Sgt 15781 Robert Harold Alderson

The 1901 Census shows the family still living at 19 Dacy Road, off Breckfield Road North, Everton. His father, Robert, is a 37 year old collector of gas rents, his mother, Elizabeth G., is aged 36. Their children are shown as Robert H. 8, and Frank C. 5. All of the family were born in Liverpool.  

 

By April 1911 the Census shows the family have moved and are now at 52a Moscow Drive, off Queens Drive, Stoneycroft. It shows 18 year old Robert Harold as a gas clerk for Liverpool United Gaslight Company. His father, Robert, is aged 47, and is a gas rent collector for the same company, his mother, Elizabeth Grace, is aged 46. His parents have been married for 20 years and have had 2 children. His 15 year old younger brother Frank is a clerk in a solicitor's office.

 

A few weeks later on the 02nd August 1911 his younger brother Frank attested in Everton into the 5th Battalion of the King's Liverpool Regiment, claiming to be 17 years and 3 months old when really he was 16 years 2 months old.

On the 31st August 1914 Robert Harold attested at St George's Hall in Liverpool joining the 17th Battalion of The King's Liverpool Regiment as Pte. 15781, he was aged 21 years and 344 days. He was described as being 5 foot 9 inches in height, weighed 116 lbs,  and had a 35 inch chest, with brown hair, and grey eyes. He had a scar on his right knee. His religion is stated as Church of England and his next of kin was his father Robert, of 52a Moscow Drive. He also claimed he had served before as a Sgt. 

He was billeted at Prescot Watch Factory from 14^th September 1914, he trained there and also at Knowsley Hall. On 30th April 1915, the 17th Battalion alongside the other three Pals battalions left Liverpool via Prescot Station for further training at Belton Park, Grantham. They remained here until September 1915 when they reached Larkhill Camp on Salisbury Plain. 

On the 06th October 1914, he was promoted to Corporal and on 23rd November 1914 to paid Lance Serjeant. On 24th February 1915, he was promoted again to Sergeant. 

On 15th March 1916 he sailed from Folkestone on board "S.S. Invicta" arriving at Etaples on 16th March 1916. He was sick in hospital for 8 days before rejoining the Battalion on 24th March 1916

On the 12th October 1916  Robert Harold was involved in the Battle of Le Transloy. The battalion diary records:

"The 17th King's were accommodated in Gird Trench and Gird Support which they had relieved a Battalion of the 123rd Brigade on the night of 10/11th October 1916.
At Zero hour 2.5 p.m on the 12th October the whole line went forward to the attack...........
On the Extreme left the 17th found the Enemy's wire uncut ......
The Losses in crossing No Mans Land were in consequence very heavy !"

Several Officers and 225 other ranks were among the wounded.

Robert Harold had received Gun shot wounds to his hip and abdomen and was taken to 15 C.M.D.S (Corps Main Dressing Station) and 36 C.C.S., where 2 days later on 14th October 1916 he died from his wounds, aged 24.

He now rests at Heilly Station Cemetery on the Somme at Picardie, France.

The 36th Casualty Clearing Station was at Heilly from April 1916. It was joined in May by the 38th, and in July by the 2/2nd London, but these hospitals had all moved on by early June 1917. The cemetery was begun in May 1916 and was used by the three medical units until April 1917. From March to May 1918, it was used by Australian units, and in the early autumn for further hospital burials when the 20th Casualty Clearing Station was there briefly in August and September 1918. The last burial was made in May 1919. There are now 2,890 Commonwealth servicemen of the First World War buried or commemorated in this cemetery. Only 12 of the burials are unidentified and special memorials are erected to 21 casualties whose graves in the cemetery could not be exactly located. The cemetery also contains 83 German graves. The burials in this cemetery were carried out under extreme pressure and many of the graves are either too close together to be marked individually, or they contain multiple burials. Some headstones carry as many as three sets of casualty details, and in these cases, regimental badges have had to be omitted. Instead, these badges, 117 in all, have been carved on a cloister wall on the north side of the cemetery. The cemetery was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens.