| Description | Work completed by volunteer includes the following information:
Cecil and his sister and two brothers were all born in Tickton and their father, Alfred was an agricultural labourer. Mother Harriet, nee Gray, was born into an army family and her father had been a band sergeant. Cecil was baptised on 21 June 1899 at St Mary’s in Beverley
Cecil initially enlisted with the East Yorkshire Regiment in Mar 1916 when he would have been 16 ¾ but wasn’t called up for Service until May 1918. At this point it seems he was immediately transferred to 3rd Manchester Regiment, a depot/training unit and based at Cleethorpes as part of the Garrison defending the Humber estuary.
In Oct 1918 Cecil arrived in France to join 20nd Manchesters
The 2nd Manchesters, part of 96th Brigade, 32nd Division were involved in fierce battles around Cambrai and St Quentin throughout Oct 1918 and within three weeks of his arrival Cecil had received a gunshot wound and was in hospital at Rouen. The Beverley Guardian printed a small piece on 8 Nov saying he was injured and his photograph appeared at the beginning of Dec. Cecil was later treated in the 1st Western General Hospital in Liverpool and in January 1919 Cecil’s mother wrote to thank them for the kindness shown to her son and asking if he could be moved to the VAD hospital in Hull so that she could visit him. She signed the letter “Yours very respectfully, Mrs Harriet Dean”.
Cecil was awarded the British and Victory medals and was discharged, no longer fit for service, in Mar 1919. He was allowed a pension of 13 shillings and 9 pence which was to be reviewed after 26 weeks. He would still have been only 19 years old.
Cecil never married. On the 1939 Register he is living with his parents at Tickton giving his occupation as forman, bricklayer (Aerodrome).
Cecil died in the Westwood hospital in Beverley aged 56. His funeral took place at St Paul’s, Tickton on 6 Oct 1955.
Includes photograph, information taken from census, military records, Commonwealth War Graves, newspapers |