I joined find a grave yesterday and found all of the relatives we lost in the first world war, added the photos I had and left messages and virtual flowers. Strangely John Edwards already had flowers from someone so I emailed and asked if they were related. The person, am presuming it is a lady, has emailed back and said she is not related, but his grave had no flowers and she puts virtual flowers on lots of graves. What a nice gesture. I have thanked her on behalf of all the families. Linda

JOHN AND PETER EDWARDS, two brave brothers

Peter Edwards was born in Earlestown in June 1887 he was the son of John Edwards of Mold in North Wales (the same village as the father of his cousin John Peters) and Martha Ann Edwards formerly Stokes (sister of Mary Peters. The family moved to Westleigh in Leigh, Lancashire and on the 1901 census Peter is working above the pit as a bunkerman and whilst I have no record for the 1911 though prior to his enlisting in the army he was employed at Pretoria Pit. Peter died at the Battle of Loos on the 25th September 1915 and is named on the Loos Memorial. Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919 Name: Peter Edwards S/7914, "B" Coy. 8th Bn., Gordon Highlanders who died age 28 on 25th September 1915 Son of Martha Ann Edwards, of 6, Holt St., Leigh, Lancs, and the late John Edwards John Edwards his brother was born in Leigh, Lancs in 1893 and prior to enlisting in the army was employed as a collier in the mines of Fletcher, Burrows and co. Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919 Name: John Edwards Birth Place: Leigh, Lancs Residence: Leigh, Lancs Death Date: 3 Jul 1916 Death Location: France & Flanders Enlistment Location: Atherton, Lancs Rank: Private Battalion: 1st Battalion Regiment: King's Own Scottish Borderers Number: 19993 Type of Casualty: Died of wounds Theatre of War: Western European Theatre Cemetery GEZAINCOURT COMMUNAL CEMETERY EXTENSION This is the article that appeared in the local newspaper on the death of John. Thank you both Peter and John for your sacrifice. WE WILL REMEMBER YOU

JOHN PETERS another family hero

John Peters was born in Earlestown in 1893, his parents were John Peters from Mold in North Wales and Mary Peters, formerly Stokes born in Bolton from Bank Street in Earlestown. On the 1911 census John was employed in the colliery as a labourer driftsman at age 17. He died in Mesopotamia from wounds. Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919 about John Peters Name: John Peters Birth Place: Earlstown, Lancs Residence: Earlstown Death Date: 5 Apr 1916 Death Location: Mesopotamia Enlistment Location: Warrington, Lancs Rank: L/Corporal Age 22 Regiment East Lancashire Battalion 5th Battalion Number: 11414 Type of Casualty: Died of wounds Theatre of War: Asiatic Theatres Thank you John for your sacrifice. WE WILL REMEMBER YOU

One of our family heroes WALTER JOSEPH STOKES

Walter Joseph Stokes was born in Earlestown in 1884 to Joseph Stokes and Elizabeth nee Taft,on the 1901 Census he is a steel bolt maker at the Viaduct Works close to where he lived with his mother and father in Viaduct Street. In 1903 he marries Martha Croxford and they have two children John and Elizabeth. They move to Warrington where Walter works as a furnaceman (according to 1911 census) for Richmond Gas Stove and Meter Co, Warrington. He enlists in Warrington and on his death on the 22.6.1916 in Mesopotamia of cholera, he is an acting bombadier in the royal field artillery. Keen football player he played for Garswood, then Richmond Gas Association team. In Memory of Acting Bombardier W J STOKES 97272, "C" Bty. 56th Bde., Royal Field Artillery who died on 22 June 1916 in Mesopotamia. Remembered with honour BASRA WAR CEMETERY Remembered on the Warrington War Memorial Thank you Walter for your sacrifice. WE WILL REMEMBER YOU

I was very sad to learn that my cousin Abel Broome died in August from cancer, I had last spoken to him in April and he promised he would be back online to chat, he never did come back online and I had phoned his mobile a couple of times.
I was on facebook and noticed someone called Eve Allen, she had asked to be a friend and I just thought it was to play one of the games, but decided to have a look at her profile, on the profile was a photo of my lovely auntie sally, so I thought she must be related, and she was, she is Abel's daughter, so I got to know her and her sister janet.  So more to do on the family website.

Linda

Lancashire leads the way me lads
Lancashire leads the way
Whatever they do in London, we DID IT YESTERDAY
Whatever they do tomorrow WE'RE DOING IT TODAY
Lancashire, Lancashire, Lancashire leads the way.


Yay 

My cousin in Texas, Jim Broome's response  Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.
You can take the lad from Lancashire, but you can't take Lancashire from the lad.

It is such a long time since I posted, though haven't been idle in my research into our fascinating family.

I was on the newton-le-willows.com  website and noticed a posting which took my eye, a familiar name  Abel Jones, same birthdate and address as my Abel Jones, so I probed further and got in touch with the poster.  Lo and behold a whole branch of my ancestry was revealed and filled a huge gap in the tree.  It completely changed the format of the line, now going back even further, making the number of names on the tree now to over 5,000, but the joy and thrill of finding all this out was well worth the soreness of the wrists and fingers.  Took me five days to type it all in and check it and correspond with my distant cousin.

Whilst pursuing this line, another email reached me from someone who was a distant relative of the Bowler family (a branch of the Broome's) and he was keen to lay a few myths to rest.  I think I was a means to an end as I put him in touch with the remaining Bowler's and have now been abandoned.  Though I did get the information he provided onto my site asap another four days of typing and checking.

But, wow, what news received recently and has made my brother Martin and I very excited indeed.  I have spoken before of the three cousins who were killed in World War 1 - John Peters, Peter Edwards and Walter J Stokes, all were born in Earlestown.  Well a local historian has been researching World War 1 and he provided me with a photo of John Peters.  He was unable to help with the others, but I contacted Leigh Library and Warrington Library to ask if they could help.  Wigan Heritage Centre are providing me with two newspaper articles about Peter Edwards and Warrington with Walter Stokes.  I am so excited.  It seems that one other of the Edwards boys was killed too, so when the article arrives I can add him to our roll of honour and fill in the details.

This latest revelation has caused me to get together all the names of our known distant relatives who were killed and back to Wigan Heritage Centre to see if they can find anything.  The couple of bob it costs to get this information is well worth it.

No doubt I will be back soon with the new information.        Linda



And here is John Peters, cousin of my granddad, killed in World War 1.