Harry Milnes

Lance Corporal 29/633. 12th/13th Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers.

Service Battalion - Machine Gun Section.

Born March 1888 in Golcar.

Son of the late George and Hannah Maria Milnes.

Brother of Hannah, Wilson and Arthur.

Occupation: Stone mason. Later employed by C & J Hirst, Longwood.

Address: 63 Leymoor Road.

Joined up in May 1916.

Embarked for France: August 1916.

Killed: 4th October 1917 aged 28.

Commemorated on the Tyne Cot Memorial, Zonnebeke, West Flanders, Belgium. Panel 19 to 23, and 162.

Harry had been in France since August. His sister who lived at the same address received unofficial news of that her brother had been killed in action. She was sent a vague letter from a private in the same Company indicating his death but giving no details. The letter said that he had not been with him at the time, and hoped that Harry may be still in hospital somewhere, or even in the hands of the Germans.

He attended Golcar Baptist Chapel. His name appears on the Roll of Honour at Golcar Baptist and St. John's Church, Golcar. The Administration of his will was to Edward Milnes, a retired Baptist Minister.

The 12th /13th Service Battalion was formed as part of Kitchener's Third New Army and assigned to the 62nd Brigade, 21st Division. They moved to France in September 1915 and remained on the Western Front for the rest of the war. They were involved in the Battles of Loos, the Somme in 1916, and the third Battle of Ypres before Lance Corporal Milnes lost his life.

A service battalion provides combat service support to a brigade group and all its sections. It operations of the other units within the brigade group.