Private George Mason 18/58 of the 18th Battalion. 2nd Bradford Pals West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince Of Wales's Own) - from an unidentified name on Wednesday to service researched, located locally on our doorstep and amazing photos kept as keepsakes by his grieving fiancee found, all before Saturday lunchtime. Thankyou to everyone that helped, we now have another Bradford Pals life remembered for the future. ​Photos and family history kindly supplied by Gwyneth Wainwright. Archive research by Damon Sugden, The Friends of Pudsey Cemetery & Chapel, and Bus to Bradford.

Buried at Pudsey Cemetery A479 General Section - note headstone is face down
Son of Jabez Stead Mason, tailor of Fartown and his wife Elizabeth Mason. In 1911 when he was 17 George was employed as a joiners labourer. He was an early volunteer of the Second Bradford Pals and wounded in service. George Mason joined up 10th February 1915 and died after discharge (released 25th March 1919), probably from the effects of his wounds on the 10th Sept, buried 13 Sept 1919 aged 25. A member of the Mt Zion Chapel congregation, he was named on their Roll Of Honour.
Gwyneth Wainwright: ”George Mason was engaged to my Great Aunt Lillian Balmforth. She never married and died 30/1/1979 and often spoke to us about George and their courting days promenading with her sister Betty as chaperone. I have looked for his grave but could never find it. She always said she wanted to be buried near him and is quite near in our family plot near the top gate. I have some letters he sent her during the war which she also kept. She was nearly 83 when she died and lived on Westroyd with her sister Betty, they had a small chicken farm, and latterly Claremont Grove.”

​Pudsey & District Civic Society supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund
Heritage Open Days 8th & 9th September 2018

Pudsey Town Hall, access via Manor House Street Entrance
10:30 am until 4:00 pm

Did your ancestors serve their Country in the First World War? Are you curious to know the challenges that they would have faced and how the Township of Pudsey coped? This exhibition will show many aspects of life in the Town during the First World War and the family connections that still exist today.
Our team of local historians will be glad to help you to learn more about your families WW1 heritage. Members of the public are welcome to bring along any photos, medals, mementoes or heirlooms for discussion (note no weapons or deactivated munitions please). You are also welcome to submit family photos from the WW1 era for inclusion in the Exhibition.
Family history prize - Junior members of the community are invited to submit a short essay about a family member who was involved in WW1. The best submission will be awarded a “There but not There” 10”/25cm high Perspex Tommy figure of a World War One soldier. For more information please contact; pudseywwoneinfo@yahoo.co.uk 
The chances are very high that a member of your family would have served in the Military or have been employed in War Work between 1914 and 1918. We want to recognise and remember that contribution.

Main Themes of the exhibition:

Pudsey’s contribution to the Leeds Pals and Leeds Rifles
• The detailed life story of George Frankland of Pudsey, who served with the Leeds Rifles
• The true story of the real “Pudsey Pals” - 40 local men who joined up in one day
• Joining up and life in the Army

Pudsey’s contribution to the Royal Navy and Royal Flying Corps
• Local men involved in many famous Naval battles
• The foundation of the RFC and RAF and where their uniforms came from  
• Farsley‘s WW1 airfield

Famous serving Sportsmen from Pudsey
• Cricketers and long distance running champions

The Pudsey Homefront
• The incredible work carried out by Pudsey Women at the Phoenix Dynamo
• The Boots and Uniform material that clothed an Army 

A Community at War:
• Stories submitted by members of the the Community about their families contributions and sacrifices
• The shocking losses suffered by members of the Town Council’s families 

Our WW1 Legacy today
• Keeping their memories alive with the Royal British Legion
• Preserving our War Graves and Memorials with the Friends of Pudsey Cemetery & Chapel

On Display
Full WW1 roll of Honour for the Town’s lost heroes
Roll of honour for the Town’s missing WW1 names, and proposals for the new information board at Pudsey Cenotaph
Many Photographs including two fabulous colour photos from Leigh Mills, Stanningley. A recreation of the Littlemoor Baptists Chapel window of Remembrance and two paintings by renowned war artist Flora Lion 
Interesting articles from The Pudsey & Stanningley News
Medals and collected items from the Pudsey & District Civic Society archive
Large collection of informative books to browse through

To acknowledge the Centenaries of a number of our lads, a wreath was laid at the Arras Memorial on the anniversary of the Leeds Pals valiant rearguard action during the start of the retreat of the 93rd Brigade - 24th March 1918. 
Dedicated to the memories of these men from our district named at or buried at Arras:
​Rifleman Fred Appleyard
Private John William Atkinson
Private Harry Butler
Corporal Thomas Clapham
Rifleman Fred Coates
2/Lieutenant George Cork Dalgoutte
Private Harold Davey
Private Harry Farrer Duffield
Private Norman Dufton
Private Clarence Percival Dufton
Private Harold Endersby
Private Herbert Ackroyd Fearnley
Private William Gambles
Rifleman Fred Nicholls Halliday
Private John Hargreaves
Private Thomas Henry Harrison MM
Private Alfred Holgate
Private Robert Violet June
Private Samuel Keighley
Private John Edward Lawson
Corporal Ernest Lawson
Lance Corporal Leonard Leffly MM
Lance Corporal Leonard Mawson
Private James Arthur Mills
Sarjeant James William Raynor Moorhouse
Private Matthew William Moss
Corporal Lawrence Myers
Private Wilfrid Naylor
Private Joseph Newsome
Private James Scott O’Brien
Private John Peel
Private Cecil Rimmington
Private Alfred Sugden
Private Archie Edward Tidswell
Serjeant Albert Way
Private Herbert Wilcock
Private Fred Wilson
Private William Farrer Winterburn

An early casualty of “Operation Michael” - the German Spring offensive. Harold Davey originally hailed from Pudsey. A wreath in his memory and that of all the Pudsey lads named, will be laid at the Arras Memorial this Saturday.

Now happy to report that the updates to our Cenotaph Plaque names has been completed. The First World War and Second World casualties, where identified, now have full details matching current research. We welcome any input from family members wishing to add further details about the lives of those named here: pudseywwoneinfo@yahoo.co.uk
Photo of “Tommy” atop the Cenotaph supplied with thanks by Antony Newby (Bronze Soldier believed to be the likeness of its sculptor - Henry Poole).

The ongoing project to update the names of our First World War fallen reaches the halfway mark.
The North face, West Face and additional small East plaques now have the names of the fallen and detailed information (where it exists), about their Service, circumstances and next of kin. The South and East plaques to follow suit soon. 

​http://www.pudseycenotaph.co.uk/remembering-1914-1919.html

Three Pudsey lads who hailed from the same small street in the town, paid the ultimate sacrifice during the defence of the Nation. 

Stanley Coates and Henry Ward grew up together on Prospect Avenue having both been born in 1920. They were joined in 1933 by Ronald and Irene Muir who moved from Scotland after the ultimately death of their mother.
Stanley and Henry are known to have been members of the St.James Methodists congregation. Henry was a chorister at the church along with his father George Ward. As the boys grew into adulthood, Stanley and Ronnie became close friends and Stanley started dating Irene, Ronnie’s younger sister.

Stanley was an accomplished mechanical engineer and a genius at constructing complex working models in Meccano. Aged 14 he built a scale model of a working power loom, based on a machine in his Uncle’s textile mill. The shuttles for the loom were specially built for Stanley by the company that made the full sized versions. When run it could weave a tie that had “God save the King” emblazoned down the edges. Not surprisingly the loom was a first prize winner at the Manchester Meccano Exhibition. By the outbreak of the War, Stanley was working as a mechanical engineer and was given a reserved occupation meaning that he could not be called up. However he had a deep longing to fly. His friend Ronnie had already joined the RAF and would have been coming home on leave in his very smart Flight Sergeant’s uniform.   
A senior Commander in the RAF, happened to see Stanley’s Meccano marvel, and deeply impressed asked Stanley if there was anything he could help him with. Stanley requested an operational position within the RAF and the request was duly granted. Stanley was offered a position in Fighter Command and began the process of learning to fly. Its reputed that Stanley overflew Pudsey on a training flight and gave a victory roll over Brunswick Road!

Ronnie by now was a wireless operator/air gunner aboard an experimental high altitude B-17 bomber with 90 Squadron based out of RAF Polebrook. His aircraft AN534 “E for Easy” suffered a catastrophic mid air explosion on July 28th 1941, all 7 men onboard died in the accident. Ronnie’s body was returned to Pudsey and buried in our Cemetery on August 5th. 
Standing by his friend’s grave and looking out over the Aire valley, Stanley fatefully remarked that if anything similar should happen to him, then this too is where he wanted to be buried.

Henry joined the Royal Navy at the outbreak of the War and eventually was given service aboard the Leander Class Light Cruiser HMS Neptune, as an Engine room Artificer. During late 1939 she was involved in the South Atlantic chase to destroy the Graf Spee. Neptune was the first British ship to spot the Italian Fleet in the battle of Calabria, on 9 July 1940, marking also the first time since the Napoleonic Wars that the Mediterranean Fleet received the signal "enemy battle fleet in sight". During the subsequent engagement, she was hit by the Italian light cruiser Giuseppe Garibaldi. Minutes later her main guns struck the heavy cruiser Bolzano three times. During 1941, she led Force K, a raiding squadron of cruisers. Their task was to intercept and destroy German and Italian convoys en route to Libya. Sadly Neptune was involved in one of our worst ever Naval disasters when on the night of 19–20 December, cruisers Neptune, Aurora and Penelope strayed into an Italian minefield. Neptune hit 4 mines and quickly capsized, killing 737 crew members. There was only one survivor, Norman Walton, spent 15 months in an Italian prisoner of war camp. Henry is remembered on the Chatham Naval Memorial.

Stanley was completing his flight training during the summer of 1942 and had progressed onto Spitfire’s. During one of his training flights his aircraft came down over Holywell in North Wales on the 15th of August. His plane crashed upside down into a tree near to a farm. Hearing the crash and seeing the plane, the farmers daughter dashed to Stanley’s aid, carrying a bottle of brandy with her. Sadly it was too late for Stanley, and he is now buried, as he wished next to Ronnie.

Ronnie’s sister Irene went on to marry Malcom Spurr from Batley.   

With sincerest thanks to the members of all 3 families who have been assisting with this article.
© Damon Sugden @PudseyCenotaph 2018

​Cine footage of Stanley’s Meccano loom:

Service of Remembrance held at Pudsey Cemetery 14/01/18. A big thankyou to everyone that attended, and the Pudsey & Farsley Royal British Legion Branch for holding the centenary remembrance service for Arthur Edward Murgatroyd.
Arthur Edward Murgatroyd was born 3 Dec 1888, only son of Alderman Myers Murgatroyd. Arthur received his primary education in Pudsey, and then passed through Hanson’s Academy at Bradford. He was a scholar of Fartown Church Sunday School, with which he had enjoyed a long connection. A popular and well known man, he entered business of his fathers Quarry as a delver and crane operator. Arthur married Jane Nichols of 24 South Parade Pudsey, on 11 Dec 1912, they moved into 21 South Parade. Arthur was called up for compulsory service in March 1916. He was represented at a Military tribunal held at Pudsey Town Hall by his father, who argued that his only son was a key member of his of his quarry operation. The request was dismissed and Arthur put himself forward to the Royal Navy. Between September and November he trained at shore base HMS Victory 1. Duties took him into deck gunnery, and for more than a year he passed through some thrilling experiences on the high seas. He and his shipmates disembarked from their old boat in December 1917, to come home for well-earned term leave. When leave had expired he was assigned to the RNVR and the crew of the steamship S.S. War Song. Built by Detroit and launched July 27, 1917 as LAKE ARTHUR, it was handed over to British Shipping Control as the WAR SONG as compensation for the losses to the Merchant fleet. A steamer of 2535 tons, it had a crew of 16 and served as a transport for raw materials. It would have had a steam deck crane which was likely Arthur’s responsibility. War Song voyaged between Bilbao to Brest bringing iron ore to the French war effort.
On January 15th, 1918, she was sunk by shellfire from the German submarine U-93 (Captain Helmut Gerlach), 12 miles west of L'isle-de-Sein near Brest. 16 persons were lost, six members of the crew; Charles Lombard Audigier who was only 16, M T Brown Ship's Steward, William Patrick Goulding 52 Second Officer, J Hollingsworth 29 Second Engineer, James Rankine Ramsay 48 Mate, Arthur Edward Murgatroyd 29, are buried together in L'isle-de-Sein Communal Cemetery, France (A small and peaceful Island off the coast of Brest).
Still missing: Alfred Stalker Fleming 41 First Engineer, A Rasmussen 25 Carpenter, J G South 47 Ships Master, J Tepsich, Abdullah Saleh, Hamid Abdus, Jumma Ali, Muhammad Bin Ali, Muhammad Zamin, Umar Said. 
The German Navy lost contact with their submarine later that day as she tried to return to base in Ostend. No other ship could definitely claim her destruction.
U93 - Captain Helmut Gerlach
Launched 15th Dec 1916, Complement of 4 officers, 32 enlisted sailors.
Armament: 6 × 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes (four bow, two stern) 1 × 8.8 cm (3.5 in) SK L/30 deck gun.
U 93 was assigned to operate along the French coast between the Channel Islands and Penmarch and was part of the unrestricted submarine warfare that caused so much havoc, attacking every ship she came across. 
U93’s most famous battle was facing the Q Ship HMS Prize, Captained by New Zealander William Edward Sanders. Both vessels were badly damaged in the confrontation, and for his coolness under fire, Sanders was awarded the VC.