Walter Swift 1885-1916

In Memoriam Notice in Barnsley Chronicle 21 Apr 1917
(with thanks to Barnsley Archives)

Born:
19 March 1885 (calculated) in Monk Bretton, Barnsley
Baptised 5 August 1888 at St Paul's Monk Bretton, Barnsley

Son of:
Amelia Swift b.1865 in Gawber or Higham, Barnsley d.1931 Hoyle Mill, Barnsley
She married on 30 November 1885 at Monk Bretton, to George Priestley b.1858 Monk Bretton d.1934 Hoyle Mill, Barnsley
1911: Labourer for Navigation on Canal, living at 7 Armin Street, Hoyle Mill

Position in family: 
Only child of Amelia before her marriage, but with 5 half sisters & a half brother
1. Walter Swift b.1885 WW1 MISSING/KILLED IN ACTION
 
2. John Priestley b.1888 d.1889
3. Agnes Mary Priestley b.1889 m.1910 to Thomas Pilling k.1916 at Wharncliffe Woodmoor Colliery, m.1918 Joseph S Hobson
4. Louisa Priestley b.1893 m.1913 to John Worstenholme
5. Norah Priestley b.1897 m. to 1917 Frank Horbury
6. Olive Priestley b.1897 d.1948 unmarried
7. Frances Priestley b.1900

1907 map of Cliffe Bridge showing Jaques Row (from NLS)

Home address, age and occupation:
1891: Cliffe Bridge, Barnsley age 6 (as Priestley)
1901: 2 Jaques Row, Cliffe Bridge, Barnsley age 16 Colliery Pony Driver below ground
1911: 16 Park Square, Off St George's Street, Barnsley age 26 Trammer Grimethorpe Colliery
1914 at enlistment: 10  Mill Street, Hoyle Mill Age 29 Miner

Marriage: 
He was married on 16 July 1910 at St Peter's, Doncaster Road, Barnsley to
Emily Walker b.1889 d.1977 Barnsley

After his death Emily remarried to John William Jackson in 1918.  They had eight children, Mary, Ernest, Mabel, Ernest, William, James, Edith and Thomas between 1919 and 1928.

Children:
1. Arthur Swift b.Q3 1910 d. November 1911
2. Elizabeth Swift b. 26 August 1912
3. Thomas Swift b. 25 October 1914 d. 19 October 1915 of Lobular Pneumonia
4. Walter Swift b. 23 May 1916

Military Service:
Enlisted: 21 September 1914 at the age of 29 years & 186 days
Regiment and Battalion:    13th Battalion York & Lancaster Regiment (1st Barnsley)
Service number and rank:  13/890  Private
Awards: British War Medal and Victory Medal

Personal information:   5'4" tall, 36" chest, Brown eyes, Fair complexion, Light Brown hair.

Death:     1 July 1916  age 31
Buried at:   Tilloy British Cemetery, Tilloy-Les-Mofflaines
Grave Reference:  VII. A. 4.

Remembered:
Hoyle Mill War Memorial, Bethel Chapel, Hoyle Mill 

Notes:
You can read more about Walter Swift on Lives of the First World War and on this blog post which investigates the way his body was identified by his spoon.

Extract from the Additional Documents on the CWGC website relating to Concentration - note Titles On spoon

Thomas Arthur Leech 1889-1916

Thomas Arthur Leech (photo via RD)

Born: 
In Chester on 3 September 1889
Baptised at St. Paul’s Church, Chester on 30 January 1890

Son of:
Thomas Leech, a Locomotive Engine Driver and Mildred Maria Leech
Of 19 Cecil Terrace, Chester at his baptism.
Thomas had married Mildred Maria Midford at Plemonstall, Cheshire on 2nd August 1880

Position in family: 4th son of 7 boys and 2 girls.
Note: 1911 Census states 10 children born living 2 have since died
1. Georgina L Leech b c1882
2. George Leech b c1884 d Q3 1896 aged 12 in Chester
3. William Leech b c1886
4. Joseph Leech b c1888
5. Thomas Arthur Leech b 3 September 1889 WWI KILLED
6. Ernest Leech b c1892
7. Nellie Gertrude Leech b c1895
8. Frederick Leech b c 1897
9. Charles R. Leech b c1900

Home address, age and occupation:
1891: 19 Cecil Terrace Chester. Aged 1
1901: 21 Queen Street Chester, Aged 11.
1911: 43 Farrar Street Barnsley Aged 21. Foundry Labourer
1914 on enlistment: 9 Wellington Place, Waterloo Road, Barnsley

Marriage: 
He married Ethel Roberts in 25 August 1913 at Worsbrough Dale Church

Children:
1. Mildred Louvain Leech b 21st February 1915 m. Clifford Armitage Q3 1939

Note: Louvain was sacked by the Germans on 26 August 1914

Military Service: 
Enlisted: 6th October 1914 aged 25 years 33days
Regiment and Battalion:  York and Lancaster Regiment, 13th Battalion, Barnsley Battalion
Service number and rank:  13/576  Private
Trade on enlisting: Blacksmith’s striker
The Victory Medal and the British War Medal were awarded to his widow in 1921.

Home posting 6 October 1914 to 27 December 1915
Expeditionary Force Mediterranean 28 December 1915 to 10 March 1916
Embarked Egypt for BEF 11 March 1916
France 11 March 1916 to 1 July 1916
1 July 1916 Missing in the Field
 
Personal details: 5ft 4 ¾ ins tall: Weight 123 lbs: Chest 34 ½ ins: Complexion sallow: Eyes brown: Vision Normal

Death:    1st July 1916 aged 26. Killed in Action.
CWGC Remembered:  Thiepval Memorial Pier and Face 14A and 14B.

Remembered:
October 2007 at Thiepval

Notes:
The story above has been written and sent to us by Richard Dyson, the great nephew of Thomas Arthur Leech.  The photo of Thomas was provided by K, his grand-daughter whom Richard has been in contact with.

Richard remembers that his mother used to tell him that she lost three uncles in the First World War, Thomas Leech being one of these.  The other two were Peter Finan and Richard Stanley, both on the Worsbrough Dale War Memorial.

Thomas Arthur Leech is mentioned in the recent book by the Worsbrough History Group which contains short biographies of the men on their memorial and of a few more whom they consider should have been included.  Thomas is one of the latter. He does not appear on any memorial in Barnsley that we are aware of.

On 12 August 1916 the following appeared in the Barnsley Chronicle:

"Pte Thomas A Leech, A Co. 1st Barnsley Battalion, has been missing since the Great Advance, 1st July.  His wife, Mrs Leech, of 228 High Street, Worbro' Dale, anxiously awaits tidings."

On 2 September 1916 Thomas' parents also ask for news:

"News is anxiously sought by Mr. and Mrs. Leech, of 43, Farrar Street, Barnsley, regarding their son, Pte. Thomas Arthur Leech, who has been missing since July 1st.  He was in the 1st Barnsley Battalion and before enlisting worked at Messrs. Qualter and Smith's foundry."

Willie Austin 1893-1916

Willie Austin from Barnsley Chronicle 10 June 1916
(with thanks to Barnsley Archives)

Born:
1893 in Heanor, Derbyshire

Son of:
John Austin b.1863 Marlpool, Derbyshire 
1911:  Colliery Banksman and boarder at 19 Derby Road, Ilkeston, Derbyshire
married in the Derby Registration District in Q4 1882 to
Emily (or Emma) Taylor b.1859 Derby d.1903 Beckett Hospital, Barnsley

Position in family: The youngest of at least 4 children
1. Edward Austin b.1887 Pinxton, Derbyshire m. 1907 Florence Goulding  WW1 SERVED
2. John Thomas Austin b.1889 Pinxton, Derbyshire m. 1915 Margaret Parker
3. Francis Jane Austin b.1890 Pinxton, Derbyshire d.1892
4. William Austin b.1893 d.1916 WW1 DIED OF WOUNDS

Home address, age and occupation:
1901: 8 Industry Road, Ardsley, Barnsley aged 7 Scholar
1911: 59 Salisbury Street, Stairfoot, Barnsley aged 18 Labourer (Colliery) above ground
1915 on enlistment: 19 Industry Road, Stairfoot, Barnsley  Age 22 Worked at Redfearn Brothers' Glassworks at Wombwell

Marriage: He was unmarried

Military Service:
Enlisted: 1915 at the age of 22 years
Regiment and Battalion:   18th Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales' Own)
Service number and rank:  22677 Private
Previously in 14th York and Lancaster Regiment, but transferred in Egypt
Awards: British War Medal, Victory Medal

Death:     24 May 1916 age 23
Buried at:  Bertrancourt Military Cemetery
Grave Reference:  Plot 1. Row C. Grave 8.

Information from Commonwealth War Graves Commission:
Brother of Thomas Austin, of 19, Industry Road, Stairfoot, Barnsley

Remembered:
Ardsley, Christ Church, Christ Church Parishioners - WW1 Plaque 
Barnsley, Redfearn Brothers Glassworks & Aldham Works
 
Notes:
Willie's mother died in 1903 and is buried in Ardsley Cemetery (O 105) along with a 12 hours old child, Philip Austin d.1907, who could be a grandchild.  John Austin, his father, is not living with his sons in the 1911 census, and his eldest brother Edward, now 25 years old and a Brickyard Labourer living in Worsborough, has married Florence Goulding and according to the census they have lost both of their children within 4 years of marriage - which may fit with Philip above.  They appear to have eight more children, of whom five more die young. The burials of some of these children in Barnsley Cemetery show that the family moved to Wood Street, in the St John's parish of Barnsley. Edward Austin is listed in the 1918 Absent Voters' List at No.4, Ct.10 Wood Street.  He was serving in the Motor Transport Section of the Army Service Corps, Pte 397309.

(John) Thomas Austin was boarding at the same address as Willie in 1911, and was working at a Glass Bottle Works.  This may be Redfearn's where we know Willie works before enlistment.  Thomas marries in late 1915 to Margaret Parker and they too are unlucky with their children, with four born between 1916 and 1922 of whom two die young and then a daughter at age 23, all buried in Ardsley Cemetery.  John Thomas himself died in 1934 aged just 45.  There is no evidence that he served in WW1.
..............................................................

Willie's death was reported in the Barnsley Chronicle on 10 June 1916.  There seems to be some discrepancy between the reports of the chaplain and the officer on whether Willie was shot or hit by shrapnel and whether he died in the morning the day after he was shot or the evening the same day he was hit.  

As his Army Service Records have not survived only a cryptic comment on his Soldiers Died in the Great War record supports the comment that he was previously enlisted in the 2nd Barnsley Pals.  He does not appear in the listing for that battalion in Jon Cooksey's book, Barnsley Pals.  A transfer in Egypt, however, suggests that he was taken ill there, delayed when the rest of the Pals left for France, possibly shipped back to Britain, hence the furlough, and transferred to the West Yorks Regiment before going to the front.

Stairfoot Man Killed - On Furlough a Month Ago
Private 22677 W. Austin, of Stairfoot, whose photograph we reproduce, has died of wounds in France. A month ago he was at the home of his brother at Stairfoot on furlough, and met his end ten days after returning to the Front. The deceased joined the 2nd Barnsley Battalion, but had been transferred to the 18th West Yorks Regiment, and prior to the war he worked at Redfearns' Glassworks, Wombwell. He was 23 years of age. 

News of his death was received by his brother to whom the Chaplain of the Regiment, the Rev. J. G. Thornton, wrote: "May 26th, 1916 - Dear Sir, - I am very grieved to inform you that your brother, Pte 22677 W. Austin, 18th West Yorkshire Regiment, passed away at the hospital on May 24th. He had been shot through the lungs the previous day. I sat beside him for some time and he died towards the end of the morning. I understood him to say that lately he had lived with you, and he sent his love to you. He was in great discomfort and there was no hope for him from the first. I buried him yesterday morning in one of the British military cemeteries close to this village. His body was carried there in a motor ambulance and the grave dug by men of his own regiment. He was not known personally by me. His friends told me he joined us in Egypt from the Barnsley Battalion. I do offer to you my deepest sympathy on the death of your brother. You was in his thoughts to the last. He died on Empire Day and he died for the Empire. May God bless and keep you in your sorrow." 

Lieut. Frank Watson also wrote the deceased's brother: "Private Austin was killed by a shell which burst on the parapet of the trenches; or should I say he died from the effects of wounds received. Our doctor told me that he was afraid that a piece of shell had pierced his lungs and this proved to be the case, and the poor fellow died the same evening in hospital. Please allow me to offer you my deepest sympathy." 
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Willie's story can also be read on Lives of the First World War, which allows you to add your own photos and memories of this man.

Francis (Frank) Henry Laister 1893-1917

Frank Laister from his granddaughter LS

Born:
Q1 1893 Barnsley (9c 227)

Son of:
Edwin John Laister b.1857 Ranskill, Nottinghamshire  d.1920 Barnsley
His father was Henry Laister, Manager of Clarkson's Brewery
1911: Under Manager, Brewery 45 Duke Street
married at All Saint's Church, Silkstone on 8 December 1892
Mary Elizabeth Brown b.1864 Leeds, Yorkshire d.1942 Barnsley
Her parents were Samuel and Margaret Brown of Park Road, Barnsley

Position in family: The eldest of 4 children
1. Francis Henry Laister b.1893 WW1 KILLED
2. Margaret Winifred Laister b.1894
3. Lilian Gertrude Laister b.1895
4. Thomas Arthur Laister b.1897 WW1 SERVED

Home address, age and occupation:
1901: 45 Duke Street, Barnsley age 8
1911: 43 Quaker Row, Marsh, Huddersfield  age 18 Teamer Railway Goods (a boarder)
1915 (on marriage): 45 Duke Street, Barnsley age 22 Motor Driver

Marriage: 
He was married
to Violet Savage (b.1896) at St Peter's Church, Barnsley on 25 March 1915
Her parents were Herbert and Emma Savage of 40 Doncaster Road, Barnsley

Children:
1. Clarice May Laister b.Q4 1915 Barnsley m.Leslie Sykes

Military Service:
Enlisted: 1915
Regiment and Battalion:    Motor Transport, Army Service Corps
Service number and rank:  M2/139462 Private (Lance-Corporal in obituary see below)
Awards: British War Medal, Victory Medal

Death:     21 October 1917  age years
Buried at:  Ypres Reservoir Cemetery
Grave Reference:  I. G. 84.

Remembered:
On a family gravestone in Barnsley Cemetery
St Peters Church Doncaster Rd Memorial Plaque  
St John's Church, Barnsley - Oak Memorial Tablet 

Notes:
With thanks to Frank's grandaughter Lesley Slack for permission to use the above photo of Frank from her Ancestry Family tree.
  
Frank's death was reported in the Barnsley Chronicle on 10 November 1917 and his photograph appeared in the newspaper the following week.

A Barnsley Motorist Killed - In the Act of Delivering Petrol and Rations
Lance-Corporal Frank Laister, A.S.C. (Motor Transport), was killed in action on October 21st.  He was 24 years of age and leaves a wife and one child, who reside at 40, Doncaster Road.  Deceased had been in the Army since November, 1915.
News of his demise was contained in a letter sent to his wife by Lieut. Watson who wrote: "Dear Mrs Laister, - It is with the deepest regret and sense of personal loss that I have to tell you of the death of your husband, Lance-Corporal Laister.  He was delivering petrol and rations to an advanced detachment of my Company this afternoon (October 21st) when a shell burst amongst several of the men, killing your husband and four others.  Lance-Corporal Laister was one of the most conscientious workers on this column.  He always knew what was to be done and did it without waiting for orders.  Always willing, always cheerful, he was an absolutely reliable N.C.O. His work was never easy and often he was out day and night, but never was he known to grumble.  He was one of the finest characters we have and when there was a rough job to be done he was as willing and pleasant as any one, eager to get on with it.  With men, N.C.O.'s and officers alike he was most popular, with always a cheery smile.  To offer sympathy in your grief and loss seems inadequate, but nevertheless and because of my respect for your husband I can in some degree feel for your loss and should like you, for that reason to accept my heartfelt sympathy."   Barnsley Chronicle 10 November 1917.
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You can read about Frank on Lives of the First World War

Frank's maternal grandparents were Samuel and Margaret Brown on whose gravestone he is remembered in Barnsley Cemetery.  Also remembered there is his cousin Henry Wilkinson Brown who was killed in November 1915.

Henry Wilkinson Brown 1893-1915

Henry Brown from the Barnsley Chronicle 29 January 1916
(with thanks to Barnsley Archives)

Born:
5 June 1893
Baptised 25 June 1893 at St John's, Barnsley

Son of:
Samuel Brown b.1867 Leeds d.1921 Darley Inn, Worsborough Dale
1911: Innkeeper Carter's Arms, 83 Sheffield Road
married at St John's, Barnsley on 18 August 1892
Ada Wilkinson b.1871 d. between 1895 and 1899?

Samuel remarried to Emily Bennett (b.1877 d.1924 Darley Inn, Worsborough Dale) in the June Q of 1899 in Barnsley.

Position in family: The eldest of 2 children and 3 half siblings
1. Henry Wilkinson Brown b.1893
2. Ethel Brown b.1895 d.1895 aged 4 months

1. Rose Isobel Brown b.1903 d.1903 aged 1month
2. John Brown b.1904 d.1936 Wharncliffe Woodmoor Colliery
3. Samuel Brown b.1906 m. Evelyn Hilton in 1929

Home address, age and occupation:
1893 (at baptism): 115 Cemetery Road, Barnsley
1901: 83 Sheffield Road, aged 7
1911: in the Navy aged 17

Marriage: 
He was married
to Elsie White at Dodworth Church on 31 December 1914 
His occupation was Signalman, Royal Navy and his home address was given as the Darley Inn, Worbro' Dale, Barnsley

Children:
1. Henry W Brown b.1916

Military Service:
Service Number: J7134
From: 2 February 1910 aged 17 on the HMS Ganges, as Boy II
From: 5 June 1911 for 12 years aged 18, on HMS Defence, as Signalman
Also served on the Vivid, Dolphin, Maidstone, Adamant (E20)
Awards: 1914 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal

Personal information:   5" 4.5' tall (age 17), 34" chest, dark brown hair, brown eyes, fresh complexion, birthmark on back of left hand.

Death:     5 November 1915 when Submarine E20 was sunk
CWGC Remembered: Plymouth Naval Memorial

Information from Commonwealth War Graves Commission:
Husband of Elsie Briggs (formerly Brown), of 5, Thornley Terrace, Peel St., Barnsley, Yorks.

Remembered:
Worsbrough Combined Memorial, St Thomas And St James Church, Worsborough Dale
On his family gravestone in Barnsley Cemetery  
Dodworth War Memorial

Notes:
Henry's story is also told on the IWM's Lives of the First World War website.

The Barnsley Chronicle printed a report on his death on 22 January 1916 and his photo appeared on the front page of the newspaper the following week.

Lost With the E20 - A Worsbro' Dale's Man's Fate
After an anxious wait of over a couple of months, Mr and Mrs Samuel Brown of the Darley Inn, Worsbro' Dale, have learned with feelings of deep sorrow of the fate of their son, Henry Wilkinson Brown, who was one the crew of H.M. Submarine E20 which was sunk by the enemy in the Sea of Marmora early in November. Under the date January 18th, the bereaved parents received the following from the Admiralty: "With reference to the loss of H.M. Submarine E20 in the Sea of Marmora at the beginning of November last, I regret to have to inform you that the name of Henry Wilkinson Brown, signal man, does not appear in the complete list of survivors which has now been received by the American Ambassador in Constantinople. In these circumstances it is feared that he must be regarded as having lost his life when the Submarine sunk. Yours, etc., H. Beborall." The letter is accompanied by the following: "The King commands me to assure you of the true sympathy of His Majesty and the Queen in your sorrow. Arthur James Balfour." We join in the many expressions of sympathy which have been extended to the deceased's parents who have for a number of years been highly-esteemed residents of Worsbro' Dale.  Barnsley Chronicle 22 Jan 1916
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Henry is remembered on his grandparent's gravestone in Barnsley Cemetery along with his cousin Francis (Frank) Henry Laister who was killed in 1917.

Elsie remarried to Frederick Briggs in 1920 at Dodworth Church.  They went on to have two children together.

Henry's father dies in 1921, still at the Darley Inn, Worsbro' Dale and is buried in Barnsley Cemetery (H 363), the same plot as his second wife Emily who dies in 1924 and his children, Ethel and Rose Isobel who died young.

John Brown, Henry's younger half-brother is also buried in the family plot - he was killed in the Wharncliffe Woodmoor Colliery disaster on 6 August 1936 along with 57 other men.

I have been unable to find the death or burial of Ada Brown, Henry's mother, which logically must have occurred between 1895 and 1899.  Maybe she did not die in Barnsley? 

 

Thomas Burns 1880-1916

Thomas Burns from the Barnsley Chronicle 15 April 1916
(Thanks to Barnsley Archives)

Born:
1880 Wolverhampton, Staffordshire

Son of: *possible*
Michael Burns b.1850 Dublin, Ireland  Iron Hurdle Maker in 1891
married at ** on **
Jane *maiden name* b.1846 Shifnal, Shropshire

Position in family: Only child?
1. Thomas Burns

Home address, age and occupation:
1891: *possible* 15 Brick Kiln Croft, Wolverhampton age 10
1901: **
1911: 15 Britannia Street, Barnsley age 29 Coal Miner Filler
1914: 21 Britannia Street, Barnsley age 32  Miner at Barrow Colliery

Marriage: 
Thomas was married at St Luke's, Dudley on 4 October 1903
to Mary Elizabeth Prince b.1879 Fenton, Staffordshire

Her parents were William Henry Prince, b.1856 Netherton, Dudley, Staffordshire and Emily.  William's father was Thomas Prince, a Drayman or Brewer.

William's brother Samuel Prince b.1865 Netherton, Dudley, Staffordshire married Eliza in Normanton, Yorkshire on 25 May 1888 and this couple are also living on Britannia Street, Barnsley in 1901 and 1911.  William appears to be living with them in 1901, however there is no sign of Emily and he claims to be single.  He dies in 1905.

Mary Elizabeth Burns continued to live at 21 Britannia Street without remarrying until shortly before her death.  When she died in 1962 she was buried in the same plot (G 685) in Barnsley Cemetery as her uncle Samuel and aunt Eliza.

Children:
Thomas and Mary Elizabeth had no children.

Military Service:
Enlisted: In Barnsley December 1914
Regiment and Battalion:  14th Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment (2nd Barnsley Pals)
Service number and rank:  14/16  Private
Awards: British War Medal, Victory Medal

Death:     5 April 1916  age 36
Buried at: Sucrerie Military Cemetery, Colincamps, France
Grave Reference:  I. I. 111.

Remembered:
Thomas does not appear to be remembered on any memorial in Barnsley.

Notes:
A large article appeared in the Barnsley Chronicle on 15 April 1916 about Thomas' death.  He was the first member of the Barnsley Pals (discounting those who had transferred to the Royal Engineers in 1915) to be killed in France.

The article notes, "He was home on leave for the last time at Christmas, when the whole of the Battalion were given permission to return for a final farewell prior to going to Egypt".  The circumstances around his death were reported to his widow by the army chaplain, "It happened last night and was without doubt a machine gun shot which penetrated the steel helmet he was wearing at the time.  Death was instantaneous. [...] His head was up for just that fatal fraction of a height to receive a dropping shot."

Thomas' story is also told in the book, Barnsley Pals, by Jon Cooksey, pp.152-3.
Some helpful information about Mary Elizabeth Prince and her family was found in an Ancestry online tree.