Category Archives: In Memoriam

St Mary of the Angels, Batley: One-Place Study Update – 1 to 31 March 2024 Additions

Posted on April 1, 2024 | Leave a comment

This is my regular look back at the posts added to the Batley St Mary of the Angels One-Place Study during the previous month. This update contains the list of all the St Mary’s posts published up to the end of March 2024 , including links to them, with March’s new and updated posts signposted.

If you want to know the background, and what is involved in a one-place study, click here. Otherwise read on, to discover a wealth of parish, parishioner and wider local Batley history.

Seven posts were added during March 2024, bringing the total number of study posts to 309. Three other posts were updated.

These additions and updates included a new War Memorial biography, that of John William Callaghan. Robert Randerson’s biography was updated. There are five new weekly newspaper pages for March 1918. I have accordingly updated the surname index to these During This Week newspaper pieces, so you can easily identify newspaper snippets relevant to your family. I have also added a new subject heading, a parish history section which will contain the snippets of parish history I produce each week for the weekly bulletin for Batley St Mary of the Angels and Birstall St Patrick. The first piece here is the history snippets included in the March 2024 bulletins. The final updated post is to the men who served and survived the First World War section, with more men being identified during March.

Below is the full list of pages to date. I have annotated the *NEW* and *UPDATED* ones, so you can easily pick these out. Click on the link and it will take you straight to the relevant page.

Finally, if you do have any information about, or photos of, parishioners from the period of the First World War please do get in touch. It does not have to be War Memorial men. It could be those who served and survived, or indeed any other men, women and children from the parish.

I would also be interested in information about, and photos of, those parishioners who were killed in World War Two, or others from the parish who undertook any war service and survived. This can be as broad as serving in the military, or work in munitions factories, the Land Army, even taking in refugees. This is an area I’m looking to develop in the future.

I can be contacted at: pasttopresentgenealogy@btinternet.com

Postscript:
I want to say a big thank you for the donations already received to keep this website going. They really do help.

The website has always been free to use, and I want to continue this policy in the future. However, it does cost me money to operate – from undertaking the research to website hosting costs. In the current difficult economic climate I do have to regularly consider if I can afford to continue running it as a free resource.

If you have enjoyed reading the various pieces, and would like to make a donation towards keeping the website up and running in its current open access format, it would be very much appreciated.

Please click 👉🏻here👈🏻 to be taken to the PayPal donation link. By making a donation you will be helping to keep the website online and freely available for all.

Thank you.

1. About my St Mary of the Angels Catholic Church War Memorial One-Place Study;

Batley St Mary’s Population, Health, Mortality and Fertility Information and Comparisons
2. 1914: The Health of Batley School Children Generally, with a Particular Focus on St Mary’s School Children

Batley Statistics and Descriptions – Population, Health, Mortality, Fertility etc.
3. 1914: Borough of Batley – Town Information from the Annual Report of the Medical Officer of Health.
4. Batley and the 1921 Census
5. Batley Population Statistics 1801-1939

Biographies: Men Associated with St Mary’s Who Died but Who Are Not on the Memorial
6. Thomas Gannon
7. Reginald Roberts
8. William Frederick Townsend

Biographies: The War Memorial Men
9. Edward Barber
10. William Barber (Memorial name spelling)
11. Herbert Booth
12. Edmund Battye
13. Dominick (aka George) Brannan
14. Michael Brannan
15. John Brooks
16. Michael Cafferty
17. Patrick Cafferty
18. John William Callaghan *NEW*
19. Lawrence Carney
20. Martin Carney
21. Thomas William Chappell
22. William Colbeck
23. Michael Cunningham
24. Thomas Curley
25. Peter Doherty
26. Thomas Donlan
27. John W. Enright
28. Mathew Farrer
29. Thomas Finneran
30. Michael Flynn
31. Thomas Foley D.C.M.
32. Martin Gallagher
33. James Garner
34. Thomas Gavaghan
35. Henry Groark
36. James Groark
37. Michael Groark (also known as Rourke)
38. James Griffin
39. William Hargreaves
40. Patrick Hopkins
41. Michael Horan
42. Lawrence Judge
43. John Leech
44. Michael Lydon
45. Patrick Lyons
William McManus – See William Townsend below
46. Thomas McNamara
47. Patrick Naifsey
48. Austin Nolan
49. Robert Randerson *UPDATED*
50. James Rush
51. Moses Stubley
52. William Townsend, also known as McManus
53. James Trainor
54. Richard Carroll Walsh
55. Arthur William Bayldon Woodhead

Biographies: Those who Served and Survived (this includes a list of those identified to date and who will later have dedicated biographical pages) *UPDATED*
56. Patrick Cassidy
57. James Delaney
58. Thomas Donlan (senior)
59. Thomas Gannon
60. Michael Rush

Burials, Cemeteries, Headstones and MIs
61. Cemetery and Memorial Details
62. War Memorial Chronology of Deaths

Electoral Registers 1918-1921
255. 1918 Batley Electoral Register, North Ward, Polling Districts A and B – Naval and Military Voters

Miscellany of Information
256. A Colliery Accident with Tragic Consequences
257. A Grave Disturbance in Batley
258. A Part of St Mary of the Angels in Batley Cemetery
259. A “Peace” of Batley History
260. An Appeal to Ireland to Build a Catholic Church in Batley
261. A Potted Early History of the Irish in Batley, the Building of St Mary of the Angels Church, and the Parish Priest’s Fatal Accident
262. A St Mary’s School Sensation
263. Batley’s Secret Irish Society and the Ammunition Seizure
264. Heritage Impact Assessment: St Mary’s Catholic Primary School and Convent, Batley
265. Hot-Cross Buns and the Yorkshire Tea-Cake Dilemma. Plus A Suggested Meal Planner for Batley Families in 1917
266. St Mary of the Angels Catholic Church – 1929 Consecration Service
267. The Controversial Role Played by St Mary’s Schoolchildren in the 1907 Batley Pageant
268. The Great War: A Brief Overview of What Led Britain into the War
269. Willie and Edward Barber – Poems

Occupations and Employment Information
270. Occupations: Colliery Byeworker/Byeworkman/Byworker/Bye-Worker/By-Worker
271. Occupations: Confidential Clerk
272. Occupations: Lamp Cleaner
273. Occupations: Limelight Operator
274. Occupations: Mason’s Labourer
275. Occupations: Office Boy/Girl
276. Occupations: Piecer/Piecener
277. Occupations: Rag Grinder
278. Occupations: Willeyer

The Bulletin of St Mary of the Angels and Birstall St Patrick – Parish History Section *NEW*
303. March 2024 Bulletin History Pieces *NEW*

The Families
304. A Death in the Church
305. St Mary’s Schoolboys Wreak Havoc in a Batley Graveyard

World War Two
306. World War Two Chronology of Deaths
307. Thomas Egan
308. Michael Flatley
309. William Smith

St Mary of the Angels, Batley: One-Place Study Update – 1 to 31 October 2023 Additions

Posted on November 1, 2023 | Leave a comment

This is my regular look back at the posts added to the Batley St Mary of the Angels One-Place Study during the previous month. If you want to know the background, and what is involved in a one-place study, click here. Otherwise read on, to discover a wealth of parish, parishioner and wider local Batley history.

Six new posts were added to the Batley St Mary’s one-place study during October 2023, bringing the total number of study posts to 279. Two other posts were updated. This latest monthly update contains the list of all the posts to date, including links to them, with the new and updated posts signposted.

These additions included four weekly newspaper pages for October 1917. I have accordingly updated the surname index to these During This Week newspaper pieces, so you can easily identify newspaper snippets relevant to your family.

There was one new War Memorial biography added added this month, for Michael Cunningham.

More men who served and survived the First World War have been identified and are included in that section, though no new biographies were added here this month. They will follow in due course.

The other post relates to the Batley cemetery burials of several priests and nuns who served in the parish. This can be found in the Miscellany of Information section.

Below is the full list of pages to date. I have annotated the *NEW* and *UPDATED* ones, so you can easily pick these out. Click on the link and it will take you straight to the relevant page.

I can be contacted at: pasttopresentgenealogy@btinternet.com

Postscript:
I want to say a big thank you for the donations already received to keep this website going. They really do help.

If you have enjoyed reading the various pieces, and would like to make a donation towards keeping the website up and running in its current open access format, it would be very much appreciated.

Please click 👉🏻here👈🏻 to be taken to the PayPal donation link. By making a donation you will be helping to keep the website online and freely available for all.

Thank you.

1. About my St Mary of the Angels Catholic Church War Memorial One-Place Study;

Biographies: Men Associated with St Mary’s Who Died but Who Are Not on the Memorial
6. Thomas Gannon
7. Reginald Roberts
8. William Frederick Townsend

Biographies: The War Memorial Men
9. Edward Barber
10. William Barber (Memorial name spelling)
11. Herbert Booth
12. Edmund Battye
13. Dominick (aka George) Brannan
14. Michael Brannan
15. John Brooks
16. Michael Cafferty
17. Patrick Cafferty
18. Lawrence Carney
19. Martin Carney
20. Thomas William Chappell
21. William Colbeck
22. Michael Cunningham *NEW*
23. Thomas Curley
24. Peter Doherty
25. Thomas Donlan
26. Mathew Farrer
27. Thomas Finneran
28. Michael Flynn
29. Thomas Foley D.C.M.
30. Martin Gallagher
31. James Garner
32. Thomas Gavaghan
33. Henry Groark
34. James Groark
35. Michael Groark (also known as Rourke)
36. James Griffin
37. Patrick Hopkins
38. Michael Horan
39. Lawrence Judge
40. John Leech
41. Michael Lydon
42. Patrick Lyons
William McManus – See William Townsend below
43. Thomas McNamara
44. Patrick Naifsey
45. Austin Nolan
46. Robert Randerson
47. James Rush
48. Moses Stubley
49. William Townsend, also known as McManus
50. James Trainor
51. Richard Carroll Walsh
52. Arthur William Bayldon Woodhead

Biographies: Those who Served and Survived (this includes a list of those identified to date and who will later have dedicated biographical pages) *UPDATED*
53. Patrick Cassidy
54. James Delaney
55. Thomas Donlan (senior)
56. Thomas Gannon
57. Michael Rush

Burials, Cemeteries, Headstones and MIs
58. Cemetery and Memorial Details
59. War Memorial Chronology of Deaths

Electoral Registers 1918-1921
230. 1918 Batley Electoral Register, North Ward, Polling Districts A and B – Naval and Military Voters

Miscellany of Information
231. A Colliery Accident with Tragic Consequences
232. A Grave Disturbance in Batley
233. A Part of St Mary of the Angels in Batley Cemetery *NEW*
234. A “Peace” of Batley History
235. An Appeal to Ireland to Build a Catholic Church in Batley
236. A Potted Early History of the Irish in Batley, the Building of St Mary of the Angels Church, and the Parish Priest’s Fatal Accident
237. A St Mary’s School Sensation
238. Batley’s Secret Irish Society and the Ammunition Seizure
239. Hot-Cross Buns and the Yorkshire Tea-Cake Dilemma. Plus A Suggested Meal Planner for Batley Families in 1917
240. St Mary of the Angels Catholic Church – 1929 Consecration Service
241. The Controversial Role Played by St Mary’s Schoolchildren in the 1907 Batley Pageant
242. The Great War: A Brief Overview of What Led Britain into the War
243. Willie and Edward Barber – Poems

Occupations and Employment Information
244. Occupations: Colliery Byeworker/Byeworkman/Byworker/Bye-Worker/By-Worker
245. Occupations: Confidential Clerk
246. Occupations: Lamp Cleaner
247. Occupations: Limelight Operator
248. Occupations: Mason’s Labourer
249. Occupations: Office Boy/Girl
250. Occupations: Piecer/Piecener
251. Occupations: Rag Grinder
252. Occupations: Willeyer

The Families
253. A Death in the Church
254. St Mary’s Schoolboys Wreak Havoc in a Batley Graveyard

World War Two
276. World War Two Chronology of Deaths
277. Thomas Egan
278. Michael Flatley
279. William Smith

A Grave Plot: Rest In Peace?

Posted on September 6, 2017 | 2 comments

One of my guilty pleasures is to wander round the local cemetery reading the inscriptions on headstones. I love a good old inscription. I can while away hours strolling along the pathways and across undulating ground, pausing to read the words or simply admire the beauty and variety of these monuments. The joy that discovering a family headstone can bring is a thrill that many family historians will relate to. But I’m not fussy. Even if the family is unrelated to me, if the inscription captures my attention, I will research the story behind it. For example, see my post about a young couple from Batley who died as a result of a wartime seaside cliff fall.

I naively always assumed some kind of permanency with a headstone. That centuries later it would still stand, somewhat weather-worn but erect, a relic of a past era, a witness to a life long gone. But this ideal is far from true. Close to home I’ve witnessed it.

Early 20th Century Postcard of Batley Parish Church Showing Headstones – from Maggie Blanck’s Website at http://www.maggieblanck.com/Land/PhotosBatley.html

The claustrophobic jumble of headstones at All Saints Parish Church in Batley have long since gone. Similarly Mirfield St Mary’s Churchyard lost many of its old headstones, including that of my 5x great grandparents. I only know of it’s existence from a 19th century handwritten transcript of Memorial Inscriptions (MIs), via the Yorkshire Archaeological and Historical Society (YAHS) whose archives are now located in the Brotherton Library, University of Leeds. A local car business on Staincliffe Hall Road, Batley, on the site of a former Methodist Chapel, had the graveyard headstones in its driveway. I clearly remember seeing them as a child, when the Chapel was converted to a baby clinic. More recently they have vanished. I’m not quite sure when, but I would love to know what became of them. One small crumb of comfort is it appears MIs do exist for them, again via the YAHS. Even councils are not immune to headstone destruction. In 2011 Kirklees was criticised for a money-saving scheme whereby headstones, with inscriptions clearly visible, were recycled to build a wall in Netherton.

Weathered Headstones at Tynemouth Priory – Photo by Jane Roberts

Even if they remain in situ, exposure to the elements may take their toll over time, wearing inscriptions to illegibility. They may be laid flat by councils if they are deemed unstable and potentially dangerous. Batley Cemetery, for example, is undergoing a memorial safety programme. I spent 15 unsuccessful minutes on hold with Kirkless Bereavement Services trying to find out what this entailed. From my visit to the cemetery often this means the headstones are frequently placed face-down, so those carefully thought-through lasting tributes are hidden forevermore. And with burial plots decreasing in availability, particularly in urban areas, many local authorities are looking at alternative strategies for public cemeteries. Then there is deliberate vandalism.

Batley Cemetery Headstones – Photo by Jane Roberts

One thing I did not realise until arranging dad’s funeral is the terms under which burial plots are owned. I mistakenly believed if you bought a burial plot it belonged to the family for ever. Not so. You are merely leasing the plot. In the case of Kirklees Council the lease term is 50 years. Some local authorities have leases of as little as 25 years. The maximum is 100 years. In short you are purchasing the exclusive right to say who will be buried in that grave for a set period. The family can choose to renew the lease for a fee. For this reason it is important to keep address and contact details up-to-date with the relevant council bereavement services.

If the lease is not renewed, the headstone can be removed and collected by the owner – or destroyed by the local authority. Existing burials in the plot are not removed or disturbed, but remaining space in the plot may be resold. So, with space for burial plots running low, the permenancy of headstones faces an extra threat. Southwark Council, for example, face opposition to their cemetery plans with claims by Friends of Camberwell Cemeteries that they are a ‘Grave Reuse and Reclamation Burial Strategy‘.

All this means the work of Family History Society volunteers, cemetery friends groups, those conducting one-place studies, projects such as BillionGraves and individuals in recording MIs will become ever more valuable. For example the Mirfield St Mary’s ones I mentioned earlier in this piece are included on the Kirkheaton Info Archive Database.

So do not assume that headstone will be there for ever. Photograph it now and make a note of that inscription just in case. And check out various archives, one-place studies websites, cemetery groups and Family History Societies for MI transcripts.

2 Comments

Posted in Ancestral Tourism, Ancestry, Batley, Cemeteries, Family History, Family History Societies, Genealogy, In Memoriam, Mirfield

Tagged Cemeteries, family history, Headstones

My New Book Collaboration: Commemorating Rugby League Players of The Great War

Posted on May 5, 2017 | 4 comments

I am very pleased and excited to announce that I am working on a new book. The scary thing is I have a partner in this venture – my husband.

Chris is a rugby league journalist, covering the sport for over 30 years. He also shares my interest in World War 1 history and has spent many years studying the conflict. He recently completed an Oxford University online course “The First World War in Perspective” and decided to channel his knowledge into a new project.

Many sports have produced books to commemorate their Great War fallen. To date there has been nothing produced to honour all the professional players of the Northern Union, the forerunner of the Rugby Football League. Chris decided to remedy this, and has enlisted my help.

Somme Poppies – Photo by Jane Roberts

It is a huge undertaking. Having written a book for charity about the 76 men on the Batley St Mary’s War Memorial a few years ago I know what a big challenge it will be.

Chris is currently identifying all those players on club books at the outbreak of war. In this endeavour he has received fantastic help from the rugby league community, with in excess of 100 players who died now identified. I have started work on the genealogical research angle.

It is hoped the book will be published later in 2018, the centenary of the Armistice.

If anyone has any information they wish to contribute, Chris can be contacted at chrisiroberts@btinternet.com or chris.roberts@examiner.co.uk

Alternatively my email address is pasttopresentgenealogy@btinternet.com

4 Comments

Posted in In Memoriam, Roll of Honour, Rugby League, WW1

Tagged Rugby League, WW1

WW1 Remembrance in Verse: “In Memoriam” and “Roll of Honour” Newspaper Columns

Posted on November 8, 2015 | 1 comment

This is the last of my three blog posts in this period of Remembrance. It focuses on the WW1 period.

Batley War Memorial

As the Great War progressed and the anniversaries of the Fallen came and went, the local newspaper “In Memoriam” and, later, dedicated “Roll of Honour” columns were increasingly filled with moving tributes to lost husbands, sons, fathers, brothers and fiancées. Although less frequent in late 1915 and throughout 1916, this phenomenon became particularly notable from 1917 onwards and endured in the years beyond the end of the conflict.

Many were recurrent standard verses, or variations on standard themes: grief; absence; young lives cut short; a mother’s pain; religious sentiments; Remembrance; doing one’s duty; sacrifice; wooden crosses; graves overseas far from home, or no known grave; not being present in their loved one’s dying moments; occasionally the difficulty of seeing others return; and even reproach for those who caused the war.

Although not war poetry, they are powerful representations of family grief and loss which echo across the ages.

My mother’s brother died in Aden whilst on National Service in 1955. These family tributes from another era are the ones which, in all my St Mary’s War Memorial research, left the greatest impression on her, resonating with her emotions 60 years later.

These “In Memoriam” and “Roll of Honour” notices provide an accessible window into this aspect of the War, the emotions of those left behind. They are also a continuing legacy for family historians. They can provide service details, place and even circumstances of death, names and addresses of family members (including married sisters) and details of fiancées all of which can aid research.

Here is a selection from the local Batley newspapers[1].

Sources:

Batley News – various dates
Batley War Memorial photo by Jane Roberts

[1] These are not confined to those servicemen on the St Mary’s War Memorial

1 Comment

Posted in Ancestry, Batley, Birstall, Dewsbury, Family History, Genealogy, In Memoriam, Newspapers, Remembrance, Roll of Honour, WW1

Tagged 11/11, Ancestry, Armistice Day, Batley, Birstall, Dewsbury, family history, genealogy, In Memoriam, Newspapers, November, Poppy Appeal, Remembrance, Roll of Honour, WW1

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Category Archives: In Memoriam

St Mary of the Angels, Batley: One-Place Study Update – 1 to 31 March 2024 Additions

St Mary of the Angels, Batley: One-Place Study Update – 1 to 31 October 2023 Additions

A Grave Plot: Rest In Peace?

My New Book Collaboration: Commemorating Rugby League Players of The Great War

WW1 Remembrance in Verse: “In Memoriam” and “Roll of Honour” Newspaper Columns

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