Walkington War Memorial WW2



Walkington War Memorial WW2

George Raymond Ellerington

Sgt. W./Op/Air Gunner. 206 Squadron, Royal Air Force, Coastal Command. Service number 627175.

Born 1919, died aged 21, 20 December 1940.

George’s parents were George and Hilda Ellerington who at one time were the landlord and landlady of the Duke of Wellington public house at Lund. At the time of his death his parents were staying with their daughter Auriel, wife of Mr Bethel Taylor the head master of Walkington school on Northgate. George and Auriel had another brother Keith whom fellow Walkingtonian’s can remember attending Walkington school during the war.

On the 20th December 1940 206 Squadron were engaged on reconnaissance flying a Hudson Vx-EN 7333 which crashed at 05.00 hours, the crew perished. P/O Ward a Canadian from Toronto, rests at St Mary’s Churchyard Great Birchham, Norfolk, P/O Dobbie in Calder Cemetery, Lancashire, Sgt Riddell in Amble West Cemetery, Northumberland and Sgt Ellerington in St Mary’s Churchyard in Lund, East Yorkshire.

George Ellerington is commemorated on the Walkington War Memorial.

coastalcommand206.co.uk

Joseph Gray

Ordinary Seaman Merchant Navy

1939-45 War Medal, 1939-24 Star, Atlantic Star, Pacific Star.

Jo Gray was born in Beverley in 1901, his parents were James and Mary and he had five brothers and sisters. In 1922 he married Annie Oliver from Walkington, daughter of Richard and Ann Oliver. Annie had six brothers and sisters.

Jo and Annie Gray had three sons, Ronald, Clifford and Kenneth. Sadly, Annie died aged 25 years in 1929 and her little son Kenneth died a few months later. All are commemorated in Walkington churchyard.

Jo married Alice Wade and they had a further two children Terry and Mary.

As soon as war was declared Jo volunteered for the Merchant Navy. In 1942 he was serving on the S.S. Empire Leopard, a steam merchant vessel of 5,676 tons. She had been built in Seattle in 1917 and was given to Britain in 1940. On the night of 2 November 1942, the S.S. Empire Leopard en route to Britain from Canada to Avonmouth was sailing in convoy of the coast of Newfoundland, 500 miles east of Bell Isle. She was carrying a cargo of zinc concentrates and munition; unbeknown to them they were tailed by a U-Boat. Captain Siegfried von Forster, on the U-402 fired two torpedoes at the convoy and sank the Empire Leopard and the Empire Antelope.

The masters, crew and gunners were lost, three crew members were picked up by the British rescue ship Stockport and landed at Reykjavik on 8 November 1942.

The sad news was relayed to Walkington to his wife Alice and son Terry and daughter Mary. (later Mary married Keith Bainton).

He is commemorated on the war memorial to the Merchant Navy, Tower Hill, London and the Walkington War Memorial. His name is also listed on the S.S. Leopard crew who died on 2 November 1942.

See . also find-war-dead/casualty/2788096/Gray. Joseph, ancestry.co.uk

Kenneth Howdle

Aircraftman 1st Class. Royal Air Force

Service Number 628638.

Born 1921 died 7 May 1940 aged 19 years

War Medal 1939-45 and 1939-45 Star.

Kenneth was working on a farm at North Cave when he joined the RAF. His parents Thomas and Lillian Howdle lived at White Cottage (now demolished), this was just past what is now Heath House Stables as you come over the cattle grid off the Westwood onto Newbald Road. There was a large family of Howdles, for Ken had 12 brothers and sisters.

On the night of 7 May 1940 Kenneth was on duty at RAF Church Fenton, near York, working as a fireman. Part of his job was to marshal the aircraft into the hangars ready to be re-fuelled and back into the air as quickly as possible. On the night of 7th May the enemy were attacking Church Fenton in order to put our fighter planes out of action. It was black-out and the lighting in the hangars very dim. One aircraft had landed and Ken was marshalling it to where it would be re-fuelled, he was busy watching the pilot of this aircraft and failed to notice that the hangar crew had started up the engine of the next aircraft ready for it to go back up, it was ticking over and making less sound then the one he was bringing in, Ken was walking backwards and being unaware of this plane he got too close and was struck by the propeller.

He was taken to York hospital and his parents received a telegram saying ‘your son has been struck by an airscrew and is seriously ill in York hospital’ before they set off for York they received another telegram saying ‘hurry your son is sinking fast’.

Unfortunately, Ken passed away before they reached the hospital.

Joan, one of his younger sisters, has memories of him going home on leave to White Cottage and taking her a present of an arithmetic book, so that she could practice her maths.

Many people will have seen the grave of his baby sister Margaret as you walk up to All Hallows Church door. Joan and her brother Gordon regularly visit the grave and Kenneth’s, he rests in the churchyard next to the grave of his parents. The flowers they bring showing their continuing affection within this large family.

WW. .uk

Thomas Bernard Richmond

L/Cpl East Riding Yeomanry 4th Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment. Regimental Number 4244619

Killed in action at Dunkirk 21 may 1940

Commemorated at Bailleul-Sire-Berthoult Communal Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France

1939-45 War Medal, 1939-45 Star.

Bernard’s mother Ada was born in Walkington, but I have been unable to find her maiden name, she married Arthur Richmond from Beverley in 1907, and on the 1911 census they were living in Hull. The census shows them living on Clarmont Avenue with two children, Bernard aged three and James aged 6 months.

Bernard married Ivy Porter from Beverley in 1930 and they had two daughters Valerie and Vivien who are remembered living in the cottages near the pond on East End. Bernard worked in Walkington for “tailor” Cross in the house next door to the chapel known as ‘Red House’.

In 1940 the 4th Battalion East Yorks were fighting the Germans as the enemy pushed them back to the coast at Dunkirk. The Germans for some reason halted the attack which inadvertently allowed the British forces time to retreat to the beaches at Dunkirk and allow the subsequent evacuation to take place between the 27th May and 4th June 1940.

The operation to evacuate was essential when large numbers of allied troops were cut off by the surrounding German army during the Battle for France. Churchill delivered his famous speech on the 4th June ‘we shall fight them on the beaches etc’.

338,226 soldiers were evacuated but 68,000 soldiers were lost in the French campaign. Bernard Richmond was one of them.

Donald Hall

Captain East Riding Yeomanry (Royal Armoured Corp)

Regimental number 63007 Killed in action 30 May 1940 aged 29 years.

Died at Watou, buried in Hooton, Belgium.

Captain Hall’s parents were Harold and Florence Hall and he was the youngest brother of Harold Watson Hall who lived at Walkington Hall. His grandfather was George Hall who was the mayor of Hull in 1892. George Hall was a farmer in Holderness and a butcher in Hull, his mother was also from farming stock.

Towards the end of May in 1940 the East Riding yeomanry was part of 145 Brigade under the command of Brigadier Somerset. The brigade, consisting of the 2nd Battalion the Gloucester Regiment, the 2nd Battalion of the Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry, the 1st East Riding Yeomanry and some Royal Artillery anti- tank guns, was holding Cassel as a rear guard for the withdrawal of the British and French army from Dunkirk. Donald was the second in command of C Squadron of the Yeomanry. By 28th May Cassel was being surpassed by the German army, orders sent to 145 Brigade to withdraw did not reach Cassel until early on the 29th May and it was not possible to withdraw until 2100 hours on the 29th May. It was 10 miles to the Dunkirk perimeter and the East Riding Yeomanry as a ‘recce’ regiment, were the last to leave at 2400 hours. A route had been reconnoitred earlier to Watou but the speed of the retreat was very slow and it was daylight by the time the regiment reached Watou.

The remnants of the regiment who managed to return to Sidmouth were 7 officers and 230 men. The rest perished or were taken prisoner.

The first bell in All hallows Tower is dedicated to Donald Hall. The bell carries the inscription ’To the glory of God and in happy memory of Donald Hall 19/11/1940. Thus the Gods wrought – they wove thread of death for some that others in the years to come might have a song. Presented by his family AA1958.’

The bell sounding the note of ‘f’ has a diameter of 2 foot 1 inch and weighs over three hundred weight.

Ernest Arthur Mincham

Warrant Officer Royal Australian Air Force Number 406306

Died 4th October 1943 aged 31 years

1939-45 War medal 1939-45 Star

Ernest Mincham was the son of Charles Stephen and Elizabeth Mincham of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia and husband of Joyce Mincham of Beverley.

He is listed on the Australian national Electoral role and on a passenger list for California. Joyce Mincham was the daughter of Lois Ashton one-time landlord of the Ferguson Fawsitt Arms. Following his death Joyce remarried in 1949 to Sgt Kenneth Cressey, Royal Military Police from Woking.

Bob Nicholson

Air gunner Sgt 15 Squadron, Royal Air Volunteer reserve, Regimental number 954208.

1939-45 War Medal 1939-45 Star.

Bob Nicholson’s parents were the landlord and landlady of the Dog and Duck Inn Walkington at the time of Bob’s death in May 1942. After they left the Dog and Duck they went to live in Cosy Cottage before moving to Willerby. Bob attended the Boulevard school in Hull and was employed at the Hull Savings Bank before joining up at the beginning of the war.

He was based at RAF Wyton, on the night of 17/18 May 1942 at 02.00 hours the eight-man crew, plus one observer of the Stirling W7531, LS-F (for Freddie) named ‘MacRoberts Reply’, was shot down.

The Stirling had been shelled by the German cruiser ‘Prinz Eugen’. There was one survivor, Sgt. Jeffs, who with multiple wounds and burns was rescued by local people, however as the town was occupied by the enemy it was not long before he was found by the Germans and he was held prisoner of war in Stalag8b.

The plane came down near Middlefart in Denmark, Neils Ebbe Lundholt a local boy who went to the crash site recalled that he heard an English bomber had crashed in Hindsgval Forrest and he took his bicycle and box camera to the area to try to see it. The crashed aircraft had gouged out of the ground a huge rock and the local people immediately laid small flowers on the rock. It stands today guardian over the crater, and is still the focus of the memorial service that is held in May each year.

The people of Denmark will never forget the sacrifice of these brave men.

The remarkable story of the survivor can be found on the website ’MacRoberts Reply’.

Also, on the website is a photograph of Bob Nicholson, a photograph of his grave with an inscription from his parents and brother, a newspaper cutting gives the information about his job before joining up, plus his flight record, recording 137 hours flying time.

The amazing story of how the plane was called MacRobert’s Reply can also be found on the web.

The MacRoberts baronetcy of Douneside in Aberdeenshire was created in 1922 for Alexander MacRobert a self-made millionaire. He was succeeded by his eldest son Alasdair who was killed in 1938 in a flying accident. The title passed to his brother Roderic who was killed in action whilst flying a Hawker Hurricane in 1941 and just over a month later in June 1941 the title became extinct when the youngest son Ian was killed whilst serving in the RAF.

Their mother, American born Lady MacRobert gave £25,000 to purchase a Short Stirling Bomber, the aircraft named MacRoberts Reply in memory of her three sons. The coat of arms was painted on the nose of the Stirling, when that aircraft came to grief in 1942 she was replaced with another, this was the aircraft Bob Nicholson was flying in when it came down in Denmark.



George White

Gunner Royal Horse Artillery 2nd Regiment. Regimental number 808019.

George was born in Welton in 1910. The son of George Henry and Deborah White. His father who had been born in Middleton was a farm labourer living at Rose Cottage, Braffords Farm, Riplingham. His mother had been born in Cottingham.

He died on 29th May 1940 during the evacuation from Dunkirk. It is possible that his parents had moved farms and were working at Walkington at the time of his death, but it is speculation as I have been unable to verify this.

Norman Sharp

Cpl. 1st Battalion Duke of Wellington Regiment. Service number 22583514.

Norman Sharp came to live in Walkington when he was 14 years old. His father worked as a groom for Mr Leslie Crooks at ‘Uplands’, Little Weighton Road. Norman enjoyed playing football and he is one of the ‘lads playing the dads’ on the photograph of the 1950/51 season which is displayed in the village hall. This was the year before he was called up for National Service, prior to this he had been employed by the building firm of Constables in Beverley.

He joined the Duke of Wellington Regiment and was sent to war in Korea. The 1st Battalion had set sail to join the 1st Commonwealth Division, as a result of the United Nations decision to support the USA in resisting the invasion of South Korea by their communist neighbours in the north.

The battalion joined the Division at the end of September 1952 and soon found themselves in the front line. On May 13 they occupied the position known as The Hook. The history of the regiment recalls ’The Dukes found themselves in serious military action virtually from day one. The regiment was under fire from snipers, mortars and artillery with casualties occurring on the 19th and during the next seven days, three were killed and 26 wounded. On the night of 28/29 May following a huge artillery barrage, wave after wave of Chinese troops attacked British positions on the Hook. Initially knocked back the Dukes fought fiercely with two platoons fighting their way back up the line to regain the original ‘D’ company trenches, they were temporarily held up by the enemy and over the next 24 hours ten men were killed, fifty-one wounded and twenty-seven men were missing. Norman Sharp was one of those killed.

Brigadier Kendrew stated ‘My God those Dukes were marvellous. In the whole of the last war I never saw anything like that bombardment, but they held the Hook, as I knew they would’.

Norman Sharp is commemorated on the Walkington war memorial and on the United Nations War memorial in Korea. The United Nations War memorial in Korea is the only one of its kind in the world. Here rest heroic brave soldiers from a number of UN nations that sacrificed their lives for peace and freedom during the Korean War (June 1950-July 1953). There were 40.896 UN casualties from 17 nations. The cemetery contains 2,300 graves of which 885 are British soldiers.

Sharps Lane off Little Weighton Road is named after him.

Research completed by Christine Elston

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