Radford Great War


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Ayup Bugsy. My granddad - Sidney Hill - lived at Radford and was in the Great war. He volunteered after lying about his age and was sent to Ireland. He didn't want to go there as he had a lot of Irish friends. He did end up fighting the Germans however. My other Grandad lived on Salisbury Street and was a machine gun sergeant. His name was William Stevenson. He was badly gassed and given only a few years to live. However, after a lifetime in the building trade he managed to live into his nineties. I don't know what regiment William was in but Sidney was in the Robin Hood Rifles - Bicycle Corps. I have some of his paperwork from the great war.

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Hi Bilbraborn ..... There was also a James Hill from Radford who was killed in the first war ..... Any idea if he was a relative , he was commemorated on the Christchurch memorial .... Now demolished.

My grandparents lived off Salisbury street cheek by Jowel. With the sillitoes ...

Would be interested to see your grandfathers documents at some point .

William who was gassed ... Strong men in those days what they endured is truly heroic. The Robin Hoods were the 7th battalion notts and derby regiment who had it bad at Gommecourt . Does his paperwork say were he was gassed?

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Ey Up Bugsy, welcome to The Forum, if you're interested in all things Notts, you'll find plenty on here.

My grandfather Leonard Palmer was lost in action 23rd March 1918 and his brother, William on the 26th December 1917. They are both remembered on the In Memoriam board in St Peters in Radford. Both were with The Sherwood Foresters.

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Bugsy, I have no paperwork from Grandad William Stevenson who was gassed. I think my relatives got it. It was Grandad Sidney Hill whose paperwork I have. I think that William Stevenson's Middle name was James, and his son William (my Uncle) may have had the middle name James. His son, my cousin definitely called James - we called him Jim. It could be that my cousin's full name is William James Stevenson. I have lost touch with him. All I know is that he lives somewhere between Nuthall and Kimberely.

Your grandparents must have known my Grandma and Grandad Stevenson as they also lived on Salisbury Street near the Sillitoes. They used to drink in the Marquis of Lorne. I don't know of any of the Stevenson family (great uncles) being killed in the Great War.

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My grandad used to drink in the white hoss and the marquess ..... Family legend was that Alan Sillitoe was my aunts Barbara's first boyfriend .... Well a couple of years before Alan died he came to waterstones in nottm on a book talk and promotion . I went along to listen to the legendary man . After the tallk he was signing books , I had purchase two and asked him whilst he was signing if he could remember the Sisson family In particular Barbara ...... He talked for 10 minutes on his memories of the street of Radford and his first kiss with Barbara ....... He was a wonderful raconteur .

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The one big problem in researching the files of regiments and battalions,is that many casualty returns were lost or destroyed during an artillery bombardment or a forward movement.

I have been researching 'The Great war'on and off for 35+ years.You come up against a lot of dead ends.Many soldiers would turn up days later after being listed MIA,not with their original unit,but at an aid post,miles away from their own battalion.

There were those who just wandered around suffering from 'Shell shock and mental fatigue,these guys were looked at as 'skivers',and for the longest time would be held as military prisoners, never getting any medical assistance.They returned home complete mental wrecks,and were not on any casualty lists.

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  • 1 month later...

Hi Bugsy sorry about the delay in contacting anyone but could not get signed in hopefully fixed now my grandfather served in 2nd/1st berks bty 158 brigade RHA He was killed 2nd of April 1918 age 34 He was a gunner He is buried at Duisan near Arras He lived on Citadel street Radford I have visited the grave but can find no record of him on any memorial here apart from the book of the war dead in the council house My grandfather on my mothers side was Andrew Marsden he lived on Redoubt street and survived the war but was badly gassed I have no trace of his war record but I think he was either cavalry or RHA he was always involved with horses we come from the Nix family at ledgers yard Radford

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how right you are mudgie i have tried loads of times to find information on my grand dad hunter from his first world war sevice without sucess i know many records were lost during the bombing in the second war but i would love to find out his regiment i was quite surprized when i realized he would have been in his forties when he enlisted my mum was born while he was in france in 1915 and he married grama when he came home in 1918 invilided out due to gassing just befor the end of the war.

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There are many stories in the news archives of a Nottingham boxer called Andrew Marsden born 1837- ish.

He fought for the heavy weight championship in the mid 1800s against a Joe Womald. Later he became a book maker . He died in 1892 , a fact that was reported in newspapers around the country , so he must have been renowned .

Whether these John Marsdens were related to him , I am not sure but they were probably given his name in homage to his fame . One story here of a boxing match involving Andrew Marsden.

https://www.trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/65464352

He was born at the Rose public house, St Peters St, Radford , after becoming an apprentice joiner he then married an older pub landlady .There is an Andrew Marsden on the 1861 Census, shown as a publican at THe Lord Nelson Inn , Mitchell St. Radford .

Later he was landlord of the Rose and Thistle, Wollaton St .

Maybe unusually for a boxer he was in his latter part of life a member of the St.Anns Horticulteral Society !

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Hi everyone the John Andrew Marsden at 12 redoubt st was the one that was my mothers father I didn't know he was in the RFA There were two branches of Nix family Erica Beardsmore was a nix so was the chip shop owner on Bobbers Mill but it was a separate branch

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no annnot got mums birth cerificate her mum and dad did not marry till he came home know that because when it was my mum and dads golden wedding saw there marage certificate that gave her name as edith grace hunter henshaw and when i asked why she told me that her mum and dad wernt married till he came home 1918

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My Grandfather, Sydney Newberry was in the Great War and was gassed at Ypres. Lived well into his eighties. Lived at 56 Guthrie Street, Radford

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  • 2 months later...

My Grandfather was originally from St Ann's and went away with the South Staffordshire regiment to fight in the war. His family that's my Grandmother and father who was a baby at the time were bombed out from their house in Mapperley, September 1916 by a Zeppelin and were rehoused at Hazlewood Road Radford. My grandfather was subsequently killed on 21st March 1918 in the big German offensive near Cambrai. No body no grave but his name is on a memorial in Arras which I have visited.

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During the 'Great War'(WW1),the Infantry company consisted of approx'220 men.It was left to a company clerk (usually a corporal) to record the coming and going of the enlisted men.

If this man became a casualty, it was more than likely his record books were lost.On more than one occasion they fell into enemy hands.An English speaking German would then shout out the names taunting the British soldiers,(early psychological warfare).

Or they would be lost in the sea of mud,during a forward or backward move.In one battalion of the Sherwood Foresters,there were 14 soldiers unaccounted for,presumed KIA.That was over a three day period.

So when you are researching this part of history,you can often come to a blank.

The best source of information I have used is regimental and battalion returns.

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  • 6 months later...

My Great Grandad born in Stourport, Worcestershire but lived with his wife in Radford was a baker by trade. He was in the 1st Bn. Sherwood Foresters (Notts and Derby Regiment) and joined the Battalion on the 12 December 1917 and served with 'C' company.

On the 25 April 1918 he was killed in action when serving in the trenches at Bois L'abbe, France. He is buried at Adelaide cemetery, Villers-Breonneux.

He left a wife and small child, my Grandad, who was born in 1911 and orphaned on 26 November 1918 when his mother, my Great Grandma died from Spanish flue.

My Grandad who l loved dearly was brought up my his uncle and aunt and lived in Dunkirk, Nottingham. When he was of age he joined the RAF 620 Bomber Command where he became a Warrant Officer and rear gunner on Wellington Bombers. He served with the RAF from 1939-45.

I have his log book which makes fascinating reading and makes you realise just how brave these youngsters were.

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  • 1 year later...

There are many stories in the news archives of a Nottingham boxer called Andrew Marsden born 1837- ish.

He fought for the heavy weight championship in the mid 1800s against a Joe Womald. Later he became a book maker . He died in 1892 , a fact that was reported in newspapers around the country , so he must have been renowned . Whether these John Marsdens were related to him , I am not sure but they were probably given his name in homage to his fame . One story here of a boxing match involving Andrew Marsden.

https://www.trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/65464352

He was born at the Rose public house, St Peters St, Radford , after becoming an apprentice joiner he then married an older pub landlady .There is an Andrew Marsden on the 1861 Census, shown as a publican at THe Lord Nelson Inn , Mitchell St. Radford . Later he was landlord of the Rose and Thistle, Wollaton St .

Maybe unusually for a boxer he was in his latter part of life a member of the St.Anns Horticulteral Society !

Andrew Marsden (1835-1892) was my 2nd great grand uncle and one of the many Marsdens who lived in Radford in the 19th century, My direct line ances tors in Radford originated with Solomon Marsden (1721-1787) who was a collier in Coleorton, Leicestershire. He was buried in a paupers grave in Coleorton. Solomon was my 5th great grandfather. His son Charles Marsden,my 4th great grandfather, (1763-1845) moved to Lenton and married a local lass, Mary Simpson on 5th August 1788. One of their children, Thomas Marsden (1794-1841), my 3rd great grandfather, was a coal dealer and lived on Church Street, Radford. His memorial gravestone with that of his wife Elizabeth is set in the lawn adjacent to the path up to St Peter's church. Andrew Marsden was his son who was a boxer, a commission agent (turf) and one time publican of the Lord Nelson pub in Radford. Obviously he must have amassed sufficient money to send his son Andrew (1861-) to a private school in Abingdon. I have details of all the Marsdens who are direct ancestors who lived in Radford.

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  • 1 year later...

Hi everyone thanks for all the help I received my paternal grandfather is buried at duisan war cemetery near arras and when i visited I was the first member of our family to do so  my father never knew there was a grave  I found out by sheer chance from the army museum on cavendish road  I was all for bringing him back to british soil but when you look around everywhere is immaculate here there would be graffiti and vandalism  Todays generation seem to care little for those who died for their freedom  My maternal grandfather Andrew marsden lived on redoubt street radford but my mother was born on bloomsgrove street off ilkeston road where there was a marsden haulage company but I believe he was a collier before the war after the war he had a large cart horse and was a sort of heavy goods driver of his day shifting soil etc its nice to have help from those in a similar position to myself Once again thanks to everyone   meeowed

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