Brave Brothers from Birch

Thomas Furber in the POW camp

The village of Birch is located between Heywood and Middleton, which consists mainly of a single highway which passes through the village.

Many years ago I met one of its residents, Mr Furber while I was wandering around the cemetery carrying out research. Douglas Furber’s family have lived in the village for many years and ‘Dougie’ as he is affectionately known is a mine of information

Recently a friend of the family, Mike Stringer, who also knows Mr Furber paid me a visit with a collection of interesting items which he loaned from our Birch resident. The material relates to the family members, the former brave sons of Dougie during the Great War. One cabinet photograph shows the picture of the first prisoner of war who lived in the town of Middleton, near Manchester another shows a work party setting off from their camp. 9749, Thomas Furber was with the Manchester Regiment and was taken prisoner at the Mons retreat at the battle of Le Cateau, this information is taken from the photograph. Tom is seen in the work party, named on his white shirt.

By Harold Cunliffe

Mr Furber also has the card which accompanied a POW food parcel which was financed by Mr Peto. Listed are, cigarettes or tobacco, cakes, milk and cleaning items. The message reads; “Hope you are well. You must be glad the winter is now nearly over and the warm weather coming.” W. Peto. Making a search of the local newspaper we find that Tom sent a picture postcard to the Middleton Guardian. The editor commented, “The postcard shows a couple of Tommies asleep in bed, with wistful smiles on their faces. Over the bed is the motto “God bless our camp” whilst underneath the picture are the words, “Hush! Don’t make a noise, we’re dreaming about the (prisoner) exchange.”

Born in the village of Birch in 1888, John William Furber, of the 17th Battalion of the Lancashire Fusiliers was killed in action, 28 Sept 1918. During the Great War John married Emily Collinge or Collins. 29650, W.H.Furber of the Lancashire Fusiliers was wounded in both legs while in service on the Somme, he was also gassed at Ypres and was in the battle of Passchendaele in 1917. “Don’t Forget to Write”

I suppose one of the last comments a serviceman would hear from family members is a reminder about keeping in touch, letter writing. One of our images show a selection of writing implements which were given away by the Co-operative Society. These consist of tiny space saving pencils which have a brass threaded section on the bottom to enable them to be extended, this was confirmed by “Yourtrust,” Rochdale. Other implements are a type of dip pen which had its own case. These amazing items, survivors of the Great War were donated by Mrs Loretta Broxton. Lieutenant C. Knight-Coutts, of the 27th Battery R.F.A., wrote to his family from a location “Somewhere in France” during September of 1914 which was passed to the local newspaper for publication, what follows is what he related in his correspondence; “We have a section (two guns) in action about three miles away from the main battery, where the remaining four guns are. I was on duty there yesterday, and this morning I was on my way from there to the front line trenches for my twenty four hours spell as forward observing officer, and to save time I was going across country, and part of the way along a disused railway. At the side of it in a small square portion of a field fenced in by barbed wire I saw a little graveyard of some eight or ten graves. In the centre was a cross about ten feet high, made from tree trunks, and at the based is carved, “Tell England, you who pass by this monument, that we died serving her, rest here content.” The graves were carefully tended,

Food parcel address and greeting card

and each had some text or regimental crest worked in chalk stones on the brown mould. Two of the latest were those of 9201 Rifleman A. Furlong and 9593 Rifleman H. Bragshaw, both of the 1st Rifle Brigade, killed in action on August 8th, 1914. It seemed to me to be a message which I could tell to *censored*, and especially to those who remain and could go if they had the pluck. *Censored* has done well, we know, but we know,

too, that she could do better. It seems to me monstrous that young men (if one can call them that), hale and hearty, without ties, can walk about the town holding their heads up while men are dying for them. I wished this morning that some I know could have had the privilege of seeing that monument and inscription. It might even have made them feel that it was better to lie there on the field of battle a dead hero than to be in safe shelter at home behind a woman’s petticoat, a rotten coward.” The conscientious objectors, those who refused to fight were shown the white feather, a sign of being a coward.

W.H.Furber

First to be Killed

On the 28th November 1914 the local newspaper announced the death of Private Joseph Moran of the 1st Kings Shropshire Light Infantry, who was killed in action. Pvt Moran lived at Hanging Birch, which is a small group of dwellings located on the main Heywood Old Road, the same road which passes through the village of Birch about two miles away. Hanging Birch is near the Blackley border and close to Heaton Park. The editor of the newspaper stated that the news of the death of Private Moran was the first death of a soldier from the front which they had received. The coverage stated that Moran was one of the first to be called up and he had been fighting practically ever since the war broke out. He was very well respected, and a brave and fearless soldier. The whole community joined together in mourning the sad loss his widow and children sustained.

John William Furber with his wife Emily

Picture postcard of the village of Birch

Wedding Invitation

Private Richard Wellens wrote to the vicar of his place of worship, Parkfield Church, stating that he had

Pencils etc

done a lot of travelling since he last wrote. He was in a unit with two other lads from his town. In his letter he commented that he was invited to an Arabian wedding which he found very interesting and colourful. “It was very different from an English wedding. The Arab buys his wife which costs him 1,000 francs or around £5 in English money. Imagine buying a wife, and maybe covered by the ‘Sale of Goods Act.”