William Poskitt 1896-1916

Barnsley Chronicle 4 November 1916
with thanks to Barnsley Archives

Born:
8 Oct 1896 Barnsley

Son of:
William Poskitt b.1865 Allerton Bywater d.1907 28 Mill Street, buried Barnsley Cemetery
In 1901: Afflicted, Blind, Not at Work, previously Collier
married at St George's Barnsley on 21 September 1885
Rose Ann Price b.1867 Sheffield (Factory Hand at marriage, dau of Isaac Price)
She remarries on 22 January 1921 to John Land, a widower, at St George's, Barnsley and dies in January 1947. Buried in Barnsley Cemetery with her second husband.

Position in family: in 1911 Rose Ann reports 11 children, 2 of whom had died
1. Walter Poskitt b.1885 Barnsley  WW1 KILLED served in 14th Y&L (2nd Barnsley Pals)
2. Priscilla Poskitt b. 1887 Higham m.1908 to Edwin Betony WW1 KILLED
3. Mary Poskitt b.1890 Pontefract
4. Thomas Poskitt b.1891 Pogmoor d.1948 buried Barnsley Cemetery with his father
5. Annie Poskitt b. April 1892 d. October 1892 buried Barnsley Cemetery
6. Frances Poskitt b.1893 Barnsley
7. William Poskitt b.1896 WW1 KILLED
8. George Ernest Poskitt b. April 1899 d. March 1900 buried Monk Bretton
9. George Poskitt b.27 March 1901 Monk Bretton

*after the death of William snr*
10. Florence Barraclough Poskitt b.1909
11. Emily B Poskitt b.1910

Home address, age and occupation:
1891: 55 Cresswell Street, Pogmoor (before William was born)
1901: 3 Day's Court, Old Mill, Barnsley aged 4
1911: 22 Allatt Street, Barnsley aged 14, Pony Driver in Coal Mine
1914: 22 Allatt Street, Barnsley age 17  Coal miner at Grimethorpe Colliery

Marriage: William was unmarried.

Military Service:
Enlisted:  August 1914 aged 17
Regiment and Battalion:    York and Lancaster Regiment 6th Battalion
Service number and rank:  3/2926 Private
Entered Theatre of War: Egypt  18 September 1915
Awards: 1915 Star, Victory Medal, British War Medal

Death:     29 September 1916 aged 21
CWGC Remembered:  Theipval Memorial, Pier & Face 14A & B

Remembered:
Barnsley, St John's Church, Barebones (Oak Tablet lost when church demolished, replacement memorial soon to be placed in St Peter's Church, Doncaster Road, Barnsley)

Notes:

Lives of the First World War
Commonwealth War Graves Commission

A report of William and his brother Walter's deaths' appears in the Barnsley Chronicle on 4 November 1916.

"Barnsley Brothers Killed - A Mother's Heavy Bereavement
Official news has been received that Private William Poskitt, 6th Y. and L. Regiment, has fallen in action, and following this intimation comes the announcement of the fact that his brother  Lance-Corporal Walter Poskitt, 2nd Barnsley Battalion, has been killed. They are both Barnsley lads, their distressed mother residing at 2, Lower Joseph Street. William joined the army at the outbreak of war, at which time he worked at Grimethorpe Colliery, but Walter served 16 years in the army  and was an employee at Monckton Colliery."

Both brothers' pictures appear in the newspaper.  Walter is remembered on the War Memorial at St John's Church, Cudworth. 

A brief biography of William appears in De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour.  Volume 4, p.160.
Available on Ancestry.

"Poskitt, William, Private No. 3/2926, 6th (Service) Battn, The York and Lancaster Regt., s. of William Poskitt, Miner, by his wife, Rose Ann; b. Barnsley, co. York, 8 October 1896; edcu. St John's School there; was a Miner; enlisted in the York and Lancaster Regt. in Aug. 1914; served with the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force at the Dardanelles; proceeded to Egypt; returned to England, after which he served with the Expeditionary Force in France and was killed in action 29 Sept. 1916. Buried where he fell. Lieut. Wedgwood wrote: "Your son was killed by a shell on Sept. 29th 1916. In a successful attach on a German trench he fell with several of his companions. I hope your grief at his loss will be softened by your pride in him as a soldier." Unm."

Photographs of William's medals appear on an Online Tree on Ancestry and have been used with permission of the owner.

This image shows the backs of William's 1914/15 Star and his Victory Medal. 

A close up of the engraving on the back of the Star clearly shows William's details.

3-2926

Pte W Poskitt

York & Lanc R

Cyril Joseph Smith 1898-1917

Cyril Joseph Smith (photo from Janice Fox)

Born: Cagthorpe, Horncastle, Lincolnshire in 1898
 
Son of: 
Daniel Burling Smith b.1854 Needlingworth, Huntingdonshire d.1927
1911: Gardener (Domestic) Common Lane, Royston, Yorks
married (1) at York in 1883 to Julia Roux d.1893
married (2) at Lincoln in 1894 to
Annie Raynor b.1871 Mexborough, Yorkshire d.1924 

Position in family: 
Eighth of eleven brothers and sisters including half siblings from his father’s first marriage.
1. Marrie Smith b.1885
2. George Smith b.1886
3. Lillian Smith b.1889
4. Annie Smith b.1890
5. Eric Raynor Smith b.1893  WW1 SERVED Royal Navy & Royal Air Force
6. Claude B Smith b.1895
7. Lionel G Smith b.1897
8. Cyril Joseph Smith b.1898  WW1 KILLED
9. Gladys I M Smith b.1900
10. Noel H Smith b. 1902
11. Audrey I N Smith b.1904

Home address, age and occupation:
1901: 27 Prospect Street, Horncastle, Lincolnshire aged 2
1911: Common Lane, Royston aged 12

Marriage: He was unmarried

Military Service:
Enlisted: 22 December 1916 at the age of 18 years
Regiment and Battalion: York and Lancaster Regiment
Service number and rank: 39235
Regiment and Battalion:    Manchester Regiment 2nd/7th Battalion
Service number and rank:  42837 Private
Served in France from: 5 June 1917
Awards: Victory Medal, British War Medal

Death:     8 October 1917 aged 19
CWGC Remembered: Tyne Cot Memorial

Remembered:
Royston War Memorial
 
Notes:
Lives of the First World War
Commonwealth War Graves Commission

The Information in this post has mainly been sent to us from Janice Fox (nee Smith). Cyril was her great uncle.  Janice has a website remembering the men who served in WW1 from the village of Saxlingham in Norfolk, where she now lives. It can be found here.  The following is additional information she has supplied.

................................................

By 1910 the family were living in Common Lane Royston. Daniel worked as a gardener for the Yardley family, who lived at The Grove, Station Road, Royston. This is where the community centre is now situated.  Cyril went to school in Royston and worked at Messrs. Pickles, Clothiers, in Wakefield.

(Based on the 7th Battalion Manchester Regiment war diaries)
On 6 October the Manchester Regiment were sent to the front lines east of Ypres in Zonnebeke-Staden. Throughout that day the lines were heavily shelled. At 5pm on 7 October their headquarters were blown up by the Germans. The 7th Battalion then attacked the German lines resulting in a heavy loss of men. The situation was made worse by a shortage of rations and water. The weather was described as being bad. Cyril was killed on 8th October 1917 during this fighting.

He was originally buried north of Zonnebeke but at the end of the war his grave could not be found. His name appears on the Tyne Cot Memorial at Zonnebeke Ieper.

There is an entry for Cyril Joseph Smith in the De Ruvigny’s Roll of Honour 1914- 1919. 

There is also a photograph of him alongside the entry.  The family provided some of the information for the entry. It reads as follows:-

Smith, Cyril Joseph, Private, No. 42837, 7th (Territorial), Battn. The Manchester Regt., s. of Daniel Burling Smith, of Common Lane, Royston, co. York, Gardener, by his wife, Annie, dau. Of George Raynor; b. Cagthorpe, Horncastle, co. Lincoln; educ. Royston aforesaid; was employed by Messrs. Pickles, Clothiers, Wakefield; enlisted 22 Dec. 1916; served with the Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders from 5 June 1917, and was killed in action at Passchendaele Ridge 8 Oct. following. Buried north of Zonnebeke, north- east of Ypres. An officer wrote:” I was on leave at the time, or I should have written to you before to express not only my sympathy to you , but the respect and admiration I felt for your son. He has won the respect of us all, and we have lost a gallant soldier. My brother was killed two days ago. This will tell you that my sympathy is real, however much my words fail to express it. I feel proud of every man in my company, and your son was worthy of it” and another: “Your son has not been with us a long time, but I soon realized what a sound and reliable soldier he was, and made him my platoon runner and had marked him for promotion.”  Unm

Cyril Joseph Smith (photo from Janice Fox)

His father received his effects which amounted to his back pay in September 1919. An entry can be seen in UK, Army Registers of Soldiers Effects, 1901-1929.

Members of his family continued to live in the same house in Common Lane until the 1970s, although my grandfather, Claude Burling Smith died in 1953.

Albert Harry Rose 1897-1917

Albert Harry Rose

Born:
26 July 1897

Son of:
Harry (Henry) Rose born abt 1859, doctor's collector of 61 Cope Street
married at St John's on 16 August 1894
Alice Charlesworth, born abt 1864

Position in family: The middle of 3 children
1. Agnes Woodruff Rose  born 1895, died 1938.
2. Albert Harry Rose WW1 KILLED
3. Gertrude Winifred Charlesworth Rose born 1900. died 1984

Home address, age and occupation:
1901: 61 Cope Street age 3
1911: 61 Cope Street age 13
1915: 61 Cope Street Age 17 worked at Co-operative 

Marriage: He was unmarried
 
Military Service:
Enlisted: 1915 aged 17
Regiment and Battalion: Black Watch (Royal Highlanders)  6th Battalion
Service number and rank: 266250  Corporal
Awards: Victory and British medals
 
Death: 21 October 1917, aged 20
CWGC Remembered: Arras Memorial  Bay no.6

Remembered:
St John's Barebones WW1 memorial plaque and the Co-operative memorial plaque

Notes:
More information is available about this man on request

Arthur Hepworth 1890-1916

Arthur Hepworth Barnsley Chronicle 17 June 1916
(thanks to Barnsley Archives)

Born:
12th February 1890
Baptised 12th March 1890 at St. Mary’s Church, Barnsley.

Son of:
John Hepworth b.1863 Barnsley d. 1927 Barnsley
1911:  9, Court 4, Church Street,  Barnsley. Stonemason’s labourer for Corporation.
Married at St. Mary’s Church, Barnsley on 29th December 1883.
Miriam Annie (maiden name Carbutt) b. 1862 in Rotherham  d. 1945 in Barnsley

Position in family:  The fourth child of six
Frances Ann     b. 1884   d. 1955
George Henry  b. 1886   d. 1968
Elizabeth          b. 1887    d. 1962
Arthur               b. 1890    d. 1916  WW1 DIED
Ernest               b. 1892    d. 1977
Jeanette           b. 1898    d. 1969

Home address, age and occupation
1891:  9, Court 4, Church Street, Barnsley,   age 1
1901:  9, Court 4, Church Street, Barnsley,   age 11  Schoolboy
1911:  9, Court 4, Church Street, Barnsley,   age 21  Coal leader
1914:  9, Court 4, Church Street, Barnsley,   age 24  worked for F.C. Browne

Marriage: 
Arthur was unmarried.  No children

Military Service:
Enlisted:  28th September 1914 aged 24 at Public Hall
Regiment and Battalion: 13th Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment, ‘Barnsley Pals’
Service number and rank: 13/505 Private
Training camps 24th September 1914 – 27th December 1915 at Silkstone, Rugeley, Ripon and Salisbury. 
10th to 30th October 1915 in Fovant Hospital, Wiltshire with pleurisy.
28th December 1915 to 10th March 1916, Egypt
11th March to 4th June 1916 France and Flanders (wounded 27th May 1916)
Awards:  British War Medal, Victory Medal

Personal Information:  5 ft 6 ins. Tall, chest 34 ins. Weight, 129 lbs, brown eyes, fresh complexion, black hair
Religion: Church of England

Death:  4th June 1916
Buried:  Beauval Community Cemetery, France
Beauval was the 4th Casualty Station from June 1915 to October 1916
Grave reference:  E 32

Information from Commonwealth War Graves:
Son of Mrs. Miriam A. Hepworth, of 4, Cass Yard, St Mary’s Place, Barnsley

Remembered:
Barnsley, St. Mary’s Church, Combined Memorial
 

Panel on St Mary's Memorial showing Barnsley Battalion names

Arthur's name on the War Memorial in St Mary's Church (photo by ML)

Notes:
Arthur’s death was reported in the Barnsley Chronicle on 17th June 1916.

First Barnsley Battalion Lad - Dies in Hospital from Wounds
Yesterday information came to hand that Private A. Hepworth, of the 13th Y and L Regiment, has died in hospital from would received in action.  He was 26 years of age and the son of Mr. and Mrs. John Hepworth, of 4, Cass's Yard, Barnsley.  Before joining the Battalion he worked at Mr. F.C. Browne's works.

The Rev. T. B. W. Denison, Chaplain, wrote to the sorrowing parents: "It is with deep regret that I have to report that your son of whose serious wounds I have told you died in hospital this morning (June 4th).  He had been slowly sinking for the last two days and in spite of everything possible having been done for him he passed peacefully away in the early hours this morning.  I shall bury him this afternoon in the cemetery where he will be with many of his comrades.  May he rest in peace, and my God comfort and console you in your sad bereavement."

 Arthur’s death also mentioned in an article in Barnsley Pals by John Cooksey
The eye witness account does not match his Active service record which states that he died from wounds after being injured on the battle field.
A photo is included – identical to the one in the Chronicle.

              .............................................................................................................

This story was sent into the Barnsley War Memorials Project by ML who visited Barnsley in 2015 to research Arthur in Barnsley Archives.  We were able to help her find Arthur in the digitised Barnsley Chronicle and showed her his name on our listings of Barnsley War Memorials.  ML then visited St Mary's Church to take her own photos of the memorial.   We are very grateful for the thorough and complete account she submitted to us.  Thank you!

Henry Dyson 1889-1916

Henry Dyson in the Barnsley Chronicle 9 September 1916
(thanks to Barnsley Archives)

Born:
1889 Barnsley
Baptised 30 May 1889 at St John's Church, Barebones, Barnsley 

Son of:
John Dyson b.1851 Barnsley d.1897 Barnsley
1891: 29 Wilson Street, Coal Miner
married at St John's Church on 23 September 1876
Sarah (nee Jackson) b.1853 Barnsley d.1891 Barnsley
(Her sister Elizabeth Jackson married Stephen Denton in 1880, their father was Henry Jackson, a miner)

Position in family: The youngest of at least 7 children (two born before the marriage of John and Sarah, but registered as Dyson and listed as their children in the census)
1. William Dyson b.1872
2. Martha A Dyson b.1875
3. Thomas Dyson b.1877 killed in Monk Bretton Colliery aged 19 in 1896
4. Jane Dyson b.1881 d.1884 aged 3 years
5. John Dyson b.1884
6. Jane Dyson b.1888
7. Henry Dyson b.1889 WW1 KILLED

Home address, age and occupation:
1891: 29 Wilson Street, Barnsley age 2
1901:58 New Street/2 John Street, Barnsley (The Dog and Gun Inn) age 11
1911:16 Lister Square, John Street, Barnsley age 23 Colliery Trammer 

Marriage: 
He was married at St George's on 1 March 1908
to Ada Davison b.1891 (daughter of James and Amelia Davison of Albert Street, Barnsley)

Children:
1. Albert Dyson b.1910 (referred to on 1911 census as 'Halbert')
2. James Edward Dyson b.1911 d.1911 aged 7 months
3. Walter Dyson b.1912 probably d.1912 although no burial found
4. Henry Dyson b.1913
5. Edmund Dyson b.June 1916 d.May 1918 aged 23 months at Beckett Hospital

Military Service:
Enlisted: 1914 at the age of 25 years
Regiment and Battalion: 13th Battalion York and Lancashire Regiment (1st Barnsley Pals)
Service number and rank:  13/236 Private
Transferred to the Royal Engineers in 1915
Service number and rank:  112695  Sapper
Arrived in France: 21 August 1915
Awards: 14/15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal 

Death:     14 August 1916 aged 28 
Buried at:   Ecoivres Military Cemetery, Mont-St.Eloi, France 
Grave Reference:   III.D.19.

Remembered:
Henry is not remembered on any memorial in Barnsley that we are aware of.

Notes:

Dog and Gun Inn, New Street (with thanks to the Tasker Trust)

Henry's parents died in the 1890s and the family was split up. In the 1901 census Henry is living with his aunt Elizabeth Denton and her husband Stephen who was the landlord of the Dog and Gun Inn on the corner of New Street and John Street.  The picture above, from the Tasker Trust website, shows Stephen's name above the door of the pub which dates it between 1894 and 1912.

Henry's Life Story on Lives of the First World War

Henry's death was reported in the Barnsley Chronicle on 2 September 1916.

"Sapper H. Dyson, whose wife and three children reside at 24, Albert Street, Barnley, was killed in action on August 14th by an enemy mine explosion. At the time the deceased enlisted in the 1st Barnsley Battalion he worked at Barnsley Main Colliery and subsequently volunteered for sapping work he transferred to the Royal Engineers."

In the same issue was a death notice from his wife and children:

Dyson - In affectionate remembrance of Sapper Henry Dyson, R. E., the beloved husband of Ada Dyson, who was killed in action, in France, August 14th, 1916, aged 28 years.

Short and sudden was the call,
Of him so dearly loved by all:
His memory still is ever dear,
For oft is shed the silent tear.

'Tis only the wife that knows the sorrow,
'Tis only the widow that knows the pain:
Of losing her husband she loved so dearly,
But hoping to meet at judgement again.

 .........................................................................................

Ada was left with three young children, so it was no surprise to find that she remarried a few years later.  She and Arthur Lee were married in late 1918 - probably in the Register Office.  They went on to have five children together, James, Ada, Ellen, Caroline and Harold.  Unfortunately James and Harold died young.  Ada and Arthur lived to a good age, eventually moving out of the town centre to the new estate at Kendray.  They are buried in Barnsley Cemetery with their two little sons.

Sources for Farrar Street Congregational Church

The War Memorial at Farrar Street Congregational Church, now the Trinity United Reformed Church, bears no names.

Part of the Wall of the Church Hall on Crookes Street (Photo by Nigel Croft, 28 May 2015)

But after some inscribed stones, particularly one with the words "York and Lancs", were spotted on the wall of the Church extension which opened in 1933, research was carried out to see if any of them commemorated Fallen soldiers. There are two which do.  Click on the links to see more information about these men.

Harold Wright
Harry Tock

In the course of the research the following sources for WW1 soldiers connected to Farrar Street Church were also discovered in Barnsley Archives. They were stored as item A/163/3/N which is two cardboard boxes of mixed items to do with the church, such as pamphlets, minute books, baptism certificate books and photographs.

List of "Old Scholars Killed on Active Service" from the 1919 'Coming of Age' Souvenir booklet for the Church.  Names of 6 men killed.

Harold Raymond Oldham Hebdon
Maurice Rowlands
Stanley Thorne
Newby Thornley
Harry Tock
Harold Wright
 
Church produced Christmas Card from 1915 listing 34 names on a Roll of Honour

Lance Corporal Wm Dale Drummer Harold Wright Bandsman Herbert Haigh Corporal Wilfred R Cleverley Sergeant Arthur H Wainwright Pte D. Maurice Rowlands Pte Robert Oakley Pte Clarence Mellor Pte Charles Horbury Pte William Cooper Lance Corporal G Broadhead Pte Stanley Thorne Trooper Gilbert Wheelwright Pte W Hewitt Pte H Field Lance Corporal W Glassby Lance Corporal F Chappell

Pte Walter Thornton Pte H Hydes Sergeant Fred Dobbs Pte Harold Mason Sapper Tom Pashley Sapper Harold West Sapper Lewis Redhall Driver E Percy Hebdon Driver C R Hartley Driver W Peace Trooper Stuart Oldacre Pte E E Parkes Pte Wm Kirk Pte Elliott J Kirk Pte George Scott Pte Alfred Thorne Pte Gordon Turner

Entry in the Church Minutes for 10 August 1920 giving the names of 9 men who were to be listed on their war memorial.  Later it was decided to list no names.

Hebdon, Field, Rowlands, Thorne, F. Broadhead, Tock, Wright, Thornley, Holt

(Assumed to be Harold R O Hebdon, Harry Field, David Maurice Rowlands, Stanley Thorne, Fred Broadhead, Harry Tock, Harold Wright, Newby Thornley and James William Holt.)

Finally a search of the Barnsley Chronicle in April 1915, looking for an obituary for D M Rowlands also turned up a cutting about a sale of work, which not only mentioned Pte Rowlands, but also a long list of other men connected to the church, some of whom are not on the Christmas card Roll of Honour above.

List of men in Barnsley Chronicle 10 April 1915

D M Rowlands (already Killed in Action)
W Dale, Royal Irish Rifles (wounded at Mons)
G Broadhead, W R Cleverley, A H Wainwright, George Scott (Barnsley Battalion)
Harold Wright, H Haigh, C Mellor, W Cooper, A Thorne, W Hewitt, H Field, Lance Corporals W Glassby and F Chappell (all of the 5th Y and L Regiment)
R Oakley, KOYLI
C Hornby, Royal Marines
S Thorne, 10th Highland Light Infantry
G Wheelwright, Yorkshire Dragoons
 

If your local war memorial doesn't have any names on it or it has not survived, don't give up, there are other sources out there, you just have to find them!

Harry Tock 1899-1918

Harry Tock is remembered on the side of the Church Hall on Crookes Street

Born:
1899 in Barnsley, Yorkshire

Son of:
George William Tock b.1866 in Barnsley  d.1939 in Barnsley
1911:  Builder and Stone Mason 29 Fitzwilliam Street, Barnsley
married in the Barnsley Registration District in Q2 1898 (9c 396)
Ada (maiden name White) b.1871 in Thornhill Lees, nr Dewsbury d.1955 in Barnsley

Position in family: The eldest of 7 children
1. Harry Tock b.1899  WW1 KILLED
2. Doris Tock b.1901
3. Fred Tock b.1902
4. Lucy Tock b.1904
5. Hilda Tock b.1905
6. Mabel Tock b.1909
7. George Tock b.1913

Home address, age and occupation:
1901: 25 Fitzwilliam Street, age 1
1911: 29 Fitzwilliam Street, age 11

Marriage: 
Harry was unmarried

Military Service:
Enlisted: **?**
Regiment and Battalion:    1/7th Btn Durham Light Infantry
Service number and rank:  98990  Private
Regiment and Battalion: 9th West Riding Regiment
Service number and rank: 35023 Privae
Awards: British War Medal, Victory Medal

Death:     4 November 1918 aged 19
Buried at:  Romeries Communal Cemetery Extension, France
Grave Reference:  VII. B. 3.

(Harry's parents paid for the dedication, "In Loving memory of our Eldest Son" to be added to his CWGC gravestone.)

Information from Commonwealth War Graves Commission:
Son of George William and Ada Tock, of 33, Fitzwilliam Street, Barnsley, Yorks.

Remembered:
Harry is remembered on an inscribed stone on the side of the Farrar Street United Reformed Church (see above) and on his parents' gravestone in Barnsley Cemetery.

Notes:

Lives of the First World War

This death notice was inserted in the Barnsley Chronicle on 30 November 1918 (thanks to Barnsley Archives).

"Tock - In affectionate rememberance of Pte. Harry Tock, W. R. Regt., the beloved son of George William and Ada Tock, who was killed in action November 4th, 1918, aged 19 years. 
No cards.
Mr. and Mrs. Tock and family sincerely thank all friends for kind sympathy in their sad bereavement.
33, Fitzwilliam Street, Barnsley."

Barnsley Chronicle 6 May 1933 (thanks to Barnsley Archives)

When the Sunday School Hall at the rear of Farrar Street Church was built in 1933 the main contractor was Mr Geo. W. Tock, of Barnsley, Harry Tock's father.  The stone dedicated to Harry is also recorded in a report in the Barnsley Chronicle from 17 June 1933 which lists many of the inscribed stones that commemorate contributors to the Sunday School project.

George William Tock's father, Henry Tock, was also a Stone Mason and originally came from Winterton in Lincolnshire.  The surname Tock seems to come from the Brigg, Goole and Thorne area of North Lincolnshire and East Yorkshire.