Lance Corporal. 1/6th Battalion, Duke of Wellington’s West Riding Regiment. No. 265502.
Previous number 1361, with the 6th West Riding Territorials at Keighley.
Early life:
Arthur’s parents were James Henry Bamforth and Sarah Elizabeth Bamforth née Harrison who were married at St. Peter’s Church in Leeds on the 30th June 1889. James was aged 22 and a baker living at the Fox and Grapes Yard and Sarah was aged 21 and a spinster living at Lawrence Street. Sarah must have been pregnant with Emily when they were married. Assuming a full term, Sarah was four months pregnant with their daughter Emily when they were married as she was born on the 29th September that year.
Arthur was born on the 8th of January 1891 and his birth was registered at Halifax in the first quarter of that year. He was baptised at St. John the Baptist Church in Halifax on 9th October 1895. Also baptised on the same day, were Arthur’s sister Emily now aged five and his brother James Henry who was born on 21st November 1894 so he was just one. At that time the whole family were living at 20, Foundry Street in Halifax.
Interestingly they seem to have moved about a bit as the census records state that Emily and Arthur were born at Leeds whilst James Henry was born at Huddersfield.
By the 1901 census Arthur was now nine years old and living at 20, Surrey Street in Keighley with his family. Their father James was now 34 and a bakery manager. Mother Sarah was 33 and looking after the children and home, Emily was now ten and James Henry was aged six. The three oldest children were attending school and the closest one for them was probably Eastwood School on Marlborough Street. Two recent additions to the family were Sam aged one (born at Queensbury) and George W., who was just one week old in the census (taken on 31st March 1901.) He was born in Keighley.
James Henry had two more addresses in Keighley. He was in the Keighley electoral roll twice, having moved from 5, Alfred Street to 9, Leylands Lane in 1906 and he was still at 9, Leylands Lane in the 1907 electoral roll.
The 1911 census saw some more changes to the family who had moved to 11, Thorn Street in the Parkwood area of Keighley. James was 44 and a baker at an eating house. Sarah was 34 and a housewife. Emily was now 20 and a Twister in a worsted mill, Arthur was an iron moulder making textile machinery for S. Lund and Sons of Midland Road in Keighley. James Henry (junior) was aged 16, making machine tools and he may have been employed at Dean, Smith and Grace which was very close by.
Of the younger children, Sam was now aged eleven, (George W. seems to have died) and Fred was aged ten. They were both at school, probably Parkwood Primary School on Parkwood Street which was just along the road from their family home. The youngest child was Harry aged just three. The census records that James and Sarah had been married for 22 years and had produced ten children, four of whom had died.
Army service:
Arthur was serving with the 6th West Riding Territorials in Keighley having signed up with them for four years service on 18th April 1910, when he was living at 8, Thorn Street. His medical details were: Apparent age: 18 years and 3 months; height, 5 feet 2 inches; Chest 35 inches, with ‘Good’ vision and a ‘Fair’ physical development. His regimental number was 1361.
He served his full term of engagement with the 6th West Riding Territorials and attended annual camp at Peel on the Isle of Man from 24th July to 7th August 1910; at Ripon from 30th July to 13th August 1911; at Flamborough between 28th July to 11th August 1912 and finally at Aberystwyth from 27th July to 10th August 1913.
He appears to have made an error in putting his own name as his next of kin: ‘Father, Arthur Bamforth living at 8, Thorn Street.’
Unfortunately the only Army service records available for Arthur come to an end in 1913, before the start of the war.
War service:
At the outbreak of war in August 1914, Arthur was aged 23 and his brother James was aged 20 and they both served in the Army. There is an Arthur Bamford, married, of 25, Starkie Street in the 6th West Riding Regiment, listed with Keighley’s Gallant Sons and we suspect this is our Arthur but they’ve misspelled his name. There is also an Arthur Banforth of 9, Thorn Street in the Town Clerk’s 1914 enlistments, which we are pretty sure is him with another typographical error. This record gives a service number of 2243 and there is no medal record for this name and number but if he went overseas later with the newer six figure number this initial number would not be recorded in the medal records.
Town Clerk’s enlistments:
List number: 1818
Name: Banforth Arthur.
Address: 9 Thorn Street.
Rank: Private.
Regiment: Duke of Wellingtons Regiment, 6th Battalion.
Regimental number: 2243.
Company: E.
Keighley’s Gallant Sons:
Bamford, Arthur. Married. 25, Starkie Street. 6th West Riding.
According to ‘Soldier’s Died in the Great War,’ Arthur enlisted at Skipton. We know that he served overseas with the 1/6th Battalion West Riding Regiment as he earned the British War Medal and the Victory Medal, but the only number listed for him is a six figure number. These were first issued on 1st March 1917 and the block of numbers 265000 to 305000 were allocated to the 6th Battalion West Riding Regiment from that date.
Note: We might have expected Arthur to go overseas in 1915 as his younger brother James did, but this does not appear to be the case. Arthur did get married and had a child so he presumably held back from early enlistment and went overseas much later.
In 1915 he married Rena Bertha Sugden. Their marriage was registered at Doncaster in the second quarter of that year.
Their daughter Joyce was born on 10th October 1917 and her birth was registered at Keighley in the last quarter of the year.
W0-95/2801. 1/6th Battalion, West Riding Regiment War diary entry:
NIEPPE. April 1918. 11th.
During early morning the Boche established his Machine Guns in outskirts of PONT DU NIEPPE & became very active – also his Trench Mortars opened on us at about 11 am assisted later by field guns at close range.
1 p.m.
At about 1 pm a party of enemy approached B Company’s trench working up an old trench & sunken road & owing to some disgraceful behaviour by some Northumberland Fusiliers who ran out to meet them with their hands up, the enemy entered our trench.
Captain CLOUGH was wounded through his face & Second Lieutenant SHAW was killed in attempting to turn out the Boche. Two platoons of B Company were despatched along the trench from left to right, but having no bombs were not able to dislodge the enemy as it was impossible to get out of the trench owing to incessant Machine Gun fire.
A block was established & a refused right flank made by a platoon of B Company who kept touch with 2nd East Lancashire on railway, some ground was given by them.
Shelling & Trench Mortar fire on our line continued to be very intensive, especially in support & back areas. During morning & early afternoon Second Lieutenant STEWART was killed by rifle fire & Lieutenant BAIN wounded by Machine Gun bullet.
4 p.m.
At about 4 pm some No 5 grenades were secured and plans made to drive the Boche out of our trenches – while these plans were being made the enemy commenced to work his way further down our trench, he was therefore attacked across the open from the rear & finally ejected, leaving about 20 dead & 1 prisoner in our hands. Second Lieutenant BAKER was seriously wounded and Sergeant BURROWS was killed in this enterprise. A Machine Gun team of the 34th Division rendered valuable assistance and No 71064 Pte WOMERSLEY B Company 34th Machine Gun Battalion behaved particularly well although wounded severely in the arm, remained at his gun & tried to continue firing. The Commanding Officer rallied the men & went forward at the head of the attacking party – Captain OGSTON, Second Lieutenant BAKER & Second Lieutenant WHITEHEAD led their men splendidly.
7 p.m.
At 7 pm orders were received to withdraw platoons down the BAILLEUL ROAD.
11.30 p.m.
The Battalion was successfully withdrawn & bivouaced at cross roads just south of BAILLEUL (S27 cont. SHEET 28)
Casualties list for April 1918:
265502 L/C Bamforth A. Wounded 11.4.1918.
Keighley News 27 April 1918, page 3:
Lance Corporal A. Bamforth, West Riding Regiment, whose wife resides at 29, Sykes Head, Oakworth, is in hospital at Canterbury suffering from concussion caused by a gunshot wound in the head. In civil life he was employed by the Dickinson Tool Company, Keighley.
In February 1919, the 1/6th Battalion West Riding Regiment were based at Auby, about 17 miles North West of Arras in France and that month had seen a lot of cold weather and severe frosts, plus the influenza epidemic was still very much in evidence. The war diary reports one man struck off strength as sick so maybe this refers to Arthur, who would have been evacuated with the flu to hospital. He was eventually admitted to Morton Banks War Hospital on the 5th of March.
Arthur died of influenza and pneumonia (while still on active service) on 8th March 1919 at Morton Banks war hospital. He was 27 years of age.
There is an entry in the Keighley War Hospital Register of Patients ledger, which is kept in the archives at Keighley Library.
Keighley War Hospital Register entry:
Unit or Regiment: 6th West Ridings.
Regimental number: 265502.
Name: Bamforth, A.
Age: 27.
Ward: K.
Sick or Wounded: Sick.
Date of Admission: 5th March 1919.
Date of Discharge: 8th March 1919.
Results: By death.
Arthur’s body was buried in Morton Cemetery and his name appears on the war memorial there along with a list of the other men who died at Morton Banks War Hospital.
Despite his recent death, his name was still in the electoral roll for 29, Sykes Head in Oakworth for 1919, where he appeared as an absent voter and it’s likely that this information was published before his death anyway. The qualification was ‘NM’ for a Naval/Military voter which confirms he was still serving away at that time.
His wife Rena Bamforth was registered in the electoral roll at this same address in 1919 and 1920.
Remembrance:
Apart from his name on the war memorial panel at Morton Cemetery, Arthur Bamforth is named in The Borough of Keighley Great War roll of honour book which is on display upstairs in Keighley Library.
He is also named on Oakworth’s Great War Centenary roll of honour, on display in Oakworth Community Hall.
Post war:
Arthur was posthumously awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal for his war service and these would have been sent to Rena in 1920 or 1921. She would also have received his personal effects.
As his widow and sole legatee in his will, she received a payment of £28 15s 6d on 25th August 1919. This included a war gratuity payment of £26.
Rena also received a grant of £6 on 25th March 1919 and a Dependant’s pension of 20 shillings and 5 pence per week for herself and their daughter Joyce, beginning on 15th September 1919. Joyce’s pension payments would have ended on her 16th birthday which would have been on 10th October 1933.
In the first quarter of 1921 Rena remarried, to Horace Reynolds which was registered in Keighley. Because she had remarried it’s likely that her Dependant’s pension would come to an end although there’s no mention of this in the pension records and her daughter Joyce’s child element of the pension would still be paid.
In the 1921 census Rena aged 27 and Joyce aged just under four were living at 29, Sykes Head on Oakworth with Horace S. Reynolds aged 24. Horace was a gas meter inspector employed by the Keighley Corporation Gas Department.
Note: 29 Sykes Head is believed to be Sykes Head Farm, which is on the right up Moor Street. Moor Street is the one in the gap between the two ‘Cross View’ terraced rows on Oakworth Road. These face on to the raised promenade with the cast iron fencing. (If anyone knows different, please let us know.)
By the time of the 1939 register they were living at 34, Fell Lane in Keighley having first appeared in the electoral rolls on this road at 336, Fell Lane in 1926. Horace was a gas fitting foreman aged about 45, Rena was on unpaid home duties aged about 48 and Joyce was a head saleswoman aged about 27. She has the surnames Riley and Broughton on her entry although Riley is crossed out.
Horace Stanley Reynolds of Woodville on Spring Gardens Lane in Keighley died aged about 89 on 15th January 1985.
Rena Bertha Reynolds of 11, Queen’s Court, Fell Lane died on 16th December 1985 aged about 92.
Joyce Bamforth married Jack S. Broughton with their marriage being registered in the Worth Valley in the third quarter of the year.
Joyce died aged 83 in January 2001, registered at Keighley.
Information sources:
West Yorkshire, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1813-1935.
England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915.
West Yorkshire, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1910.
1901 England Census.
1911 England Census.
British Army World War I Service Records, 1914-1920.
West Yorkshire, England, Electoral Registers, 1840-1962.
W0-95/2801. 1/6th Battalion, West Riding Regiment War diary.
The National Archives.
Keighley News records at Keighley Library.
British Army WWI Service Records, 1914-1920.
England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1837-1915.
England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007.
British Army WWI Medal Rolls Index Cards, 1914-1920.
WWI Service Medal and Award Rolls, 1914-1920.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919.
England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007.
Army Registers of Soldiers’ Effects, 1901-1929.
World War I Pension Ledgers and Index Cards, 1914-1923.
Morton Cemetery war memorial.
England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1916-2005.
1921 England Census.
1939 England and Wales Register.
England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995.
