Tag Archives: Second World War

John Alfred Harris

10 Friday Apr 2026

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The son of John and Elizabeth Harris, John as born in Brierley Hill in 1919. By 1921 they were living at 42 (the Ship and Rainbow Inn), Oxford Street, Bilston, with John’s siblings Maurice William and Olive Ellen. Elizabeth Harris unfortunately died in 1931. By 1939, John Alfred was still living with his father at the Ship and Rainbow Inn, and was working as a plumber for a housing estate. In 1942, John married Ouida Humpage in Bilston.

John enlisted with the A Squadron of the 44th Royal Tank Regiment as a Trooper (service number 7946066). Unfortunately he was killed in action on 6 November 1943. He is buried in the Sangro River War Cemetery in Italy.

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The research for this blog was carried out by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Noel Evans

23 Monday Mar 2026

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Noel was born in Wolverhampton in 1914, the son of Evan and Lucy Ann Evans. By 1921, the family was living at 1 Burleigh Road, along with Noel’s older brothers Charlie and George Llewellyn. In 1938, he married Alice Maud Gough in Wolverhampton, and the couple later lived at 52 Chetwynd Road.

Noel enlisted with the 254 Squadron of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as a Flying Officer (service number 179138). On 17 January 1945, Noel was acting as navigator to pilot Frank Trautman and took part in an attack on a convoy in the Marsdiep between Den Helder and Texel in the Netherlands. Unfortunately during the operation the aircraft crashed, and Noel was killed in action. The value of his effects were £800. He is buried in the Wieringerwaard General Cemetery in the Netherlands, and is remembered on the War memorials of the Royal School, St Chad and St Mark’s Church, and the MEB Works Club.

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The research for this blog post was completed by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Isaac Ernest Clarke

25 Wednesday Feb 2026

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Isaac was born in 1914 in Coseley, the son of Samuel and Leah Clarke. In 1921 they were living at 1 Chell Street, Bradley, with Isaac’s siblings Samuel, Joseph and Elizabeth. In 1940, Isaac married Gladys Maud Dudley in Bilston.

Isaac served as a Fusilier with the 2nd Battalion Royal Scots Fusiliers and was awarded the General Service Medal in August 1940. He later served with the 6th Battalion of the Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) under the service number 3128260. Isaac was unfortunately killed in action in Italy on 10 November 1944. He is buried in the Forli War Cemetery and remembered on the Bilston Town Roll of Honour.

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The research for this blog post was carried out by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Leonard Henry Bourne

23 Friday Jan 2026

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Leonard was born in Coventry on 24 July 1913, the son of Henry and Amy Bourne, and was baptised on 6 August 1913 at St Mark’s Church. The family was living in Stoke Heath in Warwickshire by 1921. By 1939 they had moved to 32 Evans Street, Wolverhampton, and Leonard was working as a despatch clerk for an artificial silk works.

Leonard enlisted with the Fighter Command of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as a Leading Aircraftman (service number 1102845). He died on 16 August 1941 while in Norfolk, and the value of his effects was £450 14s. 1d. He is buried in St Nicholas’s Churchyard, Droitwich.

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The research for this blog post was carried out by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Kenneth Vincent

14 Wednesday Jan 2026

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The son of Alfred Roderick and Doris, Kenneth was born in Shifnal on 22 September 1924. By 1939, Kenneth, his parents, and siblings were living at 3 Merrills Hall, Merrills Drive, Wednesfield. Kenneth was working as a drilling machinist for the Corporation.

Kenneth enlisted with the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (1819902) and served with the 1658 Conversion Unit. On 22 November 1943, the aircraft he was flying in crashed in Skipton, in Yorkshire, probably due to bad weather, and he was killed. Kenneth is buried in the Wednesfield (St Thomas) Churchyard Extension and is remembered on the Wednesfield Roll of Honour.

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The research for this blog post was carried out by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

John Crispin Roberts

19 Friday Dec 2025

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John was born in Wolverhampton in 1915, the son of John William and Elizabeth Roberts. He was one of twins, his brother being William Kenneth. In 1921 they were living at 32 Mander Street in Wolverhampton. John married Edna Eileen Jeffery in 1938 in St. Germans, Cornwall.

John joined the Royal Marines as a Sergeant (service number PLY/X 952). He was serving on the HMS Gloucester, which was part of a convoy in the Kythira Strait, north of Crete. The Gloucester was hit by several bombs on 22 May 1941, and the decision was taken to leave her behind. The HMS Fiji, under heavy fire, dropped rafts as it passed the Gloucester but was unable to stop and was itself sunk within a few hours.  Only 85 men on board the Gloucester survived the sinking, but sadly John was one of those killed. He is remembered on the Plymouth Naval Memorial and on that of the Wolverhampton Municipal Secondary School.

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The research for this blog post was carried out by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Kenneth Mason

15 Monday Dec 2025

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Kenneth was born in Wolverhampton on 9 April 1925. The circumstances surrounding his parents are unclear, as he was adopted by his aunt, Lilian Emily F. Dunn, and in 1939 he was living with his adopted family at 33 Oak Street. He was was working as a stationery boy.

He enlisted with the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment (service number 14414685). Unfortunately he was killed in action on 8 July 1944. He is buried in Ranville War Cemetery in France.

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The research for this blog post was carried out by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Arthur James Haley

09 Tuesday Dec 2025

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The son of Arthur Russell and Elsie May Haley, Arthur was born in Bilston on 14 January 1922. In 1939, he was living with his parents at 55 Thompson Street in Bilston and working as a machinist in the boot trade.

Arthur became an Able Seaman with the Royal Navy (service number P/JX 212433). In 1942 he was serving on the HMS Anking, which was en route from Batavia to Australia. It was intercepted by a Japanese force which sank her, sadly resulting in the loss of 26 men, including Arthur, on 4 March 1942. He is remembered on the Portsmouth Naval Memorial.

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The research for this blog post was completed by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Gordon William Draper

16 Wednesday Jul 2025

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Gordon was born on 17 January 1912 in West Bromwich, the son of William and Kate Draper. They were living in Birmingham in 1921. In 1935, he married Irene Payne in Wolverhampton and they had a daughter, Valerie, born in 1937. In 1939, Gordon was in Birmingham working as an assurance agent – Irene is registered with her parents in Coleman Street, Wolverhampton, although she was presumably just visiting them at the time of the 1939 register as the electoral register her registered in Birmingham.

Gordon enlisted at RAF Cardington in Bedfordshire in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and became a Sergeant (service number 1164769). On 12 August 1942, the plane he was travelling in from Gibraltar to Australia was attacked and shot down. Four of the six crew survived, but unfortunately Gordon died as a result. He is remembered on the Runnymede Air Force Memorial, as well as on the Roll of Honour at St Chad and St Mark’s Church.

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The research for this blog post was completed by remote virtual volunteer, Doug Lewis.

Reginald Herbert Vaughan

07 Monday Jul 2025

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The brother of Bernard, Reginald was born on 17 September 1905 in Wandsworth, London, the son of Herbert Guest and Mary Helen Vaughan. Due to the death of both parents, he, too, attended the Royal Wolverhampton School. But by 1921 he was living with his aunt in Battersea. In 1932, he married Gladys White, and the couple were living in Fulham in 1939, with Reginald working as a commercial traveller.

Reginald enlisted as a Pilot Officer with the RAF Volunteer Reserve, 144 Squadron (service number 78770). However, he was unfortunately killed on 12 May 1941 at the age of 32, when his aircraftwas shot down by a night fighter at Hoohkarspel near Enkhuisen during a raid on Bremen. He is buried in Bergen General Cemetery in the Netherlands, and remembered on the Royal Wolverhampton School memorial.

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The research for this blog post was completed by remote virtual volunteer, Ann Eales.

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