If you zoom in to the tree of William Hoodless descendants you will notice the lone inconspicuous name tag of his eighth child, Harold, born on 29th July 1893 in the mining village of Ellenborough near Maryport. He did not marry and he left no children but his short life was remarkable and brave.
In 1901 he is an 8 year old boy living with his large family in a tiny miners cottage at 24 Brick Row, Camerton. His oldest brother John, my 2 x GGF, lives with them with his three year old daughter Mary Jane (My GGM), his wife had died about a year after she was born.
I don’t think Brick Row cottages exist anymore and I have not been able to find any images of the area from the early part of last century. As detailed on William’s page by 1904 the family were living at 97 Shore Side, Siddick in the aftermath of his father’s death. The 1911 Census describes Harold as a 19 year old pit driver, working at the same pit that had taken his father’s life.
A pit driver’s job was to keep the coal moving up the road or path (called a rolley way) to the shaft. The rolley way was high enough for ponies and a wagon to pull up the tubs of coal from the working seam and the driver would load the wagon and then unload them into the cage for them to be taken up. He had to keep things moving, keep the rolley way clear and see the coal was not backing up.
Britain entered World War I on 4th August 1914. Coal miners were categorised as essential labour and were not included in the draft. On 2nd July 1915 the Munitions of War Act was passed which forbid these essential workers to take leave of their work without express permission of the Labour Department and without obtaining a Certificate of Leave. They were expected to meet much higher production targets and so they worked longer hours. Miners fought for a 20% increase in wages in light of this and satisfactory settlements were made in order to keep the production of coal at the high levels required. Sometime after the outbreak of WWI Harold enlists voluntarily with the 5th Border Regiment, I believe he would have been stationed at Barrow until he was dispatched to France.
Harold’s WWI Timeline
- On 5th May 1915 the 5th Border Regiment came under orders of 149th Brigade in 50th (Northumbrian) Division who had been stationed at Steenvoorde. Around this date the Germans attacked nearby Ypres with poison gas and the 50th entered the action fighting amid phosgene and chlorine gas attacks during the Second battle of Ypres.
- 17th August 1915 Harold arrives in France with his battalion and finds himself at the Western Front, in Flanders.
- Harold’s Division was stationed in the Armentieres sector through August and September which was fairly quiet.
- In September the artillery division gave support at the opening of the Battle of Loos but failed to break the German line.
- By November they had withdrawn for training to Merris, northern France.
- In December 1915 his regiment were transferred to the 151st Brigade within the same Division.
- Between 17th and 21st December 1915 the 50th Division relieved the 9th (Scottish) Division in Ypres Salient a particularly dangerous area that jutted well into German held territory. Their job was to hold the line.
- March 1916 they were relieved but Harold’s 151st Brigade were the last to leave and were shelled in the actions of St Eloi Craters as the relieving Canadian 3rd Division forces took up their positions.
- At the end of April they went into reserve at Fletre for a month to reorganise and renumber. Then relieved the Canadian 3rd in the Salient where they began to undertake trench raids which gradually become increasingly successful.
- On 1st July 1916 the Battle of the Somme commenced. An offensive by French and English forces against the Germans who were entrenched along the east side of the river, to take back that river and push the front into German held territory on the opposite side.
- In September 1916 the 5th Borderers as part of the 50th Division took part in the third offensive of the Somme namely:
- The Battle of Flers-Courcelette 15-22 Sept
- The Battle of Morval 25-28 Sept
- The Battle of the Transloy Ridge 1 Oct – 11 Nov
- On 30th September 1916 Harold was killed in action. He was 23 years old.
29.9.16 In the evening A Company had to be withdrawn and were ordered back to isolation camp near Fricourt on account of an outbreak of dysentery. About 7.30pm B, C & D companies were ordered to move up to reinforce the 8th DLI (Durham Light Infantry) who were engaged in a bombing attack on trenches on their immediate front about M.22.a.7.5.0 to M.22.a.2.0.5. B Company occupied North Durham Street , C and D Companies were in Spence Street and Crescent Alley.
30.9.16 In the early morning C & D Companies moved up into 26th Avenue relieving 8th DLI Companies there and in Spence Street
5th Borderers were in the highlighted trenches between the villages of Morval and Lesboeufs. One company had been stood down and isolated with a bout of dysentery. The other three companies were bombing enemy trenches ahead when Harold was killed in action. Between the 15th September and 1st October approximately 19000 soldiers died in this third offensive including 7000 from the newly formed New Zealand Division who had been evacuated from Gallipoli to experience the nightmarish hell of trench warfare.
