Pte 52806 William Donald Harris

• Age: 21
• From: Southport, Lancs
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 17th Btn
• K.I.A Thursday 12th October 1916
• Commemorated at: Warlencourt Brit Cem
  Panel Ref: VI.E.40

William Donald Harris was born in 1896 the son of William John Harris and his wife Catherine (nee MacDonald) who were married in 1895 at Holy Trinity Church, Southport. .

The 1901 Census records the four year old William Donald living with his father and grandmother, Sarah, aged 68, at 10 Tulketh Street, in Southport. His father William J. aged 37, is a shopkeeper born in Manchester, and is recorded as being married, his mother is not present. 

The 1911 Census shows William was in Southport Infirmary at that date. At the age of 14 he is recorded as a printers apprentice. William’s father and grandmother still living together now at 55 Hall Street, Southport. His father, is aged 48, and employed as a plumber, is still recorded as married but no wife is recorded in the census.

Previous to enlisting William was employed on board S. S. Dominion, sailing between Liverpool and Philadelphia.

He enlisted at Southport and was serving with the 17th Battalion of The King's Liverpool Regiment as Private 52806 when he was killed in action on 12/10/1916 aged 21.

17th Bn War Diary: Battle of Transloy Ridge –

11-10-16 - Gird Trench/Gird Support – Battalion in front line and support trenches. British bombardment of enemy front line system commenced about midday. Hostile shelling was intermittent throughout the day.

12-10-16 - Our bombardment continued. Enemy reply weak. 2.5 p.m. Zero hour. Attack on German front line system commenced. Enemy wire was found to be uncut and attack was unsuccessful. Hostile machine gun fire was very heavy and caused many casualties. Battalion H.Q. and Support Trench were heavily shelled throughout afternoon and evening. […] During this action all communication had to be carried out by runners and carrier pigeons as all wires were being continually cut by enemy shelling.

Casualties: 5 officers killed, 5 officers wounded, 38 OR killed, about 225 OR wounded/missing etc.

Graham Maddocks, in “Liverpool Pals” p.140, adds: “As the whistle blew, the 17th Battalion left its trenches to move forward. […] As soon as the attacking waves left their trenches the enemy artillery began to register on them, and at the same time, the defending infantry commenced a murderous rain of fire. […] Although their numbers had been depleted by the British bombardment, they were trained and experienced soldiers, well dug in on high ground, and for the most part, looking out on uncut wire. As such, it was virtually impossible for them to miss the City Battalion men struggling to advance in the mud towards them. The 17th Battalion, on the left, was particularly badly hit, as its portion of No Man’s Land contained a slight rise in the ground, and as the troops emerged onto it they were silhouetted against the sky and became easy targets. Those on the left of the attack, who managed to avoid the hail of bullets and make it to the German wire, then found that it was totally uncut, and thus trapped, they too became easy targets, to be picked off almost at the enemy’s will. It was hardly surprising that, seeing the first waves being wiped out, some of the following waves turned back and made for their start lines. These lines were now packed with other waves of troops, however, and the fleeing men added to the congestion already there, and became easy prey for the German gunners. There is some evidence also, to suggest that at this stage, the British trenches were also being hit by their own heavy artillery shells which were falling short.”

William Donald was initally reported as Missing in the Manchester Evening News 30th December 1916 

A report in the Southport Visitor of 30th December 1916 reports William Donald's death

A letter from D. A. Q. M. G Godfrey Dalrymple White, M. P. for Southport ,now at the front stated :

“Dear Mr Harris, it is with the deepest sorrow that I have to forward to you this letter in answer to my enquiries. I fear that it must be a parallel case to poor Billy Standring -that is to say, I am afraid your poor boy was seen to be wounded in the advance, and was so reported by some comrade. Before he could be picked up he must have been killed instantaneously by a shell. This is of course only my assumption, but it has alas, proved to be the case in so many Instances. I fear therefore, that you should not buoy yourself with false hopes, but should realise that he has, almost certainly, been added to that great number of gallant men who have made ‘the great sacrifice ‘for their country. You, also, have made the great sacrifice, and in so doing you have the very deepest sympathy of myself and family. It will be a sad Xmas for you I fear. May God help you to bear it

Yours very truly, G. Dalrymple White. “

Soldiers Effects and Pension to father William J., 341 Lord St, Southport. 

He now rests at Warlencourt British Cemetery France.

Warlencourt Cemetery is entirely a concentration cemetery, begun late in 1919 when graves were brought in from small cemeteries and the battlefields of Warlencourt and Le Sars.  The Graves Registration form shows graves from “Le Sars 6/1, 6/2, Hexham Road, Seven Elms”.

Graves were brought in from the original cemeteries at Hexham Road (Le Sars), and Seven Elms (Flers), as well as over 3,000 British graves due to the fighting which took place around the Butte de Warlencourt from the autumn of 1916 to the spring of 1917, and again in the German advance and retreat of 1918.   The cemetery now contains 3,505 Commonwealth burials and commemorations of the First World War, 1,823 of which are unidentified.

William Donald is Commemorated on St. Mark’s Methodist Church Memorial, Southport and on the family grave at Duke Street Cemetery in Southport.

His father altered his name to William James on remarrying in 1916 to Mary Halsall. He is found on the 1921 census at 341 Lord Street, Mary is his wife.

His father died, aged 64, in the December quarter of 1927.

We currently have no further information on William Donald Harris, if you have or know someone who may be able to add to the history of this soldier, please contact us.