Private Harry Oates aged 19

Harry was born on 7th July 1899 at 26 Booth Terrace. In the 1911 census the family is living at 23 Apple House Terrace. His mother Harriett who originally came from Mosborough in Derbyshire is listed as a Char woman, she is married to Herbert Goodall, there are 5 children, Harry and John William Oates and siblings Albert, Annie and Eliza Goodall. Harry’s Mother lived at this address until her death in 1945. Before the war Harry worked for the local Coal merchant, Thomas Kershaw. Harry was conscripted into The East Yorkshire Regiment in January 1918. The war records for Private Harry Oates 38918 are one of many lost in the Blitz but the war diaries for the regiment do still exist. These show the 1st Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment were stationed in the Somme to the south east of Cambrai near the village of Equancourt. The Regiment having lost a lot of men, had received 116 reinforcements on the 16th Sept, Harry was one of these reinforcements. On the 18th September at 5:30am (having moved forward from a holding position overnight), Harry’s regiment left the relative safety of their trench and advanced towards 2 German positions know as Meunier Trench and Meunier Support. This was the start of the engagement now known as the Battle of Ephey where the British 4 th Army attacked and capture a number of outposts in front of the German Hindenberg Line. The war diaries record that during this day, they took both these positions, captured 400 prisoners, numerous machine guns, 5 field guns plus ammunition wagons and 24 horses all (according to the diary) with very little opposition. But the tally of dead and injured for the day was not as insignificant as the diaries suggest: Officers: 2 killed, 3 wounded, 1 missing Others: 11 killed, 68 wounded, 38 missing Harry was one of those men who died, it was only his second day of active service.

Harry is buried at the Targelle Ravine Cemetery at Villers-Guislain close to where he fell. There are 114 graves here, all from a nine day period.