Private 43193.  Lincolnshire Regiment, 7 th Battalion

George Wheawell was born on 12th May 1885 to George (Snr) and Emma Wheawell of Kingsley, the oldest of their four children. George (Snr) was employed locally as a Miner.  The family lived at Brookgate Cottage, Kingsley.  (Family History records).

In 1901 the family were living at Kingsley Green, possibly the same address. As well as George (Jnr) who was 15 years old, there was also Mary (13 yrs), John Thomas (9 yrs) and Clement (6 yrs) old.  George Wheawall (Jnr) is described as a ‘Coal Miner – Pony Driver underground’.  (1901 Census).

By 1911 George (Snr) had died, his widow Emma is head of the household.   George (Jnr) then aged 25 years and his two brothers remain living at home, sister Mary (23yrs) had moved out.  George (Jnr) is recorded as being Single and employed as a ‘Colliery Wagon Loader – Below Ground’. (1911 Census).

On 14th May 1911 George Wheawall married Mary Ellen Handley at St Werburgh’s Church, Kingsley. They subsequently had two sons, John (born 1912) and Clement George (born 1913).  Initially the family lived locally in Kingsley.  (Family History records).

George joined the army in 1914/15 initially joining the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment, Service No. 23144, before being transferred to the Lincolnshire Regiment (7th Battalion), Service No. 43193. (Medal card).

It would appear that George Wheawall was on active service during 1915 as one of the medals he was awarded was the ‘1915 Star’ awarded for men who served in the theatre of operations before 31st December 1915. His medal card indicates he entered the ‘Theatre of war’ on 7th November 1915 on Active Service in Egypt. The Lincolnshire Regiment was not in Egypt at any time (a staging post for Gallipoli) but the 9th Battalion  Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment were with two battalions in Egypt at some point in 1916. His medal roll indicates he was in the 9 batallion. George may have been at Gallipoli although we may never know.

The Lincolnshire Regiment, 7 th Battalion, saw active service on the Western front in Northern France and notably were involved in Action in the Bluff (February 1916), Battle of Albert (July 1916), and the ‘First and Second Battles of the Scarpe’ (April and May 1917), and the Battle of Arras, (August 1917).    (Regimental War Diary). George transferred to the regiment some time in 1916 /17  but as he service record does not survive we do not know the date.

At 3.35am on 8th August 1917 during the Battle of Arras the Germans laid a barrage of artillery shells on their position which increased in intensity until 4.30 am. The British artillery replied in kind.  The Germans then attacked with infantry some getting into the British trenches before  being ‘ejected’ leaving some of their dead behind them. The Germans brought explosives with them but never had time to use them.   (Regimental War Diary).

As a result of the attack the following British casualties were sustained mainly from the artillery bombardment; 10 other ranks killed, 31 wounded (5 remained at their posts) with 2 men missing in action.  The rest of the day was spent repairing damage caused to the trenches.   (Regimental War Diary).

It is assumed that George Wheawall was one of the 10 men killed in the action on 8th August 1917. His family history records indicate that, ‘He was shot and killed by a sniper whilst on stretcher duty on the 8th August 1917, aged 32 years’.  (Family history).

On 9th August 1917 the battalion relieved by a battalion from the Lancashire Fusiliers.  (Regimental War Diary).

George Harrison Samuel Wheawell is buried in Brown’s Copse Commonwealth War Cemetary at Roeux.  (CWGC).

His widow Mary Ellen Wheawell died in the great flu epidemic in November 1918.  (Family history).

The picture adjacent is of George and his comrades – possibly judging by the numbers it was his platoon who are pictured. George is on the back row fourth in front the left with an X above his head.

We are grateful to George’s family who have allowed us to use both pictures of him during his war service.

We also have a letter written to his family by a friend from the front which we hope to ranscribe at some point and put on the site.

Footnote 1: We are grateful to the family of George Wheawell for sharing their history with us including pictures of him. The family includes Mandy Jones who is the  great grand daughter of George and her father who is his grandson.

Private 7524.  North Staffordshire Regiment

Charles Allen was born around 1892/93 to Mary J Allen. Little more is known of the family at this time.

In 1901 the family has seemingly fallen on hard times and is living in the Workhouse in Cheadle. Charles is aged 8 and has a sister Mary aged 4.

By 1911 there is at present little to say on the family, Mary Jnr is aged 14 at this census and working as a domestic servant at Fole. There is at this time no information on mother Mary Allen and son Charles Allen.

Research to date has not been able to locate the either mother or son at this time in the census returns. Unfortunately the Workhouse records do not contain any lists of inmates. Out of interest the workhouse became what is now Cheadle Hospital.

Charles Allen joined the Army fairly early on in the war under  Service No. 7524, and was posted to the North Staffordshire Regiment. Newspaper reports at the time of his death describe him as a reservist which seems to confirm he served before the war.

His service prior to the war is further confirmed as he is shown on the roll of soldiers in the North Staffordshire Regiment at the outbreak of the war. (Staffordshire Regimental Museum Lichfield)

Initially Charles served in the 4th Battalion, (a reserve battalion).  On 23rd March 1915 Charles Allen was transferred to the Ist Battalion who were in action on the Western Front in Northern France.  (Army Medal Card).

On 5th February 1915 in the Cheadle and Tean Times it was reported that a Whist Drive had been held (believed at the Reading Room) in aid of those at the front. From the proceeds it was decided to purchase socks with half a dozen being kept back to send to Charles Allen a member of the Reading Room.

On 6th May 1916 Charles Allen (then aged 25yrs) married Mary Ellen Thomas at St Werburghs Church , Kingsley.  It is assumed that he was back on leave. At this stage Charles was a serving soldier in the North Staffs Regiment as stated on the marriage certificate.  The Marriage Certificate indicates no details are known of his father, (he may have been born outside of marriage).  Kingsley is indicated as his place of residence.  (Marriage Certificate).  

Mary Ellen Thomas was the daughter of Edward and Mary Allen who had previously lived in Cotton.  In 1911 Mary and her mother were living in Back Lane, Kingsley.  (1911 Census).

By that time Charles had been wounded in action being listed on the daily casualty lists for 5th November 1915 although he would have been injured possibly days or weeks before that. Reports after his death indicate he was quite seriously injured as he recuperated  in Jersey and it was thought he would not recover sufficiently for further active service. (it may have been Guernsey rather than Jersey as the 4th Extra Reserve Battalion was there from 1914 to 1916)

The 1st Battalion, North Staffs Regiment were involved in the Battle of the Somme, (1st July – 18th November 1916).  They were involved fairly early on in the battle moving to the front in late July early August. At the end of August the battalion historian records that rotting corpses littered the area they were in. (Tracing British Battalions on the Somme Ray Westlake)

Charles Allen was killed on 12th August 1916, a little over 3 months after his wedding in Kingsley.  He has no known grave along with over 70,000 others who died in this battle. Charles Allen is commemorated at the Thiepval Memorial Cemetery, Northern France, (CWGC).

The War Diary for his battalion records the following information :

12 August 1916 / 13 August 1916  – “Fine clear day. Total daily casualties to 12 noon 1 killed 5 wounded. Orders received at 11am that Battalion will relieve R W Kents during evening of 12th inst. Relief begun at about 4.30pm almost simultaneously with allied attack on our immediate right of which we had not been warned. Relief complete 9.30pm (approx) a few casualties in joining up. Enemy bombardment on front line — and Hollow Road 9.30pm to 10.30pm. 11pm to midnight, 1am to 2am [ unreadable] bombardment of Hollow Road and supporting lines from 3.45am to 5.30am. [unreadable] shelling in between bombardments. Casualties to 12 noon 7 OR killed and 20 wounded”

The previous day saw the Battalion moving into trenches as an attack was taking place in the late evening. There is little detail in terms of what happened during that time but the casualties were fairly light. Whether Charles Allen was killed during those manoeuvres after midnight we do not know. However casualties were higher in the following 24 hours from midday 12th August which saw the battalion moving up to relieve the Royal West Kent Regiment. Its highly likely that Charles Allen was killed during the bombardment of the British trenches. He and 6 other men killed that day have no known grave. Another 3 1st Battalion men are recorded to have died on 12th August making a total of 10 which is 2 more than the war diary. The most likely explanation is that they died of wounds received on that or a preceding day.

A local press report at the time  of his death refer to him as an intelligent and interesting man who on returning to the village on leave had descriptive stories of his experiences to tell.

The report adds that at the time  of his death his widowed mother and sisters were living in Stone.

Footnote 1:  The Battle of the Somme, also known as the Somme Offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British and French empires against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 November 1916 on both sides of the River Somme in France. The battle was one of the largest of World War I, in which more than 1,000,000 men were wounded or killed.  (Wikipedia).

Footnote 2:  The Thiepval Memorial commemorates 73,367 British and Commonwealth soldiers that fell during the Battle of the Somme between July and November 1916 and who have no known grave.  (Wikipedia).

Private 200736 – Royal Tank Corps

George Ramsell was born in the period January – March 1896, the son of Benjamin (a Copper worker) and Dency Ramsell, the second of their seven children.  In 1901 (when George was aged 5 years) the family were living at Froghall House, Froghall.  (1901 Census).  Froghall House is adjacent to the former George Botham’s Farm, Foxt Road, Froghall.

In 1911 the family were living at Froghall Cottage, Nr Cheadle, Staffs, (Parish of Kingsley).  At this stage George Ramsell, aged 15yrs, was employed as a ‘Copperworks Labourer’. (1911 Census)

During his time in the Army his home address was Beech Tree Cottage, Froghall, (Family history)

George Ramsell joined the Tank Corps, Service No. 200736, and was allocated to the 4th Battalion.  He was deployed to France in October 1915. (Army Records).

Full Army records required.

George Ramsell died on 8th August 1918.  His Army service record is briefly endorsed, ‘K in A 8/8/18’.  He commemorated on the Memorial at the Hangard Communal Cemetery Extension, Northern France.

On 8th August 1918 the 4th Battalion Royal Tank Regiment were deployed on an early morning operation in support of the Canadian Infantry in an offensive in the area of the Amiens Defence Line.  The objective was captured and secured.  The advance continued during the day in the area of Cancelette, Le Marie Wood and Ignacourt.  Two tanks were lost to German field gun fire during this later operation.  (Regiment War Diary).

Footnote 1:  At the end of March 1918, Hangard was at the junction of the French and Commonwealth forces defending Amiens. From 4th to 25th April, the village and Hangard Wood were the scene of incessant fighting, in which the line was held and the 18th Division were particularly heavily engaged. On 8th August the village was cleared by the 1st and 2nd Canadian Rifles. (CWGC Website).

Footnote 2:  George Ramsell was the uncle of Pat Mullington, formerly of Kingsley Holt, now living in Cheadle.

Pictures of George Ramsell courtesy of the family

Private 305892.  1st/7th Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment

Thomas Barker was born in 1885 in Seaham Harbour, County Durham, the son of Thomas (Snr) and Sarah Ann Barker, the fifth of their five children.  (Census records).

Father, Thomas Barker (Snr), was born in Manchester in around 1848.  In 1861 he was living in Kingsley with his Grandparents.  In 1871 he remained living in Kingsley with an Aunt. (1861 and 1871 Census).  Mother, Sarah Ann (nee Worthington) was born in Wetley Rocks. The couple married at St Werburghs Church, Kingsley, in late 1875. (Marriage Register).

In 1881 the couple were living in Cheadle with their oldest three children.  For reasons which are as yet unknown the family moved to Seaham Harbour, County Durham, where Thomas was born in 1885.  It would seem that his Mother Sarah Ann died in County Durham in 1887 when Thomas was only a young child.  The family returned to live in Kingsley.

In 1889 Thomas (Snr) remarried Anne Carr who was from the Kingsley area.  (Marriage Register).  In 1901 the family were living at Cupola, Froghall, and had a further four children, making a total of 9 children including the 5 children from Thomas Snr’s first marriage.  At this stage Thomas (Jnr) was aged 15 yrs and was employed as a General Labourer.  (1901 Census).

By 1911 Thomas Barker (Jnr), then aged 25 yrs, had married Mary Barker.  The couple had a young child, Annie Barker, and were living at Little Bunting, Kingsley.  Thomas was employed as a Colliery Labourer. (1911 Census).

Army Record required.

At some stage Thomas Barker joined the Army and was allocated to the Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment, 1st/7th Battalion.  The regiment saw active service on Western Front in Northern France with Thomas entering the theatre of operations on 15^th April 1915. (Medal Card)

In August 1917 the Regiment were deployed in the area of Redan, Nieuport, (Belgium).

Thomas Barker was killed on either 5th (CWGC) or 8th August 1917 (St Werburghs Plaque).  Thomas Barker is commemorated at the Coxyde Military Cemetery, Nr Nieuport, Belgium.  (CWGC).

The date of Thomas’s death is likely to be 5^th August as the CWGC’s information would be based from graves registration. In addition the records held on line record the date of death as 5^th August.

Lastly his medal card has the following entry ‘Accid. Drowned’. The ‘Accid.’ Is read to be ‘accident’.

Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment, 1st/7th Battalion, War Diary has the following relevant entries:

5th August – “Gas shells continued at intervals until 4.00am. Bright sunny day. Fairly quiet. Man drowned on ration party crossing the canal.  Casualties 2”  

6^th August “”Fairley quiet day supplied 100 OR (other ranks) carrying parties. Casualties 11 OR gassed, 1 OR wounded, 1 OR drowned (fell off Vauxhall Bridge while on ration party) (rest of entry refers to training movements)

7^th August “Fairly quiet day. 7.45 – 9.0PM very heavy shelling of Batt HQ with 5.9’s. Several direct hits but little damage. RSM Holmes injured. All HQ NCO’s of 5WRR killed in dugout. Casualties 7 OR’s wounded.

8th August – Raid by 6 WRR (West Riding Regiment), 5 Prisoners, 1.00am Relief between 5 & 7 WRR order cancelled.  Casualties 7 OR (other ranks) wounded.  Fine rain at night.”

It would therefore seem that unless the entries for 5^th and 6^th August are duplicates that two men drowned on consecutive days whilst carrying supplies across the canal which was quite a wide stretch of water not far from the sea on the Belgium coast. The work was carried out under gas shell attack and several men were affected by gas.

A search via the Commonwealth War Graves Commission site for the dates 5^th August to 8th August inclusive for Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment shows that 58 men are recorded to have lost their lives in this period. Only one came from 1^st / 7^th Battalion and that was Thomas Barker on 5^th August, no man lost his life from the battalion on 6th or  the 8th. It would therefore be reasonable to assume that the entry was in fact a duplicate – its on a different page and may have been written up a few days after and may have been just an error albeit the authors hand for both days appears to the same (Entry initialed each day GBH)

Footnote 1:  In June 1917, Commonwealth forces relieved French forces on 6 kilometres of front line from the sea to a point south of Nieuport (now Nieuwpoort), Belgium, and held this sector for six months. Coxyde (now Koksijde) was about 10 kilometres behind the front line. The village was used for rest billets and was occasionally shelled, but the cemetery, which had been started by French troops, was found to be reasonably safe. It became the most important of the Commonwealth cemeteries on the Belgian coast and was used at night for the burial of the dead brought back from the front line.

Footnote 2: Thomas Barker is the relative of Sharon Emery and Julie Dono (Nee Barker) who’s late father and mother were Bertie and Betty Barker. Bertie’s father was the brother of Thomas. Both sisters still live in the village to this day.