My Great Granda Herbert Deacon.

Mark have had a talk with Marjorie and she doesn't no of an aunt S.A Rickerby and all she can remember is it was definately Holbeck that Sidney went to live.

Regards Michael.

No worries Micheal, I shall have another look if there is a Sidney in Holbeck. I wondered if she could have been the mother of his girlfriend?

Mark

 

Here is a photo of Great Granda Herbert, Photo courtesy of Marjorie Herberts niece.

Photos restored by RCO. Pristine Image

 

Marjorie has also sent me some photos of her dad John.

Pictures reworked by member RCO. Pristine Image

 

I have also been sent a picture of Sydney.

 

Hello Michael,

John is definitely a Northumberland Fusilier, going off the cap badges on the uniformed men in the photo. Is that a Newcastle United strip they are wearing?

I notice Sidney is spelt 'Sydney' in his photograph, looks like he is in an RAF uniform and it is labelled 'Whitley Bay'. He also looks like he is 'older'. Did he serve in the RAF, in WWII, in Northumberland? There was plenty of RAF presence up there. The Luftwaffe used to pay Newcastle and surrounding area a visit from Norway on a regular basis, trying to bomb the Shipyards, Spillers and Vickers & Armstrong, et al!

Can't tell anything about your Great Granda's unit from his photograph...

Best,

Steve.

 

Hello Michael,

John is definitely a Northumberland Fusilier, going off the cap badges on the uniformed men in the photo. Is that a Newcastle United strip they are wearing?

I notice Sidney is spelt 'Sydney' in his photograph, looks like he is in an RAF uniform and it is labelled 'Whitley Bay'. He also looks like he is 'older'. Did he serve in the RAF, in WWII, in Northumberland? There was plenty of RAF presence up there. The Luftwaffe used to pay Newcastle and surrounding area a visit from Norway on a regular basis, trying to bomb the Shipyards, Spillers and Vickers & Armstrong, et al!

Can't tell anything about his unit from your Great Granda's photograph...

Best,

Steve.


Hi Steve the photo of the football team is John's regiment, Marjorie has a medal that John won in the war playing football (didn't they have inter regiment football matches).
Sydney must have joined back up in WW2 in the R.A.F just like Herbert maybe ? Funny that the pictures mentions Sydney and Whitley Bay Herbert moved to Monkseaton and later Whitley Bay but Sydney always lived in Leeds.
So Herbert's still maybe a mystery ?

Would you like copys of John's photos for your web site.

Regards Michael.

 

Michael,

I have been having a further dig around regarding Sydney, on both Ancestry and FinMyPast.

I have found the following:

A Sydney J Deacon married a Nellie Sykes in the July quarter of 1915, in Holbeck:

NameEACON, Sydney J
Registration District: Holbeck
County: Yorkshire
Year of Registration: 1915
Quarter of Registration: Jul-Aug-Sep
Spouse's last name: Sykes
Volume No: 9B
Page No: 1488

Name:SYKES, Nellie
Registration District: Holbeck
County: Yorkshire
Year of Registration: 1915
Quarter of Registration: Jul-Aug-Sep
Spouse's last name: Deacon
Volume No: 9B
Page No: 1488

It would appear Nellie lived at 29 Tilbury Mount, Holbeck:

SYKES, John William Head Married M 47 1864 Machinist Knife Cutter Yorkshire Leeds
SYKES, Emma Wife Married 25 years F 48 1863 Yorks Heck
SYKES, Elsie Daughter Single F 23 1888 Sewing Machinist Yorks Leeds
SYKES, Minnie Daughter Single F 21 1890 Sewing Machinist Yorks Leeds
SYKES, Edith Mary Daughter Single F 19 1892 Finisher Yorks Leeds
SYKES, Nellie Daughter Single F 16 1895 Sewing Machinist Somerset Bristol
SYKES, Leonard John Son M 9 1902 School Yorks Leeds
SYKES, Hilda Daughter F 7 1904 School Yorks Leeds
SYKES, Wilfrid Richard Son M 5 1906 School Yorks Leeds

Address:
29 Tilbury Mount Holbeck Leeds
County:
Yorkshire (West riding)

Could this be Sydney?

Mark

 

Hi Mark will let you no when i next get intouch with Marjorie, i no she is going to the Leeds History library tomorrow so she may be intouch tomorrow with anything she finds.

Cheers again Mark much appreciated.

Regards Michael.

 

Deacs,

I have just had a quick look at the Ancestry database of service records, and found one for a Sidney Deacon, resident at 10 Recreation St, Tipmoorside, Holbeck, and at 5 Recreation St, Top Moor Side, Holbeck. The latter with his aunt Sarah Anne Rickerby(?). Could this be he?

Mark

A little more information on this Sydney, who on the records is shown as Sidney John Deacon; he injured his left hand in an industrial accident about 1911/12:
at Messrs. Fairburn and Lawsons(?) Iron Works Leeds owing to the breaking of a chain ball attatchment used in opening the furnace door, this weighed about 7cwt. & in falling injured his hand.

Mutilation of left hand & thumb. fracture of Carpus and Meta Carpus.

The left hand is fixed in a(illegible) position by a firm(?) treatment band reaching from the first phalanx of the thumb to the wrist.

The attestment papers show he enlisted on 19 April 1915, apparently prior to the marriage I have mentioned in my previous post.

Would this information help in identifying if this is your man?

 

I think that information and detail will definately help finding out if this is the right Sydney,
the only thing i no is i have asked Marjorie if Sydney had a middle name and she says no he didn't that is the only thing i no sorry.

Michael.

 

Marjorie has also sent me some photos of her dad John.

I would concur about the Northumberland Fusiliers cap badges in the photographs. With all the various information and if you are inclined to do so it may be worth making an appointment to visit the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers Museum at Alnwick Castle. In 2010 the Museum staff and volunteers helped me find a lot of information about some WW1 soldiers I was researching.

If you do wish to do this it you may need to book a few weeks in advance. One of the people I was trying to find out about was one of my own kinsmen who had served in the Northumberland Fusiliers was killed in WW1 (Pte Thomas McCrickett, from Cleator Moor, 19th Bn NF, Died 22/05/1918, aged 18). Beforehand we had little information about him. The NF Museum were really helpful in providing some information on his short time with the 'Fighting Fifth'.

You may like to consider a Museum visit. The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers Museum and Alnwick Castle are well worth a visit for background knowledge of the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, WW1, WW2 etc. (ususually April - October). In any case, you seem to be gradually be building a picture of your Granddad's family in both World Wars. Photographs are always a really good piece of evidence.

Just to clarify about the term "The Fighting Fifth" used above. The Northumberland Fusuiliers developed from "The Fifth Regiment of Foot" (as it was originally known). It became the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers in 1935, so that is how it was known during WW2. In WW1, which you are mainly interested in at this time, it was just the Northumberland Fusiliers.

In any case, you seem to be gradually progressing with the research on your family's military service.

Good luck with the search.

 

So Herbert's still maybe a mystery ?

How is he a mystery? The photo shows him with a L/Cpl stripe and the medal card I found plus the medal roll Lee subsequently obtained from the NA for you show that L/Cpl Herbert Deacon served with 1/West Yorkshire Regiment for the entire war until his transfer to the NF's in 1919.

Sorted.

 

With all the various information and if you are inclined to do so it may be worth making an appointment to visit the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers Museum at Alnwick Castle. In 2010 the Museum staff and volunteers helped me find a lot of information about some WW1 soldiers I was researching.

Spot on. I would imagine the museum may well be able to both identify and date the company and team photos which will give you the Battalion of the Northumberland Fusiliers John was serving with at that point. Again, I would point you in the direction of the earlier post in the thread of John's entry in the Leeds edition of National Roll of the Great War and by comparing the battles within his biography to the locations of 1/7th and 9th Battalions of the NF's at those points. It's educated guesswork but it can help piece together a service history.

 

Hello Michael,

Hopefully a useful link for the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers Museum at Alnwick Castle: The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers - Guide To Researchers

If you decide to visit the castle take a body guard; it is 'Hogwarts' after all. :smile:

Best,

Steve.

 

I have also been sent a picture of Sydney.

I have made a goof with this post sorry, this is my grandas brother Sydney from Whitley Bay not Great Grandas brother sorry.

 

Michael has confirmed that the Sydney mentioned in post 69 is his relative. For those interested you can download his records from here.

Mark

 

Michael has confirmed that the Sydney mentioned in post 69 is his relative. For those interested you can download his records from here.

Mark

Thankyou Mark that is excellent, even though he was badly injured at work he still enlisted but was discharged due to the injury, i wonder how that felt knowing your younger brothers enlisted and served their country and Sidney couldn't due to the injury ?

 

Have found Sidneys pension documents and also his Medal Index Cards.

It looks like Sidney was only in the army for one year being discharged due to the mutilation of his hand.

 

Thankyou Mark that is excellent, even though he was badly injured at work he still enlisted but was discharged due to the injury, i wonder how that felt knowing your younger brothers enlisted and served their country and Sidney couldn't due to the injury ?

Hello Michael,

He tried to do his bit, enlisting even though he had a pre-existing injury that eventually led to his discharge from the service. A brave man.

Best,

Steve.

 

Hello Michael,

He tried to do his bit, enlisting even though he had a pre-existing injury that eventually led to his discharge from the service. A brave man.

Best,

Steve.

Hello Michael

yes I agree with Steve

regards
Clive