchester, and working as a general clerk in the basket industry. On the 13th March 1915 he enlisted in the army, he served in France in 1917 in the Army Service Corps, and he was discharged on the 5th August 1918, at the age of 25, as no longer physically fit for war service. He was awarded the Victory and British medals. This wonderful collection of letters offer a snapshot of life for the young soldiers, as they wrote with nostalgia to their old headmaster – it seems that all of the soldiers returned from the war (including Goodison’s son) and their letters will form part of an exhibition for Stockport’s WW1 centenary.

Sources o The Goodison collection D2014; DD/GOD, Stockport Archives.

THE SAD STORY OF SHADRACH AND ANNIE CRITCHLEY; A WW1 TRAGEDY IN WESTLEIGH

This blog post was written by Susan Berry, a volunteer at Wigan Archives and Leigh Local Studies.

Leig h Chronicle , April 1915 34

Tragedy at Westleigh

While searching for information on WW1 in the Leigh Chronicle at Leigh Local Studies, a headline jumped out at me “Sensational Suicide at Westleigh”. It is the story of a soldier, Shadrach Critchley and his wife Annie, being found in their house having committed suicide. Shadrach was born 1881 in Leigh, the son of Thomas, a coal miner, and Sarah. Following him through the census it appears he grew up in Westleigh and in turn became a miner like his father. In 1906 he married Annie Heaton, and in the 1911 census they are found living in Westleigh, with the census stating they had no children and Shadrach still working in the mines. Shadrach appears in the Leigh Chronicle in April 1915 in the list of new recruits at the Leigh office. He signed up with the 3rd Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment where he was stationed at Birkenhead. According to the Leigh Chronicle, he returned on Saturday 22nd May for three days leave and should have reported back on the Monday. He was seen at the Fleece Inn on the Sunday night, by his friend and fellow soldier, Richard Adamson, where he had discussed with him how he had regretted joining up. His friend told him to “buck up and he would be alright”, saying he had shown no signs that he was considering suicide. The following evening, Richard went to Shadrach’s home so they could return to their regiment and found the door locked. He told a neighbour he thought something was wrong and they forced open the door, where they discovered Shadrach and Annie lying on a mattress on the kitchen floor with their heads inside the gas oven. At the inquest it was revealed that Annie had left a letter to her sister and Shadrach to his father. The coroner requested that the contents of the letters be kept private but disclosed that they were to the effect that they wanted to die together and did not wish to be parted. They were buried together on the 27th May 1915 in St Paul’s, Westleigh. The jury returned a verdict of temporary insanity. When we think of deaths in WW1 we think of soldiers dying in the trenches and on the front. Although Shadrach and his wife did not die in combat, their deaths can still be directly attributed to the war. I have checked all the local war memorials and as far as I can tell Shadrach does not appear on any of them, however he does appear on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission site. His name appears on the 35

Brookwood (United Kingdom1914-1918) Memorial. This memorial was created in 2004 and currently commemorates 500 men who were casualties in the United Kingdom. So nearly 90 years after his death, it was finally acknowledged that Shadrach was as much a victim of the war as the soldiers who died in combat.

Sources: o Leigh Journal o Leigh Chronicle o Ancestry o St Paulâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Westleigh burial records

THE LUSITANIA

This blog post was written by Jack Houlihan, a work experience student at Wigan Archives and Leigh Local Studies.

A famous cruise ship, The Lusitania, was sunk by a German submarine torpedo in 1915. Over 1000 passengers lost their lives including Fred Isherwood, a young man from Tyldesley. Launched in 1907, the Lusitania was at that time the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest ship. She was also one of the most luxurious and a favourite on the transatlantic passenger route. Since the outbreak of war, ocean travel had become more dangerous and German Uboats searched British Waters to prevent war resources from getting through. On 1 May 1915, the Lusitania set sail from New York with 1962 passengers and crew on board. A week later, near the coast of Ireland, the Lusitania was spotted by a German submarine U20. The Germans torpedoed the liner; she took only 18 minutes 37

to sink. The Germans believed the Lusitania was an armed merchant cruiser carrying Canadian troops and munitions. One of the survivors, Thomas Sumner from Atherton, did not see the first torpedo hit but he did see the line of the second. The first torpedo caused the ship to list very badly but the second torpedo completed the destruction. Thomas slid down into the water and swam until he found some wreckage to cling to. He later found, along with 30 or 40 others, an upturned lifeboat to scramble onto. They waited five hours before being rescued by the S.S. “Indian Empress”, which took them into Queenstown. Another survivor, Henry Birchall, had been at lunch in the second-class saloon when the disaster occurred. He heard a noise as though a big window had been shattered. As the vessel began to list and the crockery slid off the table, the passengers made for the deck stairway. Henry went onto the deck were he reported women were crying for their children to be brought to them and men were busy fitting them with life-belts. Henry stood with a mother and her two children on the deck until the boat sank under them. Henry felt as though it seemed a long time before he returned to the surface. He climbed onto a damaged, overturned lifeboat, the boat righted and Henry helped others to clamber in. They rowed towards a sailing vessel 5 miles away and after rowing for 4 1/2 hours were taken on board another lifeboat, as their own boat was almost submerged. Women were transferred to a Hull steamer, and Henry went back with the crew of the lifeboat and helped to save several passengers. Henry made it back to his home town of Tyldesley on the 9 May in a miserable condition. Another Tyldesley inhabitant, Fred Isherwood, had gone to live in South America for six years, part of which he had been working in the electrical engineering department of the Chilean copper mines. Due to the outbreak of the war, Fred had decided to return home and join the British forces. Fred travelled from Peru to New York. He sent word to his parents from New York that he expected to sail to England on board the Lusitania. Another cable-gram informed his parents that he was homeward bound on the ship. Fred travelled as a third-class passenger. After the ship sank the Cunard Steamship Company sent word to Fred’s family that nothing was known of his fate. Fred is remembered on his parent’s memorial stone in Tyldesley Cemetery.

Leigh Journal, 14 May 1915 Page 6 Sources o Leigh Journal, 21 May 1915 o Leigh Journal, 14 May 1915 o Leigh Chronicle o Ancestry o

â&#x20AC;&#x153;First World Warâ&#x20AC;? by H. P. Willmott (2003)

Tyldesley burial records

o https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sinking_of_the_Lusitania_London_Illus_N ews.jpg Sinking of the Lusitania. Engraving by Norman Wilkinson, The Illustrated London News, May 15, 1915. P. 631. 39

THE BIRKENHEAD CASE – WRIGHT ROBINSON AND CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS

This blog post was written by Debbie Cameron, a volunteer at Archives+. Whilst reading through some papers of Alderman (and later, Mayor of Manchester), Wright Robinson held in the Manchester Record Office archive, I came across a copy of an unpublished account that he had written about his involvement in a case concerning men who were in a trade union in Liverpool during the First World War. They were claiming exemption from fighting because they wanted to be treated as conscientious objectors, on moral grounds. I also found amongst the same papers, a typed transcript of some of the proceedings and a copy of a broadside giving information on the case and appealing to “all lovers of liberty, anti-conscriptionists and those who believe a private soldier has the right to legal treatment” to support the men. The case concerned two trade unionists from Liverpool – Charles Dukes and George Beardsworth – who wanted exemption from conscription because of their strongly held, moral beliefs. They wanted this to be recognised as grounds for exemption similar to that granted to men who had deeply held religious objections to fighting. The case was a very complex one, because the soldiers actually wanted to appear before a Court Martial, so that they could argue their case, but initially this was not allowed. There followed several questions in Parliament about this, as well as about the brutal treatment meted out to the two men (amongst others). They were eventually granted a Court Martial and found guilty of refusing to follow orders and sentenced to 2 years in prison, with hard labour. However, there was also an independent enquiry into their treatment before the Court Martial took place. From contemporaneous statements, transcripts, memoirs, Hansard entries and newspaper reports, I managed to piece together a very complex but interesting, littleremembered attempt by ordinary men to hold on to their beliefs under intense pressure to conform. In this, they had tremendous help and support from Wright Robinson, who at the time was editor of a socialist paper – Liverpool Forward, and an ILP organiser and Trade Union Officer.

The Case Against Beardsworth & Dukes

Conscientious Objectors In 1916, volunteers to join the British Army were dwindling and so the Government introduced conscription, whereby men had to serve their country in the military for a specific period of time. A clause was added allowing those whose “conscience” did not allow them to bear arms, to be freed from military service – for example religious objectors who believed it was against their religion, such as Quakers, or pacifists who were against war in general. Many Conscientious Objectors (COs) did want to do “their bit” however, and became stretcher bearers or helped in factories. However, some refused to do anything at all that was involved in the war and these were known as “absolutists”. The No-Conscription Fellowship, which supported Beardsworth and Dukes, was an alliance of the Socialist Independent Labour Party and Quakers. In all 5,970 COs were court-martialled and 819 spent over two years in prison; indeed, 73 were known to have died as a result of their treatment, including another Birkenhead man – Walter Bone, a “book finisher”. He refused to sign up and was sent to Winchester prison where he died of pneumonia on 23 February 1919 after a year and a half in prison and during which, fellow prisoners constantly pointed out that he was a “physical wreck”. It seems tragic that he was still being punished even though the war had been over for nearly 4 months and he actually died in peacetime. Beardsworth and Dukes – conscription Both Liverpool men were called up in August 1916 and told to attend Birkenhead Barracks. Beardsworth did attend as requested but once at the barracks, refused to obey any orders, e.g. to attend parade, to wear khaki or to sign anything at all. I have found his enlistment papers which clearly show that he “refuses to sign”. He maintained that his objection was for moral reasons. Charles Dukes, an Organising Secretary for Lancashire of the General Labourer’s Union refused to attend the barracks and was therefore arrested and taken there forcibly. He argued, along with 8 other officials, that their work for trade unions made them indispensable to the war effort. The other 8 officials were given exemption but not Mr. Dukes (I could not find out the reason for this)

Beardsworth and Dukes – ill-treatment Both men suffered very brutal treatment when they refused to co-operate with the military, which in the case of Beardsworth, was witnessed by many people because some of it was in a public place. They were brutalised, beaten, forced to march with heavy packs, humiliated and kept in solitary confinement. During this time they repeatedly asked that they be called before a Court Martial, so that they could state their case. After a lengthy fight, in which they were supported by Wright Robinson, various Trade Unions and the Liverpool ILP, among others, they were eventually called before a Court Martial, as they had repeatedly requested (October 1916). It was the first to be held on Conscientious Objectors at Birkenhead. Court Martial Wright Robinson wrote extensively about the court martial, the notes of which I found in his papers. It would seem that the men argued that they had held anti-war opinions before the war and that they had always been sincerely held. They said their moral convictions were just as binding and genuine as religious ones. The tribunal were unimpressed, especially as the men were trade unionists. It was even put to Beardsworth that as he was a socialist and trade unionist, he supported reform by force, therefore he could not be a pacifist, to which he stated “there is a vast difference between the withdrawal of labour and the force required to kill a man”. He noted that hundreds of men had been granted exemption, many of them Quakers and asked the Court “will you not agree my objection is an equally moral one?” the reply to which was that they could not agree and that his objection was a political one and that this did not allow exemption on grounds of conscience. Indeed, they described him as a “socialist of the deepest dye” – one suspects this was not seen as a compliment!

Wright Robinson enters the fray As well as his own notes on the case, I discovered that Wright Robinson was mentioned in the trial transcript; he was called as a character witness and emphasised that he had known Beardsworth for 8 years and that Beardsworth had always held clear views and convictions that all war was wrong and that he had even taken part in pre-war campaigns against war – believing that working men should not fight working men, even if they were from another nation. Wright Robinson also offered his support to Dukes. He notes in his unpublished partial memoir that “Charles Dukes now walked into the story as a living personality” and describes him as “a strong man, over 6’ in height”. Dukes, a former plasterer and Trade Union Official, had also suffered abuse and brutality. When the Tribunal pointed out to Mr. Robinson that the Labour Party supported the war and thus Trade Unionists should, he replied that the Independent Labour Party did NOT, as it was a Socialist organisation – I found this quite interesting, as I did not know anything about the ILP and Labour, assuming they were similar organisations – it would seem this was far from the case. On 12th October 1916, both men were found guilty of not obeying orders and not turning up to parade and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment with hard labour because they refused to do any work connected with the war. I have found the military records of both men and it seems that Dukes did not serve the full sentence as he was released in 1917; Beardsworth did – he was released from prison exactly two years after his sentence began (October 1918) – however he was released under oath to work for the Commission on Employment of Conscientious Objectors at Wakefield. He was officially discharged from the army on 31st March 1920. Enquiry by the army into their treatment There was also an Enquiry by the army into the brutal treatment of the men before their Court Martial. Again, Wright Robinson and various other individuals and organisations gave the two men both moral and financial support. I have found the notes on this in Wright Robinson’s papers. The two men refused to give evidence against the perpetrators as they said that it was the institution of the army, not the individual soldiers who were to blame. Unbelievably, they were then court martialled because they refused to give evidence! But since they were already under a sentence and imprisoned, this was dismissed. However, at least the case and evidence was heard, which I would like to think helped bring the treatment of COs into the public domain; indeed I have found many contemporaneous newspaper articles, letters and accounts in Hansard of questions being asked in Parliament regarding their treatment following the outcome of the Enquiry. So the men’s brave

stand must have helped the plight of COs greatly. Also, due to the publicity of the case, many other COs were allowed to state their cases in front of a Court Martial. This is a great example of how two ordinary men stood up for their beliefs, with the help of others, and took a brave stand â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but then disappeared from the history of World War 1. I hope this small piece of research helps bring them to life again and allows us to appreciate the many different facets of the war and how individualsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; actions, bravery and beliefs are also part of the experience of war, even when not involved directly on the fields of battle. Epilogue The three men mentioned above all went on to be very successful in public service; Beardsworth worked in the trade union movement from 1919 and was awarded an OBE in 1950 for his trade union work with USDAW; Dukes was awarded a CBE in 1942 and became General Secretary of the NUGMW during the vital period before and after the Second World War (1934-46) (including presidency of the TUC in 1946) and Director of the Bank of England in the important post year period (1947-48) He was created a Baron at that time. Wright Robinson became an Alderman just after the First World War and remained in public office until 1956, when he was awarded the Freedom of the City. He was also a JP and became Mayor of Manchester during the Second World War. He had retained his strong socialist principles and declined a Barony and OBE in 1945 and a CBE in 1956.

I think the post Great War history of these men, somewhat against popular notions, shows that the public did not always shun men who had been conscientious objectors during the First World War. On the contrary, when these men offered their services to the public good, they were welcomed by their communities and local electorate and their efforts were vital to their country during the Second World War, a fact that was recognised both at local and national level. A fitting and positive end to their stories!

Sources

o www.ppu.org.uk o www.ancestry.co.uk o www.findmypast.co.uk o www.manchester.gov.co.uk (Pastfinder catalogue) o http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk o http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/conscientiousobjectors.htm o http://www.ppu.org.uk/learn/infodocs/cos/st_co_wwone1.html o http://ieper.wikispaces.com/WW22+Propaganda

BROTHERS IN ARMS – FRANK AND LAURENCE PRENDIVILLE

This blog post was written by Mandy Gane, a volunteer at Archives+.

We are all familiar with the ‘Pals’ regiments, when work colleagues and neighbours enlisted together, with devastating consequences for their communities as the War progressed. There are many examples of brothers in arms in the Documentary Photographic Archive, and diaries and letters from the archives often refer to brothers working and fighting together. What must it have been like to fight alongside friends and family? It must have been a strange mix of comforting security and heightened anxiety.

Frank and Laurence Prendiville – their story

Frank Prendiville in France

Early lives

Frank and his younger brother Laurence were from a large family of siblings based in Birkenhead. Their father James O’Sullivan Prendiville was an egg merchant who was born in Castleisland, Kerry. Their mother Agnes (nee Austin) originated from Doncaster and her marriage to James was registered in Birkenhead in 1879. The birth of Francis Xavier D. Prendiville (Frank) was registered in Birkenhead in 1891. Later that same year he appeared on the Census as a four month old, living with his family at 4 Vernon Place, Birkenhead. Brother Laurence Anthony’s birth was registered in Birkenhead in 1895. The family was still living at Vernon Place at the time of the 1901 Census and a six year old Laurence was there with his parents and other siblings. Frank, on the other hand, was not included on the family’s census return: instead he appeared as a ten year old boarder at St. George’s College, a prestigious Roman Catholic school in Chertsey, Surrey. Ten years later, the 1911 Census shows a 16 year old Laurence Prendiville (born in Birkenhead) as a student of Mount of St. Mary’s College, Spinkhill, Eckington, Chesterfield while his parents and some siblings were living in Radnor Place, Birkenhead. Frank’s whereabouts at the time of the Census have not been traced. Both brothers served in the army during the Great War and, although their army service records appear not to have survived, other sources reveal that both were posted to the Western Front.

Frank’s army service A document relating to Frank’s pension record has survived and it reveals that he enlisted with the British Army in Cambridge on 25th February 1915. His occupation at the time of enlistment was ‘motor driver’ though there is no further detail about the nature of his civilian employment. The record shows that Frank joined the newly formed 262 Company of the Army Service Corps. According to ‘The Long Long Trail’ website, 262 Company was one of the ASC’s Mechanical Transport companies. It was assigned to a Divisional Ammunition Park in France, operating ammunition stores on behalf of the 17th (Northern) Division. (Later 262 Company would transfer to the 22nd and then to the 30th Divisions). Although not directly part of the front line, the ammunitions parks and ASC personnel were often targeted by enemy fire in order to disrupt supply lines to the trenches.

Frank’s pension record states that he was stationed at Cambridge for three months before transferring to Cheltenham. It contains no more information about his service in the army apart from his rank – Corporal – and his regimental number M2/051632 though the photographs provided by the donor show that he did serve in France. A key point of interest on the pension record is the reference to a gunshot wound to the left thigh that Frank received on 6th December 1917. He was admitted to the 4th Southern General Hospital at Devonport, Plymouth on the 15th December 1917. After spending 140 days in hospital, Frank was discharged on 3rd May 1918 with an invaliding disability to “furlough and duty” which means that he was granted a leave of absence. There is no reference to his whereabouts between his discharge and the Armistice on 11th November 1918. Frank’s Pension Board took place in February 1920. The donor of Frank’s photographs reports that Frank became a bus driver after the war. Frank’s marriage to Ellen Carroll was registered in Chester in 1923. The birth of their son James Laurence was registered in 1924 in Birkenhead. Sadly, on 2nd November 1927, Frank died in Clatterbridge Infirmary, aged 37. The National Probate Register shows that Frank was living in Heswall at the time of his death. His effects were left to his widow Ellen. The donor reports that Ellen worked in the Glegg Arms, Heswall, which was owned by a relative.

Postcard from France

Laurence’s army service

Laurence’s medal card shows that he served in the Cheshire Yeomanry and in the King’s Liverpool Regiment Transport. A War Office supplement to the London 50

Gazette dated 14th April 1917 shows that Laurence was promoted from an Officer Cadet Unit to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant (Infantry, Liverpool Regiment, Territorial Force) with effect from 28th March 1917. Officer Cadet Units were introduced in 1916 as a way of training more men to lead and command. 2nd Lieutenants were the most junior officers and were often referred to as ‘subalterns’. Laurence’s medal card records his entry date to France as 14/5/1917. Although Laurence’s service record does not appear to have survived, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission record tells us that he was killed in action on 31st July 1917 and that he is commemorated on the Menin Gate memorial at Ypres. The date on which Laurence was killed is significant because it was the first day of infantry action during the Third Battle of Ypres. The infantry action had commenced following ten days of heavy artillery bombardment of the German lines and the damage caused by the shells, combined with the onset of heavy rains and the infamous Flanders mud severely restricted the mobility of infantry soldiers and tanks. After several weeks of battle, Passchendaele village eventually fell from German control on 6th November 1917. Laurence has no known grave. His sacrifice is commemorated on Panels 4 and 6 at Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres alongside the names of more than 54,000 officers and men whose graves are not known. The memorial, designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield with sculpture by Sir William Reid-Dick, was unveiled by Lord Plumer on 24 July 1927. The site of the Menin Gate was chosen because of the hundreds of thousands of men who passed through it on their way to the battlefields. Each night at 8 pm the traffic is stopped at the Menin Gate while members of the local Fire Brigade sound the Last Post in the roadway under the Memorial’s arches. Laurence Anthony Prendiville is also remembered at St. Francis Xavier’s RC College in Everton, Liverpool Society of Chartered Accountants and Birkenhead Civic Memorial. (The latter records that Laurence was in the 7th Battalion of the King’s Liverpool Regiment.) The National Probate Calendar shows that Laurence’s effects were left to his mother Agnes Mary Monica Prendiville, suggesting that he was unmarried. He was just 22 years of age when he died.

Army training camp, France 1914 Sources o www.nationalarchives.gov.uk (Medal Cards) o www.cwgc.org (Commonwealth War Graves Commission) o www.merseysiderollofhonour.co.uk (war memorials) o www.ancestry.co.uk (Census records, WW1 Pension Records, National Probate Calendar) o www.freebmd.org.uk (registered births, marriages and deaths) o www.familysearch.org.uk (births, marriages and deaths) o www.london-gazette.co.uk (War Office supplements) o www.Britishhistory.ac.uk (Roman Catholic colleges) o The Long, Long Trail (copyright Chris Baker) o http://www.1914-1918.net/training_officers.htm (Officer Cadet Units) o http://www.1914-1918.net/asc.htm Divisional Ammunition Parks)

(Mechanical

Transport

Companies

and

WWI: AN ARMENIAN STORY

This blog post was written by Sarah Coggrave, a volunteer at Archives+.

As a volunteer at Archives+ Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been researching the history of Manchesterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Armenian community between 1850 and 1950 at the Greater Manchester County Record Office. During one of my searches I came across some material in the Documentary Photographic Archive which links Manchester, Armenia and WWI. Following this post on the Archives+ blog, I refer to a story that begins almost one hundred years ago, when young men across the country began to volunteer for military service, largely unaware of the horrors that awaited them. William Beesley and Simeon Lopes Salzedo were among the many recruits from Manchester who served for Britain during WWI.

Beesley, of Salford (above), joined the Royal Flying Corps as a fitter, whilst Salzedo, of Cheetham (originally from the Netherlands), served with the 39th Judean Batallion of the Royal Fusiliers. Interesting to note that there was not just one but several separate Jewish regiments attached to the British Army during WWI. Known as the Jewish Legion, there were five battalions, consisting of volunteers from Britain, the US, Canada and a number of other countries (including captured Jewish prisoners, who were also permitted to enlist). 53

Above: Salzedo with his regiment in Egypt, 1919 Both men spent time in Turkey as part of their military service, and returned bearing photographs of their travels; images of themselves, comrades, locals and places. Beesley’s included a photograph of himself with an Armenian girl, taken in Turkey, which his daughter later donated to the Documentary Photographic Archive at Manchester County Record Office.

William Beesley with an Armenian girl

There is no explanation as to why this image was taken – at first glance it is easy to dismiss it as just part of Beesley’s photo collection. However, the girl’s nationality is significant, as is her location. Armenia was then part of Turkey, and under Ottoman rule, Armenians living here were persecuted and later massacred – a genocide that occurred during WWI, when this photograph was taken. It is distressing to realise the extent of brutality across the world at this time – having been taught about the British participation in WWI at school, I’d never come across the Armenian genocide until now. The aftermath of this terrible event, which 54

historians estimate to have begun in 1915 (the actual persecution had begun centuries earlier, including mass killings in the late 1800s), was apparently witnessed by Lieutenant Salzedo of Manchester, who brought back some disturbing images from his service in Turkey. The death total has been estimated at between 1 million and 1.5 million Armenians. It is the second most studied case of genocide after the Holocaust, although the Turkish government refuses to acknowledge the events as genocide, even to this day. Back in Manchester, the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Armenian community campaigned tirelessly to highlight the plight of their fellow countrymen. They lobbied politicians, raised money and set up charities. Unfortunately due to WWI, Britain was unable to intervene, and events in Turkey were overshadowed by trench warfare and atrocities in Europe.

Above: Members of the Armenian community in Manchester Sources o https://www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterarchiveplus/9298340623/ Donor in R.F.C. uniform, Third Aircraftman. GB124.DPA/1439/6 o https://www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterarchiveplus/9301124892/ Donor with Armenian girl in Turkey during World War I. Member of Royal Flying Corps. GB124.DPA/1439/5 o https://www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterarchiveplus/9463805673/ GB124.DPA.1466.5 "D" Company 39th Batallion Royal Fusiliers in Cairo, Egypt in 1918. 55

SHOT AT DAWN AND AN APPEAL FOR FORGIVENESS – A MOVING STORY FROM BOLTON’S ARCHIVES

This blog post was written by Lois Dean, a volunteer at Bolton Archives.

The brave young Bolton soldier had faced guns before, at Gallipoli and the Somme, but those James Smith faced early on the morning of 5th September 1917 were to be fired by his own countrymen – friends and comrades from his own unit. James ‘Jimmy’ Smith became the only Boltonian to be ‘shot at dawn’ after being found guilty by a military tribunal of desertion and cowardice. However, his

experience of the horrors of war told a different story, one that led to his pardon nearly 90 years later. Born in Noble Street, Bolton, in 1891, the son of James and Elizabeth Smith, Jimmy was brought up by his aunt and uncle when his mother died soon after his birth. At 18, he joined the Lancashire Fusiliers as a career soldier and served in India at the beginning of the First World War before being part of the landing in Gallipoli in April 1915 when half his battalion lost their lives. Jimmy was sent to France in 1916 to join the 15th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers – the Salford Pals. He saw heavy fighting and gained two good conduct badges before being transferred to the 17th Battalion King’s Liverpool Regiment in June 1917, with the rank of Lance Corporal. Jimmy almost lost his life on the Somme on 11 October 1916 when a German artillery shell exploded, burying him alive and causing a shrapnel wound ‘the size of a fist’ on his right shoulder. He was rescued and sent home to convalesce before returning to the Front in December. By now, however, Jimmy Smith was a broken man, both physically and mentally, suffering from what is known today as post-traumatic stress disorder. He gave up his stripes and became 52929 Private James Smith. Soon he began disobeying orders and was twice given 90 days’ field punishment, losing his good conduct badges. His comrades recognized he was very unwell and tried to help him as much as possible, but on 30 July 1917, Jimmy had a breakdown and deserted his post, being found wandering some five miles away in the town of Poperinghe. A doctor at the dressing post declared him fit for duty. Jimmy refused and was charged with desertion and later for disobedience for refusing to drill. At this last court martial; Jimmy had no defence lawyer and no-one to speak of his past bravery. He said nothing and was sentenced to death. His comrades from the 17th Battalion could not believe what they were being asked to do that September morning at Kemmel Chateau in Flanders. They fired, but aimed to miss the white target pinned to Jimmy’s chest. He was badly wounded however, and the young officer in charge knew he was supposed to put Jimmy out of his agony with his pistol. He could not bring himself to do this and instead ordered Jimmy’s friend, Private Richard Blundell, to fire the shot. Unable to disobey, Richard carried out the task that was to live with him for the next 70 years. On his deathbed in 1989, his final request was for his son to seek forgiveness from Jimmy’s family. 57

The terrible event was recreated over 80 years later in November 1998, by playwright Les Smith, who wanted to highlight the plight of Jimmy and others like him. The play, ‘Early One Morning’, was staged at Bolton’s Octagon Theatre to coincide with the 80th anniversary of Armistice Day. A seminar at the theatre was attended by members of the Shot At Dawn Campaign, which was seeking pardons for 306 Britons who were executed in the war. These pardons were granted by Parliament in 2006 and a relative of Jimmy Smith, Charles Sandbach, campaigned for his name to be added to Bolton’s book of remembrance, supported by Bolton South East MP, Dr Brian Iddon. This recognition of James Smith’s bravery and suffering came on Armed Forces Day in June 2009 in a ceremony at Bolton Town Hall, attended by his family. He is buried in grave M 25 at Kemmel Chateau Military Cemetery.

Sources o House of Commons Hansard 3 Oct 2009. http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090303/debtext/9 0303-0019.htm o Permission to use the “Shot at Dawn” Octagon Theatre programme cover courtesy of D-Room Design Communications. o “Remembering the Bolton hero who was shot at dawn” Bolton News 21 June 2009. o KEMMEL CHATEAU MILITARY CEMETERY, Heuvelland, West-Vlaanderen o http://www.ww1cemeteries.com/ww1cemeteries/kemmelchateaumilitarycemetery.htm

HOWITZERS IN WESTHOUGHTON

This blog post was written byPam Clarke, President of the Westhoughton Local History Group.

Royal Naval Gun Factory, Westhoughton John Musgrave & Sons Ltd., manufacturers of Lancashire boilers and long established in Bolton, chose Westhoughton as the location for a new factory to meet the needs of their expanding business. Construction of the works was reported to be in progress in August 1900 and production started on 19th February 1901. The first boiler left the works for Jacksons Flour Mill at Bolton during the third week of March, 1901. The works was situated not far from Westhoughton Coal & Cannel (sic) Company’s colliery, (known as Stott’s Pit), and a private branch line was built to connect with the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway at Westhoughton Station. Musgraves ran into financial difficulty. Their Globe Works in Bolton and the new Westhoughton factory were put up for sale on 2nd July 1912, as a result of chancery judgment. On Friday, 9th July 1915, the Bolton Journal reported that the works of Messrs. J. Musgrave and Sons Ltd., had been acquired by the Admiralty. It went on to say that “the works are splendidly adapted for the purpose of gun-making etc., and it is anticipated that when the new operations are in full swing several hundreds of men will be employed. The naval authorities are already in partial possession of the concern, and in the course of a few weeks they will enter into full ownership. Messrs Musgrave employed at the Westhoughton works about 200 men in the manufacture of boilers. The work of removing the boiler-making machinery is progressing rapidly, and it is hoped that the works will be at least partially equipped for gun-making within a month”. The acquisition of these works by the Admiralty was of considerable importance to Westhoughton. Very few of Musgraves’ workers resided in Westhoughton, and for many years they travelled by special trains to and from Bolton. Most of these 59

workers were absorbed by the Admiralty, and it was agreed that the workers should reside in Westhoughton, but due to the war, housing shortage became acute. A site was leased from the Vicar of Westhoughton; and the Council, under agreement with the Admiralty, which provided for a subsidy towards the Capital cost. There are 33 non-parlour houses, and 8 parlour houses, these were erected during the years 1917-18. The site is situated adjacent to Lord Street and The Avenue. The scheme was promoted during the war for the accommodation of persons employed at the R.N. Gun Factory, Westhoughton. Little has been documented about the actual production of naval guns at the factory but this photograph taken on the Market Site in Westhoughton shows an exhibition for raising cash for the war effort (1914-18). On exhibition is a ‘Howitzer’ which was a long-barrelled field gun, this was the main support weapon for the British Army at the beginning of the WW1. At the rear of the ‘Howitzer’ is placed a large naval gun barrel, and a sign which reads “4th NAVAL GUN MADE IN WESTHOUGHTON”.

At the cessation of hostilities, the factory closed in 1919 and was dismantled in the 1920’s.

Sources o Image provided by the Westhoughton Local History Group. o Bolton Journal and Guardian 9/7/1915, page 5 60

‘DOING THEIR BIT’ – WOMEN MUNITIONS WORKERS IN BOLTON

This blog post was written by Lois Dean, a volunteer at Bolton Archives.

Above: Ryder’s Beehive Works, Bolton Bolton Women ‘Doing Their Bit’ As World War One wore on, Britons responded, not just to the call to arms, but to the call ‘for’ arms. Men who, for whatever reason, could not don a uniform, instead lent their skills and strength to the manufacture of shells, grenades and guns and were joined by women. In Bolton, the local Munitions Committee declared in June 1915 that the town was ready to respond to Lloyd George’s call to set up munitions factories. A War Office official had already visited foundries and engineering shops to see how they could be adapted for war work. Lacking the hydraulic presses 61

capable of fitting copper bands to shells, Bolton formed a link with larger neighbour Manchester to ensure the job got done. By July, the local Bolton Journal reported that classes were being held in the engineering department of the Technical School in Bridgeman Place to train munitions workers. It was declared that in eight to ten lessons a man could master the rudiments of engineering enough to enter a munitions shop. The classes were open to all men and women between and ages of 21 to 40 and the average age of recruits was 35. Women were instructed in the ‘lighter mechanical work’ of the manufacturing process. By 1916, Bolton was producing 5,000 hand grenades a day and 30,000 shells a week. Women assisted in production and packed grenades into boxes. A local newspaper reporter visiting one of the many local factories which had been turned over to munitions manufacture, described the grime and noise, particularly the ear-splitting shriek as steel met lathe and the skill and dedication of the operatives whose lives were ‘bed and work’. Said one, “We must face our share, for after all, we are better off than yon lads in France or in t’Dardanelles.” It wasn’t only in munitions that women assisted the war effort, as able-bodied men left Britain for the trenches; women were ready and willing to take over the jobs they had left. However, in Bolton during June 1915 the Labour Exchange reported that there was no local demand for women workers. It was even suggested in some quarters that “the moral standard of English girls – of educated English girls too – is so low that it would be unsafe to employ them in public places side by side with educated English men clerks”!

By December though, the Bolton Council Tramways Committee was considering employing women as tram guards and a special sub-committee visited neighbouring towns where women ‘clippies’ were already working to see the style of uniform and met with a deputation from the Amalgamated Association of Tramway and Vehicle Workers to discuss working conditions for women. January 1916 saw the Tramways Committee approving the employment of female tram guards and by the end of the month twenty young women had been taken on. Boarding their trams were other young working women whose distinctive armbands and large bags identified them as postwomen, entitled to a free ride to the start of their round or ‘walk’. In winter they carried a lamp too. These girls worked two shifts, 6am to 9am and 3pm to 6pm, for which they were paid the same wage as their male counterpart. No-one could say the women of Bolton weren’t ‘doing their bit’.

Sources

o Bolton Journal and Guardian 11/6/1915, page 8 columns e-f – “More and More Munitions – what can Bolton do?’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 25/6/1915, p.8 b-c – ‘Women and War Work – what women might do in Bolton’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 25/6/1915, p.8 e – ‘Our Eye Witness’ – reference to replacing young male library workers who join up with ‘any intelligent educated girl of the right sort could quickly pick up the run of our little libraries…’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 9/71915, p.5 f – ‘Female Labour at the Post Office’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 30/7/1915, p. 8 b – ‘From Pen to Lathe – impressions from a Bolton munition factory. A week with the shells.’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 6/8/1915, p. 6 d-f – Photograph –‘Girls busy in the Bolton munitions factory’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 20/8/1915 p.8 e – ‘Training Munition Workers’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 24/9/1915 p.5 g – ‘Women learning munition work’

o Bolton Journal and Guardian 14/1/1916, p.5 d – ‘Events of the Week – women tram guards’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 14/1/1916, p.8 g-h – ‘Woman’s New Walk – the routine of a Bolton post-girl’ o Bolton Journal and Guardian 21/1/1916, p.8 c-d – Photograph, ‘Bolton’s new tram guards’ (one of the new recruits in uniform). o Bolton Journal and Guardian 28/1/1916, p.8 e-f – ‘Women in Men’s Shoes: how Bolton girls are filling the gaps’. o Bolton Journal and Guardian 10/3/1916, p.5 a – ‘Events of the Week – women car conductors stoned’ (local boys causing a nuisance). o Bolton Journal and Guardian 14/71916, p.8 d-e – Photographs, ‘Bolton’s postwomen on duty’. o Bolton Journal and Guardian 4/8/1916, p.10 c-d – Photograph, ‘Bolton Tram Girls’.

o Bolton Journal and Guardian 16/2/1917 p.5 b – ‘Events of the Week – day nurseries for munition workers’ children’. o Ryders Works, Beehive foundry, Bark Street Bolton Picture shows interior of Ryders works in 1917. From the collection of Bolton Library and Museum Service. o Female Tram Guard. Bolton Corporation Tramways Circa 1916. From the collection of Bolton Library and Museum Service

ZEPPELIN OVER BOLTON

This blog post was written by Margaret Koppens, a volunteer at Bolton Archives.

Kirk Street During the First World War thousands of men from Bolton and elsewhere were sent to fight the war in France which in those days must have seemed a long way from home. But on the night of the 25th September 1916 the war came to Bolton in the form of bombs and incendiaries dropped from a L21 German Air Ship, known as a ‘Zeppelin’. When the story was reported in the press some days later, the exact location of the raid was not given due to censorship restrictions; instead it was reported as ‘a town

in the north Midlandsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. It was at the end of the war in September 1918 when the full story was told in the Bolton Journal & Guardian. The Zeppelin having caused damage at Ramsbottom and Holcombe came into Bolton over Astley Bridge dropping the first bomb near to the Eden Orphanage, from here he travelled over Halliwell and Chorley Old Road, missing the cotton mills but dropping bombs and incendiaries, one of which demolished the end house of Lodge Vale, near the Mortfield Bleachworks. He then turned his attention to the Deane Road area missing the four large gasometers and the railway sidings but dropping an incendiary which set fire to stables in Wellington Yard. It was Kirk Street which ran between Deane Road and Derby Street which suffered the most damage with six houses being destroyed and 13 people killed and nine seriously injured; in all 19 families were rendered homeless. After dropping more bombs in Bolton town centre the L21 was last seen heading north towards Blackburn.

Kirk Street 66

An entry in the Log Book of Derby Street School for 26th September 1916 records 60 children absent and the register not marked followed by the following comment “…the calmness and absence of abnormality on the part of the poor children whose homes had been destroyed was a wonderful witness to their ability to undergo emergencies.” In the front of the Log Book is written a full account of the raid and the thousands of people who came from as far away as Liverpool from early morning until late at night and by all means of transport to view the “wreckage and havoc wrought”.

‘In Memorium’ Cards were printed by a local printer which were sold to provide funds for the people of Kirk Street who had suffered in the bombing.

Sources o Bolton Journal & Guardian 13th December 1918 o Bolton Journal & Guardian 24th September 1920 o The Log Book of Derby Street School 1916 o Peter J. C. Smith. “Zeppelins over Lancashire.” 1991 Neil Richardson, Publisher o ‘In Memorium Card’ Bolton Museum Ref: 1979/36

BELGIAN REFUGEES â&#x20AC;&#x201C; FINDING SANCTUARY IN ROYTON

This blog post was written and researched by Dorothy Clegg and other volunteers with Roger Ivens at Oldham Local Studies and Archives.

Photograph: The Byl & Maeyer families in the garden of Royton Hall (Photograph courtesy of Frances Stott). Left to right back row: Mlle Marie de Maeyer, M. de Maeyer, Mme N. de Maeyer, M Albert Byl, Mlle H. Bly, Mme Byl, M. Byl Front row: Mlle Rosa de Maeyer, M L de Maeyer, Mlle R. Byl, Mlle J. Byl, and Mlle G. Byl

The Byl Family: Belgian Refugees in Royton

On the 2nd of August 1914 Germany declared its intention to march through Belgium to attack France. When the German army crossed the border into Belgium, Britain demanded the withdrawal of these troops. This demand went unheeded, and on the 4th of August 1914 Britain declared war on Germany. The German attack through neutral Belgium shocked the British public. The attack was accompanied by widespread violence against civilians and private property. Several thousands of civilians were shot, many taken as hostages and many towns were ransacked and destroyed. At first little thought was given to the evacuation of Belgian citizens in the event of German occupation. However, in September 1914 the British Government offered hospitality to Belgian nationals seeking sanctuary. The British Government accepted responsibility for the reception, registration and maintenance of Belgian refugees. They sought out assistance in housing these refugees from local authorities. On the 19th September 1914, in response to a request from the Belgian Government, the Oldham Relief Committee was asked by the Local Government Board to form a Sub-Committee to seek out suitable accommodation. The Oldham Relief Committee had already received 50 to 60 offers from Oldham people to accept single children; however, the current request was for family accommodation – ‘man, wife and children without separation from one another’. (Oldham Weekly Chronicle, 19 Sep 1914, p.4) Within eight weeks a number of properties had been offered and accepted as suitable accommodation for Belgian refugee families. These properties, which were offered, rent free for 12 months, included Royton Hall, Greenacres Lodge, Broomhurst, Chadderton House, 146 Coppice Street, Oldham and 36 Oak Street, Shaw. A Belgian Relief Fund was opened by the Mayor of Oldham, Alderman Herbert Wilde. The money raised was for the furnishing and upkeep of these properties. At a meeting of the Oldham Corporation Gasworks Committee it was agreed that gas fires and a cooker would be supplied to all the designated properties requesting them. It was also agreed that a reduced charge of 3d per 1000 cubic feet be made for the gas used. The first Belgian refugees documented by the Oldham Weekly Chronicle were Mons. and Madame Byl and their five children, Albert, aged 20, their daughters Helene, aged 18, Juliette and Rachel, both aged 15 and Germaine aged 10. Hundreds of people lined the street to welcome them as they arrived by car from Manchester 70

escorted by Rev. T. Cusack of St. Aiden’s and St. Oswald’s Church, Royton. The Byl family arrived at Royton Hall and were given ‘two large living rooms and three good sized bedrooms well furnished by the people of Royton’. (Oldham Weekly Chronicle, 17 Oct 1914, p.5) The Byl family had fled from Ghent leaving behind their home and all their possessions because “all the young men in Ghent were being taken by the Germans and placed in the front ranks” to fight Germany’s enemies. They had travelled from Ghent to Ostend by train, a journey of 11 hours spent standing all the way with ‘people sitting on the racks and on the top of the carriage’. They then travelled from Ostend to Dover on a boat ‘crowded with people all huddled together whilst many were left behind. It rained throughout the crossing to Dover and many refugees had no coats’. (Oldham Weekly Chronicle 24 Oct 1914, p.7) Mons. Byl and his son were master builders and Mons. Byl also kept a tobacconist shop in Ghent. His oldest daughter, Helene, who had been working as a cashier at a kinema theatre, had previously worked at the Ghent Exhibition of 1913, and had learned a few words of English there. The Byl family were the first of many documented Belgian refugees coming to Oldham to escape the brutal conflict raging in their homeland. They were welcomed by a community that rallied to support them.

Sources o Oldham Chronicle & Oldham Standard o Photograph courtesy of Frances Stott

‘THE OLDHAM SUFFRAGIST’

This blog post was written by Sheila Goodyear, a volunteer at Oldham Archives and Local Studies.

In the first week of the war, news came that the Suffragettes (the militant suffragists), currently serving jail sentences had been released from prison. Oldham’s Annie Kenney, along with Manchester’s Mrs. Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughter Sylvia, who were all subject to the ‘Cat and Mouse Act’ at the time, were also given their freedom. In addition it was learned that Mrs. Pankhurst’s eldest daughter, Christabel, who had remained in France since evading capture in March 1912 when a warrant had been issued for her arrest, would now be free to return to England without the risk of prosecution. 72

These releases were a result of a re-orientation of the Suffrage and Suffragette movements as recorded in the annual report of the Oldham Women’s Suffrage Society published in October 1914. For the duration of the conflict and in line with NUWSS policy, the work of the society would lie in supporting the war effort rather than actively campaigning for women’s suffrage. The activities of the Oldham Women’s Suffrage Society in 1914 were recorded in its annual report in October 1915. ‘Falling into line with the position of the National Union, we have, like all other Women’s Suffrage Societies, laid aside our active political work to do our share in relieving distress both at home and abroad. It would take too long to particularise the many activities in which our members are engaged. Many have taken up Red Cross work. One is on the medical staff of the women’s hospital in Serbia….’ In the opening months of the war the society had begun to organise the distribution of free milk, clothing and aid to the needy of the district. As in the past, Marjory Lees, President of the Oldham Women’s Suffrage Society and her mother, Dame Sarah Lees, were swift to offer their support when it was needed. Marjory paid for the free milk to expectant and nursing mothers in 454 families which, in the first 3 months of the scheme in 1914, amounted to 1,594 pints each week. The members of the Society also organised the distribution through their ‘visitors’ who also worked with the Oldham Committee for the Care of Women and Children, establishing clothing depots throughout the town to provide warm clothing for those in need. In addition, it is recorded that Marjory donated £1,000 to the Allies Relief Fund. In December 2014 Dame Sarah Lees presented the Oldham Branch of the St. John Ambulance Society with a fully equipped ambulance, which she named ‘The Oldham Suffragist’. On one side of the ambulance was inscribed: ‘Presented by Mrs. C. E. Lees to the Oldham No. IV District ‘and on the other ‘The Oldham Suffragist’. The ambulance, destined for the Front, was supplied by Oldham Motor Company. The presentation took place at Werneth Park, the home of the Lees family, in the presence of numerous medical and civic representatives, 36 uniformed nursing sisters, and 30 men who gave displays of ‘ambulance work’. In his speech of thanks the President of the Oldham Branch of the Association spoke of the 6,000 ambulance certificates and orders of merit awarded; of the 42 Oldham men who had already joined the Royal Army Medical corps; of 26 ‘berth reserve’, the Royal Naval Auxiliary Sick Berth Reserve (RNASBR) attached to the navy; and 25 to the Royal Marines. There were also 70 men in training and ready to go as soon as orders were received. In addition there were over 30 women with certificates, 12 of whom had volunteered for service with the Red Cross in Belgium.

Sources o Annual Report of Oldham Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Suffrage Society from M90/6/7/10/2. o Photograph courtesy of Oldham Local Studies and Archives.

THE TANK BANK IN OLDHAM

This blog post was written by Ann Jones, a volunteer at Oldham Local Studies and Archives.

Outside Kings Arms Yorkshire Street

Oldham Tank Week – 11-16 February 1918 In February 1918 tank 141 ‘Egbert’ arrived outside the Town Hall in Oldham. Tanks had become immensely popular after their use in the Battle of Cambrai in November 1917 and the National War Savings Committee used this new ‘wonder weapon’ as part of a nationwide campaign to persuade people to buy War Bonds and War Saving Certificates. Oldham received notification of the decision to send a tank to Oldham in the middle of January 1918. It was originally decided to locate the tank on Tommyfield with a pavilion adjoining and to use St. Mary’s Parish Church Schools on Burnley Street. 75

However after a visit to see how Preston was tackling their tank visit the location was changed from Tommyfield to outside the Town Hall as less space was needed than originally thought. ‘Egbert’ left Bolton at 8pm on Saturday 7 February and arrived at Mumps station in the early hours of Sunday morning where it was kept overnight in the goods yard. Then on the Monday morning the tank ambled out of the goods yard and drove up Yorkshire Street to its position between the façade of the Town Hall and John Platt’s monument for the opening at 12 noon. A bandstand and a temporary post office from which people would be able buy their Bonds had also been erected beside the tank while cross the pillars of the Town Hall a large banner had been put up exhorting Oldhamers to roll up with their money, the appeal ending with the reminder that ‘the Tank loves a cheerful lender’. After a short speech the Mayor declared the Tank Bank open and proceeded to pass a cheque for £100,000 which the Council had decided to invest through one of the two tank windows. The target for Oldham was set at £1,000,000 with individuals rather than industries being the main contributors as it was thought industries were already contributing in other ways. Branches of the Tank Bank were also opened in Royton, Chadderton and Lees. On that first day Subscriptions totalling £320,000 were recorded in the first hour, the band of the 1st Manchester Regiment played in the afternoon and in the evening Private Cook of the 2/10 Manchesters was presented with the Military Medal on top of the tank for helping capture an enemy dugout and four prisoners. The Waterhead Prize Brass Band entertained the crowd from 7-9 pm. On the morning of the second day the tank was visited by around 4,000 school children who were marched in procession to view the Tank. On their return to their classrooms they were called upon to write essays upon what they had seen. The Volunteers marched to Chadderton for a meeting in front of the Town Hall. On Wednesday 13 February a party of munition girls arrived from Rochdale who said they were tired of waiting and proceeded to deposited £300 in the Tank, and the ‘largest outdoor meeting that Royton had ever seen’ was held in the evening. After three days £682,957 had been raised. Further medal presentations were made on the Thursday. Corporal Frank Doleman of the King’s (Liverpool) Regiment received the Distinguished Conduct Medal and Bombadier H Rhodes of Greenfield the Military Medal. A large procession, led by an illuminated tram car, took place in Lees. The procession consisted of members of the District Council, War Savings committee, Oldham Volunteer Corps and their band, followed by troops of boy scouts. 76

Friday 15 February was designated ‘Out-townships Day’ and that evening the illuminated car undertook a tour of Oldham, Shaw, Royton and Lees. By the following day the target of £1,000,000 target has been passed. That day two Oldham men were presented with medals: Private Wheeler with the Military Medal and Driver Henthorn with the Distinguished Conduct Medal. The total amount of money raised in Tank Week was £1,529,259 including contributions from Chadderton, Royton, Crompton, and Lees and Springhead. After the end of the war the tank ‘Egbert’ was presented to West Hartlepool which had won the competition for investing the most per capita of population. There it remained until 1937 when the West Hartlepool Town Council decided to scrap it as a ‘relic of barbarism’. Oldham also received its ‘presentation’ tank which was parked for a number of years in Alexandra Park before being scrapped in 1938. A tank was also presented to Crompton.

Sources o Oldham Chronicle o Oldham Standard o Image: Oldham Local Studies and Archives

BELGIAN REFUGEES IN STRETFORD

This blog post was written by Richard Nelson, a volunteer at Trafford Local Studies.

Longford Hall certificate. 78

Belgian Refugees Arrive in Stretford The first direct evidence in Stretford that a war was really happening in Europe and that atrocities were being carried out was the appearance in the area of Belgian refugees. Soon after the invasion of Belgium by German forces on 4th August 1914, the first refugees and wounded started to arrive in Stretford. The Stretford Telegraph of 16th October of that year reports the arrival of 38 refugees on 12th and 24 wounded soldiers on 15th. The refugees were collected from Central Station, Manchester and met by the Chairman and Stretford Council members. A convoy of a motor bus and two horse drawn charabancs, lent by local business men, brought them to their new accommodation at Longford Hall. The adults, carrying a small package containing all their worldly possessions, presented a rather pathetic appearance, whereas the children looked as though they were enjoying the occasion. There were eight families and some single people. Most of them were Flemish speakers who came from Brussels and towns round about such as Malines and they had ordinary occupations like coal miner, carpenter and seamstress. A local party welcomed them at the Hall and included three Flemish speaking ladies and some clergy of their own faith. A local lady who spoke Flemish, Mrs Black, stayed on at the Hall for some time to give assistance to them and they soon began to take advantage of their new-found freedom by walking nearby streets and visits to the Picturedrome in Stretford. It didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take long for local traders to take advantage of the situation.

Advert for Jason stockings and socks. 79

The article in the Stretford Telegraph indicated that the refugees were pleased with their new accommodation and the kindness shown to them by local people. A certificate, located on http://www.traffordwardead.co.uk, drawn up by the Longford Hall refugees was decorated with both the Union Jack and Belgian flag. Signed by eight of them and dated ‘Xmas 1914′, it confirms their gratitude. They thank the Committee of the Stretford District Council and inhabitants of Stretford for their kind wishes for Christmas and the New Year and for the many kindnesses bestowed by the people of Stretford since they arrived at the Hall. They fervently pray that the time is not distant when they can return to their own country. One of the people who signed the document was Henri Neetens. It seems that he didn’t wait to return to his native country but emigrated with several other Belgian refugees from Manchester to USA on SS Lapland on 18th July 1918, leaving for New York from Liverpool. On the passenger list his age is given as 46 and his occupation as butcher. His birth place is Malines in Belgium, one of the towns mentioned in the Stretford Telegraph report. There is also a record of his marriage in Manhattan, New York on 21st September 1918.

Wounded treated at Old Trafford Cricket Pavilion

The wounded were collected by ambulance from Dover by a team of local Red Cross members, led by Dr Wheeler Hart. They were taken straight to the temporary hospital which had been set up in the Pavilion at the Lancashire County Cricket Club at Old Trafford. It had been fitted out and electric lighting installed in 24 hours by Stretford Council workers at extremely short notice Most of the wounded men had received their wounds at Antwerp and these were mainly shrapnel wounds to the hands, though there were some more serious cases. Antwerp was besieged by the German army, subjected to heavy artillery bombardment from 28th September 1914 and finally surrendered on 9th October. The Belgians seem to have been made very welcome throughout the Trafford area. Longford Hall and The Pavilion were not the only places in which they were placed. Some of the other sites include Wibbersley Park in Flixton, Holly Bank in Hale, The Lindens and Milton House on Barrington Road in Altrincham. There is even a report of a Belgian pianist and a folk song quartet giving a concert at Bowdon Chamber Concerts at the end of October 1914.

Sources

o East Lancashire Branch, Red Cross Society: an illustrated account of the work of the Branch during the first year of the war, Published by Sherratt & Hughes 1916 o Stretford Council Minutes o Stretford Telegraph Newspaper o Trafford War Dead website created by George Cogswell http://www.traffordwardead.co.uk/index.php?memorials=TRUE&memorial_id=82

SIR JOHN LEIGH OF ALTRINCHAM

This blog post was written by Bernard Shea, a volunteer at Trafford Local Studies.

Whilst researching war hospitals as part of the Trafford Local Studies First World War Volunteer Project, I came across the name of John Leigh, a name known in Trafford as result of the John Leigh Park. Investigating further, I found a story of a man who, touched by the horrors of the war, used his wealth and influence to contribute to the care of injured service men. Tracing his family history was a challenge, as both his father and son were named John, but using genealogical sources and the resources held by Trafford Local Studies; I was able to piece together his story.

John Leigh â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Altrincham, Bowdon and Hale Guardian Yearbook 1917-1918. 82

John Leigh was born in 1884 and educated at Manchester Grammar School. On leaving school, he joined his fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s firm in the cotton waste processing industry. By the time war broke out in 1914, at the age of 30, he was a well-respected and successful businessman. When the ravages of the war became more evident, as seriously injured servicemen returned from the battlefields, John and his wife decided to do what they could to relieve the suffering they witnessed. Their first major contribution was the purchase, for the Red Cross, of Townfield House in Altrincham. His wife personally supervised the fitting out and equipment of the hospital which was opened on 28thApril 1917 by Katherine, Duchess of Westminster. After Townfield House was opened, John Leigh continued to finance much of the maintenance costs which included the purchase of five ambulances, together with their on-going running expenses, for the use by the Red Cross.

Image 2: Townfield House â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Trafford Lifetimes TL4227.

John Leigh later donated his fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s former home, Woodbourne, Brooklands, together with eight acres of land, and personally financed the conversion and subsequent fitting out and maintenance of what became to be known as The John Leigh Memorial Hospital. It was specifically designed and equipped to help servicemen returning from battle who were suffering from severe shell shock and it was clearly recognised as a significant contribution to the war effort as it was opened 83

on Saturday 15th June 1918 by Queen Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s son, His Royal Highness, The Duke of Connaught KG. Once again, Lady Leigh supervised the equipping of the hospital and John Leigh contributed to the on-going running costs.

John Leigh also sought to acquire, and eventually purchased, a large area of land, adjacent to Townfield House in order to provide a recreational facility for the occupants of the then John Leigh Hospital. The land he purchased for the sum of £7,000, today known as the John Leigh Park, still provides an opportunity for recreation and relaxation for all to enjoy. John Leigh was made a baronet in February 1915, and as Sir John Leigh of Altrincham, Cheshire, together with his wife, maintained his contribution to the relief of suffering for returning injured servicemen. As a consequence of his generous financial gifts and personal involvement, together with his wife, numerous servicemen received the best available care, support and comfort they justifiably deserved as a result of their service to the nation.

Sources o John Leigh – Altrincham, Bowdon and Hale Guardian Yearbook 1917-1918. o Townfield House – Trafford Lifetimes TL4227. o John Leigh Memorial Hospital – Original brochure held by Trafford Local Studies.

SECOND LIEUTENANT MARK HOVELL, MA (18881916)

This blog post was written by Julie Lee, a volunteer at Trafford Local Studies.

Second Lieutenant Mark Hovell, MA, from the preface to “The Chartist Movement” Illustrated (Kindle Edition) by Mark Hovell.

“On Earth the broken Arcs, in the Heaven a perfect round”. So reads the epitaph of Second Lieutenant Mark Hovell, MA. He “was to become one of many young men of great promise whose lives were wasted in the slaughterhouse of the Western Front…” 86

He is buried alongside thousands of other soldiers in the military cemetery at Vermelles, Northern France. Hovell was from Sale, Cheshire and was only recently married when he died at the Front aged 28. A history lecturer at the University of Manchester Hovell had almost completed a significant piece of work on Chartism when he was called to France. As he left for the Front, Hovell consulted a colleague and former lecturer of his, Professor T. F. Tout: “… I promised that, should the fortune of war go against him, I would do my best to get it ready for publication. Within a few weeks I was unhappily called upon to redeem my word…” This he did, and Hovell’s influential work “The Chartist Movement” was published posthumously in 1918.

Born on March 21st 1888, Mark Hovell had shown promise from an early age, winning a scholarship to grammar school at the age of 10. He excelled academically, gaining a first class degree in history from the University of Manchester, before embarking on a teaching career. He became heavily involved in the Workers’ Education Association, as well as lecturing at Manchester University. During the 1912-13 academic year he went to Leipzig University in Germany. His many letters home talk of his admiration for many aspects of German life, “of the ways in which the Germans studied and practised the art of living, their adaptation of means to ends, their avoidance of social waste. He was struck by the absence of visible slums and apparent squalor“but also by the marked hostility he encountered towards the English.

By the time of the outbreak of war in August 1914, Hovell was back at Manchester University as a lecturer in military history. Victorian Social and Economic history had been his specialism, but “this (military) study the University prepared to develop in connection with a scheme for preparation of its students for commissions in the army and territorial forces…” He was then sent for officer training in the Spring of 1915. On June 3rd 1916 he married his sweetheart, Francis (Fanny) Gately, headmistress of the local infants school Springfield in Sale. They managed a rainy week’s honeymoon in the Lake District before Mark was back training with the 1st Battalion of the Sherwood Foresters (Notts and Derby Regiment). In July 1916, he received his orders to France. The Division he joined there were quite broken, having suffered heavy losses at the Somme, but he embraced the experience, writing to Professor Tout: “Behold me at last an officer of a line regiment, and in command of a small fortress, somewhere in France, with a platoon, a gun, stores, and two brother officers temporarily in my charge. I thus become owner of the best dug-out in the line, with a bed (four poles and a piece of stretched canvas), a table, and a ceiling ten feet thick. We are in the third line at present, so life is very quiet. Our worst enemies are rats, mice, beetles, and mosquitoes. “ He was fortunate to come across an acquaintance there: Rev. T. Eaton McCormick of his local parish of St Mary’s, Ashton on Mersey, who took Holy Communion with Hovell a few days before he died. On August 12th 1916, on Hovell’s second visit to the trenches, orders were given to explode a mine beneath the German trenches. As the mine exploded, one of Mark’s men was overwhelmed by the fumes, and as Hovell went to his aid, he too was overcome and he tragically fell down the shaft. His burial was overseen by Rev. McCormick who wrote to Mark’s mother: “It was truly a soldier’s funeral, for, just as I said “earth to earth,” all the surrounding batteries of our artillery burst forth into a tremendous roar in a fresh attack upon the German line…. He has, as the soldiers say, “gone West” in a blaze of glory. He has fought and died in the noblest of all causes, and though now perhaps we feel that such a brilliant career has been brought to an untimely end, by and by we shall realise that his sacrifice has not been in vain.“ Mark’s legacy remains for all to see: his daughter, Marjorie, was born 7 months after his death. She became an accomplished artist, teaching at the Manchester College of Art. 88

The “Mark Hovell and Shuttleworth Prize” was founded in 1918 by his widow, in memory of her husband for performance in exams for pupils studying history at Manchester University. Hovell’s work on Chartism (in a time when there was still no universal suffrage) was pioneering and contributed enormously to the early study of this period of Victorian Social and Economic history: It “became and remained for many years the definitive history of Chartism…” and “remains import (sic) both for its contribution towards the opening up of Chartist studies and for the influence it had over later historians of Chartism” As with so many personal stories of the First World War, one cannot help but wonder what might have been..

Photograph of Vermelles British Cemetery Sources o The poem “Abt Vogler” by Robert Browning. o http://gerald-massey.org.uk/hovell/index.htm o “The Chartist Movement” – Illustrated (Kindle edition) by Mark Hovell o Pg 11 “Victorian Labor History: Experience, identity, and the politics of representation” by John Host. o The Chartist Ancestors Blog by Mark Crail o http://www.cwgc.org/find-acemetery/cemetery/2000089/VERMELLES%20BRITISH%20CEMETERY. 89

A SALFORD STORY – JACK TRENBATH

This story was written by Paul Hassall, a volunteer at Salford Local History Library. I had the privilege of reading and transcribing the letters sent home from the front by Jack Trenbath, of Pendleton, Salford. By reading his extensive correspondence I noticed how many of his letters reflected the familiar themes, such as the expectation of a quick end to the conflict, but also surprising and interesting stories, such as the being on the wrong end of exploding “minnies”. Although writing almost a hundred years ago I got to know Jack and his family back home. Over the next few paragraphs I will summarise some of his interesting tales. It is commonly believed that everyone expected a quick victory in the war. Jack seems to have enlisted in 1916 at the tender age of 19. He trained at Sobraon Barracks, Colchester before embarking for France in September 1916. Was his early confidence a sign of his belief of an early victory, or a way of playing down the risks for his family back home?

My last glimpse of the dear old country was of a small piece of white shore shut in by high white cliffs on which there were boys and girls playing cricket. This was all lit up by a shining sun. That little fleeting glimpse I got will live forever. The place is simply crowded with officers waiting to go up. It’s a fine life I can tell you… Nearly all those who left blighty with me are here. So we do have a gay time. Let me impress upon you the fact that there is no more cause to be worrying for me than if I were at Scarborough and another thing we do get leave after 5 months. The war goes on quite well without us, the latest news being very encouraging.

Even by the beginning of March the following year he is still upbeat: Being under canvas it is rather a change from the luxury of billets with soft beds and carpet slippers, though I suppose we are in France now and the fun has hardly commenced. The worst feature of the place is the fact that the town is strictly out of bounds to us and we have to derive the maximum of solace from the ever present YMCA. Then again the majority of the chaps are greatly delighted by the state of the exchange which stands at 29.90 Frs for silver. Expressed in a more concrete form this means that for an English shilling you get 1.40 Frs which is the equivalent of 1/2. So that if you go into the YMCA or any of these places you put down a shilling, buy an 8d box of cigarettes and get 6d change… 91

When all is done and said you must know that I am having a really fine time, much more interesting than previously and with the real hardship thrown in. In old Blighty we sort of played at enjoying it, now we are doing the real thing and believe me it is not half bad. However, the letters soon start to reflect the harsh reality of the situation. Despite the censorship: For the present I think there is nothing more I can tell you because of the censorship, which personally I think is an unenviable job. Is this because the people back home are realising the awful truth and Jack can respond with honesty? From here to the front line the sensations which one experiences are beyond description by ordinary mortals. At first the report of our guns administers a shock. You hear the rattle of machine guns, the scream of shells and the splitting reports of all various shells bombs etc. used in war. Though generally speaking it is really surprising how unconcerned one can be in the midst of all this. During the day time little of much importance happens except desultory shelling and bombing. When it grows dark everywhere the place is lighted up by the livid glare of star shells, the machine guns start to rattle and everything seems to liven up. There is plenty of time to rest during the day in the dug-outs. The one I was in was about 5 feet square and the entrance was something after the style of a rat-hole just large enough to admit my carcass. Talk about rats, they are large enough to run off with your rifle and seem to have a greater affinity for biscuits (hard ones) than we have. Next morning James and I were standing in the trench when we heard one of Fritzâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s heavy shells coming in our direction. It fell just over the trench and the concussion was all we got. He sent these over for a long time, one of them bringing the trench in with it a few yards away. Another shell bursted over the dugout blowing the candle off the table and sending shrapnel down the entrance. During these times one lives fast and the suspense when waiting for the shell to burst is hardly an enjoyable experience. During the early hours I have been finding my way about an unknown system of trenches. In this region there used to be a lot of mining but this has ceased and the conflict now rages in the craters formed by the explosions. At some places we have posts only 10 yards from the Bosch trenches and long communication trenches lead from our line to these places. Going down one of these on a very important message and got stuck in the mud. There I sat for an hour and a half as Fritz dropping munitions all around. Finally I had to abandon my waders and tramp nearly a mile through the mud in bare feet. My hat! Wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t it cold. Capt. Allan sent me some rum and I was alright again in an hour or so. My chief occupation is looking after the menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rations and other issues to the Company which occupies from dusk till about 10.30pm. I might say that ration carrying is one of the rotten jobs. ______ we were before the rations are brought under cover of dark and over the top. 92

Fritz evidently is aware of this for he gives a nightly accompaniment on the machine guns. At the sound of this it is very funny to see the crowd of us flatten ourselves out flatter than flounders. Even father with his bad leg would get down in even time. Sometimes when you have to go along the trench for them Fritz will shell it all the way down. Then of course you have to look out. As before we are in a tunnel through a perfect pig sty to the last. From end to end it is crumbling away and it fell down in two places simultaneously, fortunately without burying anyone. Notably the platoons were cut off and we had a job to get their meals to them. The engineers got a narrow way through just sufficient to crawl through and we had to drag the dixies through after us expecting every minute the stuff to fall in again. I had just got through with the last one when it did happen. Then the place where I sleep is as bad â&#x20AC;&#x201C; one side fell in and hit me on the chest, flattening me against the opposite wall. Perhaps you know that it is now the practice here for both sides to send up Very Light at night. These are a species of rocket which go up a short distance and then burst into a very brilliant light which slowly descends. Anything within a reasonable distance (100-200 yards) is clearly visible in silhouette. If you happen to be standing up at the time all you have to do is to stand perfectly rigid and then he will not notice you, but if you make any movement whatever the game is up and he knows that someone is there. It is rather a crucial moment when a light goes up and you are balancing yourself on your eyebrows extricating your lower extremities from the loving embrace of a coil of barbed wire or doing a sort of balancing trick on the muddy incline of a shell crater. However it all serves to add a spice of fun and excitement. Like most young soldiers Jack was forced to grow up very quickly as demonstrated in this excerpt: Father used to say that I did not know what it was like to lose a nights sleep. Perhaps I did not, but I do now. Not only that, but I know what it is to lose four or five nights sleep. Sometimes I manage a couple of hours sat on the floor with equipment on and expected every second to be called up. The last night I spent pushing a truck laden with rations etc. from the dump behind the trenches along the line and Fritz searching for us with a machine gun. The moon was at its height and of course the truck squeaked like mice. I am more than thankful to be able to have come out of that tunnel alive, it is perfectly miraculous that I was able to send a nil casualty report. Time after time Fritz blew down our parapets and each time the fellows built them up. It was a very hairy moment when we stood behind our parapet till everyone was ready. When we filed over the top into the dark empty space. The first thing we did was go rolling down a huge shell hole into the water at the bottom, but we had no time to enjoy this fun for we had some of Fritzâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wire to negotiate so soon in a disused trench. No-mans land is a perfect 93

labyrinth of disused bashed-in trenches often laid with trip-wires and other entanglements, but after sundry abrasions we were well away into space. There were five of us and I brought up the rear. When you remember the time that I would not go up into the attic alone in the dark you will realise that some change has happened. So off we went like a serpent wriggling and writhing on hands and knees pausing frequently to take our bearings and I can tell you that in view of the previous night’s escapade we quite expected that he would attempt to snaffle me again. Jack helped distribute the rations and made frequent comments on the good standard of the food. For quite a long time now we have been very well fed indeed in fact the trouble at the beginning was just while the commissariat became accustomed to cooking bacon and onions in the same receptacle that they had for boiling tea. There are always some cheerful idiots who tell you that we live on Bully and biscuits. We don’t and never have done for very long spells, it’s about three months since I mealed on either of them. As a matter of fact I don’t eat anything like all the bread I have issued. When fresh meat is not obtainable we get maconochie (?) rations which are boiled in tins and contain a first class meal of meat and vegetables of all descriptions. They are top hole and I prefer them many a time to fresh stuff. For use with the brazier we have a frying pan to cook our food. This consists of a petrol can with one side cut out. All the same it acts admirably. Then we have dried vegetable, which when cooked and put with stewed meat I defy anyone to detect. Once per week we get cold

roast with pickles and at odd intervals steak and chips, fig and date puddings, rice and altogether better grub than we get in England. It is amazing to see the quantity of the letters sent by Jack (and presumably he received a similar number). They were sent at regular intervals and occasionally Jack asked his correspondents to note a new address. The postal system must have been very efficient as the letters seem to have arrived swiftly and accurately (and were very welcome). Equally amazing were the number of parcels of food received by Jack: I received the third parcel from you last night but one and the contents were fine. The bread was simply A1 and the parkin was champion. The eggs were lovely too. In fact the whole lot was past description. Last night I received one from Auntie Millie and Uncle also some cigarettes from Eric. We nearly went mad at the sight of some “Three Castles”. You know I have to smoke anything I can get and it is generally woodbines or something worse. Here you have chaps who in civil life smoked cigars and Abdullas (?), begging a cigarette however common. Parcel from “The Height School”. ……….For the first time your parcel was well bashed. Better luck next time. The parcel was A1. The strawberries and cream were top hole. The ham I have not yet cooked though it is good. ……………2 parcels……one containing amongst many other things a pair of socks from Sunday School – very good of them all. Sometimes a parcel arrived, but it was difficult to consume the contents! Your parcel arrived just before we went into the trenches so I carried it in and opened it there, but on the way it had quite an exciting passage. We went down under one of our own barrages something enough to turn your hair grey. The night was perfectly quiet until all the guns in the neighbourhood suddenly spouted forth together. Bedlam pandemonium and all those sort of places seemed to have been opened and venting their pent up fury on some unfortunate individual. Some of the guns go off with a livid yellowish spurt whilst others give out a red Mephistophelian (?) glare and the combination was too weird for words. Overhead it seemed as if ten thousand express trains were tearing away and rending the air with an earsplitting din. For the first time I saw shells actually on their way. You know that the friction of their passage through the air makes them red hot and you can see them describing their important trajectories through the air. Fritz’s line absolutely danced under the busting shells (high explosive) and the air was crowded with the red flash of burning shrapnel. This side of the question is all very nice, but 95

Fritz is not yet in such a parlous state that he will stand such a bumping without replying. So overcame his infernal stuff. It’s a good job for me that some of his shells don’t go off and that those that did go off sent no shrapnel in my direction. Anyway it made me sweat some. Jack made reference to the horrors of the mud, which is well known, but did you know about the rats! From head to foot I am one mass of mud inches thick. I have got a pair of those rubber waders which come right up the thighs and are a boon in the wet places. The weather is very bad and the trenches are waist deep in mud. Communication is awfully bad. Still when things are like this it is generally quieter. By the way talking about rats! They swarm in dozens about a piece of bread and provide much fun for we who have revolvers. Some of them are too fat to do anything but crawl and you can easily kick them as they pass. It is quite a novel experience to wake up and not find a battalion of them crossing your chest in column of route. Jack seems to be intelligent and observant of the events around him. He mentions (censorship allowing) some of the new technologies of war: Aeroplanes and aeroplanes fights are common order of the day. Observation balloons lift their ungraceful shapes before our door. The night is characterised by the sharp rattle of machine gun fire whilst the vivid flashes in the sky proclaim the increasing vigilance of our guns. In the trenches when Fritz has a saucy mood on and throws all kinds of horrible things over, you suddenly hear the scream of one of our shells followed by in rapid succession by countless others. Then you feel perfectly safe and give not the slightest heed to Fritz and his infernal stuff. I am going to tell you something but I don’t want you to worry about it. The first day up here I was going down the trench when suddenly there palled (?) upon my ears the telltale sound of a “Minnie”. I saw it coming straight for me; like a frightened rat I skittled away but found as usual that it had swerved and was coming in my direction. Thereupon I doubled back, stopped and ran on and then CRASH it came just behind me only over the parapet. The concussion threw me head first down the trench and I lay on my chest to be covered with the falling earth. Events moved rather quickly – rather too quickly to be healthy – it took less time than it takes to write. If you could have seen me you would have laughed. Just down the trench a working party seemed highly delighted with my feats. The things up at Messines are horrible what with eruptions more violent than any earthquake and those “new and terrible engines of war.” These latter are I presume unknown to you except by name, though I have an idea of their terrible character. With regard to the explosions, only those who know the violence of a few pounds of Ammonal (?) can realise or 96

form any opinion of the explosion and the hole left by them. At present we are on a similar hole the dimensions of which would astound you. It seems like Jack’s sister wasn’t too sure of aeroplanes and told him not to stand underneath one as it might drop out of the sky. In WWI the German Army used a type of trench mortar called a Minenwerfer. This was nicknamed the ‘minnie’ by the Allied forces. The first record in print of it being called that is in From the fire step – a WWI memoir by the American soldier and author Arthur Guy Empey, published in 1917: “A German ‘Minnie’ (trench mortar) had exploded in the next traverse.” Finally, is a “new and terrible engine of war” a tank? Jack was a committed and dedicated soldier. A number of times in his letters he spoke sympathetically of individual German soldiers, despite his hatred for the Bosche. As you say they are giving Fritz a warm time of it in this part of the globe. Such a gruelling that I don’t imagine he can stand much of. The worse he gets it the sooner he will give up, although of course that is a callous sort of thing to say when you think of the individual Bosche. Jack warned his readers to beware of exaggerated and misleading stories of the war. His foresight was spot on when he said that the “economic question” would be a deciding factor in who would win the war. On a number of occasions Jack wrote of his attempts to obtain a Commission. The London Gazette of 13th July 1918 recorded that he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the East Lancs Regiment. Sadly only a few days later, on 8th September he was killed at Adiers. Jack is buried at Nieppe, nr Armentieres at Pont D’Achelles Military Cemetary.

Sources o The Jack Trenbath letters, Salford Local History Library