Author Topic: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3  (Read 152477 times)

Offline Tephra

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #513 on: Monday 21 April 08 14:03 BST (UK) »



I'm sure many of you will be aware it's the Australian ANZAC day on Friday, where our fallen heroes are remembered and honoured.   This week and through to the weekend, many articles will be in the local and national newspapers about groups and individuals who fought in the Great War.

If a press release is prepared, I'm sure our papers would be interested in Roberts Story.  I'd be only too willing to approach the papers over here with the information.

Barbara
Onley/Only/Olney In Islington.<br />Wallwork In Bolton and Walkden<br />Lamb In Bolton and Ireland<br />Grundy In Bolton<br />Blackledge In Bolton<br />Osbaldeston  ?? ??<br />Barnett in Islington<br />Binyon in Islington
Kitchen in Bolton
Parker in Bolton

Offline liverpool annie

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #514 on: Monday 21 April 08 14:22 BST (UK) »

I sent to these places last week !!

Telegraph Uk on line
The Times on line
Manchester Evening News
Northwest News on line
BBC Uk both TV and website
Daily Mail !!

Annie   :)
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http://web.archive.org/web/20130407030702/http://www.freewebs.com/liverpoolannie

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Be who you are and say what you feel -  because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind ! Dr. Seuss

Erect no gravestone .... let the Rose every year bloom for his sake ! Rilke Sonnets to Orpheus, I

Offline kesannah

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #515 on: Monday 21 April 08 14:29 BST (UK) »
This just gets better and better.
 Congratulations to all who have done their bit ,large or small.

Kesannah
Hide/Hyde Kent,Sussex,West Ham
Beale/Burgess Sussex
Reed West Ham,East Ham London
Banks Seaford,Rottingdean Sussex
Koller Poplar London,Como Italy.
Checkley Northamptonshire.
Bentley Northamptonshire.West Ham,Poplar
Ridley Gatehead Durham Northumberland.
Poplar.Galt, Ontario, Canada
Corbyn Poplar,West Ham.Suffolk
Merritt Norwich.West ham
Watson Norwich,West Ham


Corbyn Fressingield Suffolk
Ridley.Galt Ontario

Offline MissM

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #516 on: Monday 21 April 08 14:38 BST (UK) »
Don't know if this will help anyone but it's what I sent to the Echo.

No Stone Left Unturned…Back in January 2007 a member of a genealogy website called Rootschat posted an appeal for help tracing a man called Robert Stead.  ‘liverpool annie’ as she is known in the Lancashire forum was on a quest to find Robert Stead and to return to him a metal nameplate found in France many years earlier.

Liverpool annie had been contacted by Frenchman Michel who knew Robert Stead has lived in Liverpool.  He found the medallion 25 years previously in a box of buttons and coins in the village of La Couture on the western front in France and took on the task of returning it back to the British soldier who must have been posted their in WW11.

After many years of struggling Michel spotted liverpool annie and presuming her to be in Liverpool asked for help.  liverpool annie had to explain that she was, in fact, in Colorado, USA!  They worked together on the Great War forum and found Robert had lived in the Anfield area of Liverpool, worked as a bank Clerk in Parr’s Bank before joining up and serving in the 6th battalion Liverpool Regiment and later was enlisted with the newly formed Machine Gun Corps

Liverpool annie discovered his service record and details of his life including his height, weight and chest size!  Robert was wounded in the chest and thigh in August 1916 while in Abbeville and was released from the Army 20th March 1919.

Coming home after the war he married Elizabeth Neil Grant in 1921 at St Simon and St  Jude’s Church Liverpool and they moved to Gateacre

Eventually liverpool annie shared the story with the rest of the Rootschatters who took up the challenge to find Robert and got to work.  Michel then became a member of Rootschat himself.  Sadly it quickly became apparent that Robert Stead had died young, leaving a young wife of 5 years in 1926 in Gateacre.  They had no children so the search was on for siblings, aunts, uncles, anyone who was related to Robert who may like to cherish the medallion. 

Rootschatters are known for their ferocity when trying to solve a problem, and also for their generosity in going the extra mile for anyone who needs help and they would not let this go.  Suggestions and research was coming into the forum from all over the world and attracting quite a lot of attention.  Members were using other Genealogy Websites, Birth, Marriage and Death records, Parish Registers, Graveyard plans, Census lists… you name it, they checked it!

They found the names of Robert’s parents, his siblings, his wife’s family: anyone with a vague connection to Robert Stead was checked out!   Liverpool based members even took photos of the house Robert was believed to live in and shared them with the group.

At this point thousands of people were logging into the website to follow the story and the thread became so big, another two were eventually started.  The bank where Robert had worked was contacted for any information they had on.  The Echo was checked for death notices,  cemetery records checked for graves, even the Funeral Director in the area was checked for any details they might have – in short, no stone was left unturned.

Then they had a breakthrough!

In November 2007 a friend of Annie’s visited the Liverpool Record office and found an announcement that Robert’s funeral had taken place in St Stephen’s Church, Woolton and he was buried in Woolton Churchyard!  Contact was made with the Verger at St. Peter’s Church, Graham Paisley who kindly met with a group member and found the grave.  Sadly it had fallen and was face down but Graham kindly put a mirror underneath and confirmed it was the stone of Robert Stead. 

Although the group is still unable to reunite the medallion with anyone related to Robert, it was very rewarding to find his final resting place and it was agreed to find the funds to turn the stone over.  Welsby’s the local stone mason were contacted for advice and a quote and a target was set.  However the interest in this thread was so big that the amount of money required was soon passed so the target was raised and the group has now got enough money to have the stone lifted and fixed upright once again.

The group is very grateful to Graham Paisley at St Peter’s Church and Welsby’s the stonemason for their kind help, time, and support for this project but the outcome and therefore the praise should go to the many people of Rootschat and beyond who helped to bring this tremendous endeavour to its close.

Michel is, at the moment still undecided what to do with Robert Stead’s medallion but he is thrilled to have found a link and a history to the man whose medallion he found 25 years ago. 

Robert’s stone will not be left unturned!
MONEYPENNY (Liverpool/N Ireland/Scotland)
CRETNEY (Isle of Man)
KIDD (N Ireland)
DAVIES ( Denbighshire, N Wales)
ROBERTS (Liverpool)
WHITE (Liverpool)
Local History website - www.spekeliverpool.co.uk


Offline Tephra

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #517 on: Monday 21 April 08 14:53 BST (UK) »



OK, it's just gone to the Courier Mail - a Brisbane (Australia) Daily.   I'll send it to the other nationals tomorrow.

Barbara
Onley/Only/Olney In Islington.<br />Wallwork In Bolton and Walkden<br />Lamb In Bolton and Ireland<br />Grundy In Bolton<br />Blackledge In Bolton<br />Osbaldeston  ?? ??<br />Barnett in Islington<br />Binyon in Islington
Kitchen in Bolton
Parker in Bolton

Offline liverpool annie

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #518 on: Monday 21 April 08 15:25 BST (UK) »


This was what I sent .... maybe somebody would like to take some from each and make it better !!  :)

A group of people who live all over the world and are members of the free family history site of RootsChat.com have come together to bring this WW1 soldier back into the limelight !!

I would like to introduce you to Robert William Stead who nearly 2 years ago became our quest .... we wanted to find out if he had any relatives who would be interested in the tag that Michel Knockaert found nearly 30 years ago in the WW1 battlefields around his home in France .... it has been quite a wild ride and a wonderful one too .... we weren't able to find relatives but we did find his final resting place .... at St Peters Church Woolton Liverpool ... sadly the grave stone had fallen so between us - we all "chipped in " to re-erect his gravestone so he is able to face the sun again !!

Who knows what it was that endeared Robert to so many people ? - maybe it was because we could all relate to our own Grandfathers and Great Grandfathers .... but we knew we wanted to honour this brave soldier - in the eyes of the world he was an ordinary man .... but in our eyes he became a very extraordinary man and we seem to have become all the better for "knowing " him !!

The Quest 

Quote

25 years ago, when I was General Secretary of the town hall of LA COUTURE, a village between ARMENTIERES and BETHUNE, just on the western front, I found, among old coins and a button of british trench coat, a piece of metal engraved in english.

Since that day, I search in the british cemeteries of my sector the grave of the man (there are many of them near my home)

In fact, with help of members of the forum and of a new friend from minnesota one day I see I mistaked, the man survived the conflict an go back alive at home in Anfield Liverpool

The memory of this men, that I do not know haunt my spirit, my best wish is to restore the wrist tag to his descent, if it exist, that is very very important for me.

Of course, no money in this history, just to be in peace with my soul, this medal is not mine, it must go back in his real place



Robert William STEAD (1896 West Derby -1926 Gateacre)

Robert William Stead was born March 22nd 1896 in West Derby Liverpool - the son of William Harley ( Master Mariner ) and Emily ( nee Richards ) Stead and lived at Watford Road Anfield Liverpool

Robert William Stead was 17 years and 5 months old when he attested to join the army for 4 years in Liverpool  on 25  August 1913 He gave his address as    Watford Road Anfield Liverpool the home of his father William Harley Stead  who he gave as next of kin and later identified as a Master Mariner  Robert  who was a single man, identified his birthplace as Liverpool Lancashire  - his current occupation as a bank clerk at Parr's Bank Liverpool  and his religion as Church of England.
He returned  the next day, for a medical examination. This revealed that he stood 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighed 10st 9lbs  and had a chest measurement of 35 inches.

He was accepted into 6th Rifle battalion of the Kings Liverpool Regiment

Once in the Army - Robert William Stead became a number – 1466   to begin with - he faced a couple of months worth of drill square bashing and weapons training - in order to turn him from a bank clerk to soldier .......  Private Stead 's unit first entered the theatre of war in France in February 1915  and he was promoted to L/Cpl 28th August 1915

Yet Robert given his intelligence - was not the sort of man to remain an infantry soldier for long - in fact he was the perfect sort of person to become a member of the newly created Machine Gun Corps.

Robert William Stead # 22397 attested  20th February 1916  with 165 Brigade MGC and was promoted A/Cpl 29th March 1916 - he was sent to the Machine Gun training centre at Grantham back in England   - here he familiarised himself with the workings and complexities of the Vickers .303  and heavy machine    guns

He became a team player – each gun was ideally manned by a crew of eight  - four men were involved in the actual firing and the other four responsible for sighting and the preparation and the bringing up of ammunition - crews in the field normally numbered six - simply because of the shortage of men.

The course only lasted approximately 6 weeks due to the intense demand for gunners.  Thus Robert really only had basic training in the complexities of machine-gun warfare. 

( The targets of every enemy weapon - members of the MGC were also called the Suicide Squad )  He rose through the ranks and was promoted  to Second    Lieutentant

Robert was wounded in the chest and thigh in August 1916 while in Abbeville and was released from the Army 20th March 1919

Coming home after the war he married Elizabeth Neil Grant in 1921 at St Simon and St  Judes Church Liverpool and they moved to Gateacre .... tragically they were only married 5 years as Robert William Stead died in 1926 in Gateacre of a cerebral hemorrhage
 
With a picture of the tag !!
Cooper : Muels : Howarth : Every : Price : King

http://web.archive.org/web/20130407030702/http://www.freewebs.com/liverpoolannie

http://web.archive.org/web/20130407191115/http://manchestersoldiers.webs.com

http://web.archive.org/web/20130807102055/http://www.powv.webs.com/
Be who you are and say what you feel -  because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind ! Dr. Seuss

Erect no gravestone .... let the Rose every year bloom for his sake ! Rilke Sonnets to Orpheus, I

Offline tisgrannie

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #519 on: Monday 21 April 08 19:13 BST (UK) »
Gallagher/Galligan -Heywood, Oldham & Ireland
Jackson-Ashton u Lyne & Oldham
White- Stockport & Hyde
Henry-Newry, Saintfield, & Glasgow
Willis, Beattie, Montogomery & Smith - Belfast & Co Antrim
Wade & Vernon - Co. Down
Procter- Brigg, Lincolnshire & Oldham
Conroy - Ireland & Oldham
Man Regt & R A 52nd Anti-Tank Regt WW11
Ebrey-Shropshire

www..

Offline tisgrannie

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #520 on: Monday 21 April 08 19:15 BST (UK) »
Its lovely to see the Echo have something else in tonight regarding WW1. Thought I would add above link.
regards
tisgrannie
Gallagher/Galligan -Heywood, Oldham & Ireland
Jackson-Ashton u Lyne & Oldham
White- Stockport & Hyde
Henry-Newry, Saintfield, & Glasgow
Willis, Beattie, Montogomery & Smith - Belfast & Co Antrim
Wade & Vernon - Co. Down
Procter- Brigg, Lincolnshire & Oldham
Conroy - Ireland & Oldham
Man Regt & R A 52nd Anti-Tank Regt WW11
Ebrey-Shropshire

www..

Offline graham p

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Re: Are You Sitting Comfortably Part 3
« Reply #521 on: Monday 21 April 08 19:22 BST (UK) »
I really sruggle to keep pace with this thread and I hope it is OK to "borrow" the description on the last post to update the St Peters website and keep people in touch in Woolton and further a field. When eventually you all do get together at St Peter's it would probably be good to have refreshments in the church hall which probably would have been a building Robert would be familiar with over 80 years ago. The website link is
http://www.stpeters-woolton.org.uk/index.php
If there is any problem let me know and I can remove or amend it.