Frank Albert Edwards 15/305 15th Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment
Later 529867 Sergeant in the Labour Corps
Frank Albert Edwards was born in Barton upon Irwell, Manchester on 21st March 1887 and was the son of Frank Charles Edwards, a Seedsman (or Seed Merchant), and Alice Sarah Chell. Both parents were born in London, Frank Charles in Stoke Newington, the son of a solicitor, Alice in Greenwich, and they were married in All Saints Church, Fulham., in September 1884. Their first child, Ethel Ruth, was born two years later in Bradford, to be followed by Frank Albert, Alice Sarah and Doris, all born in Manchester. In 1891 the family was living in Levenhulme, Manchester, but by 1901 they had moved to Leeds, first to Chapel Allerton and then later to Roundhay. In 1891 Frank senior was listed as a seedsman’a traveller, but by 1901 he had set up on his own, as a seedcorn merchant, and then later as a nurseryman, seedsman and florist. In the Leeds Directory of 1908 he is listed as Nurseryman seedsman, 12-15 Warehouse Hill, 5 Chapeltown Road & nurseries, Jackson Avenue Roundhay. It is not clear what brought a Londoner to the north, but he may well have decided as a result of earlier travelling, that this was where his future as a nurseryman lay, and he would appear to have made a success of it. In 1901 their address was St Elms Villas, Chapel Allerton, and in 1911 Gledhow Villa, Roundhay, both quite well-to-do addresses.
Of Frank junior’s early life there is little record, but we can assume a normal schooling, although in 1891 he was too young, and by 1901 had probably just left. Ethel, a year older, was a scholar in 1891, while in 1901 both she and Frank were seedsman’s assistants. By 1911 all four children were listed as ‘assisting in the business’, suggesting that it was flourishing. Frank was now 23, and when war was declared three years later he was not only old enough but keen to volunteer. He put his name down on 4th September and was attested on 10th, one of the early recruits, as shown by his number. His service record has not survived so we must piece together his time in the Pals from what references there are.
Having joined Frank would have gone to Colsterdale for basic training, and there are two postcards sent from the camp by him in April 1915. One shows a group of Pals in front of a hut, presumably Frank being one of them, and was sent to M Low, the other a general view of the camp, sent to a Miss D Sutcliffe, of whom more later. Frank was posted to D Company and put into No.5 Platoon, where he must have proved to be a reliable and efficient soldier as he was promoted, certainly achieving the rank of corporal by 1916. Before that, in December 1915, he sailed with the battalion to Egypt, to guard the Suez Canal against a possible Turkish attack, which fortunately did not materialise, but in recognition of his service abroad he was subsequently awarded the 1914-15 Star, along with the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
Then on 1st March 1916 the Pals sailed again, this time for France, where they were to prepare for the Big Push. Luckily for Frank he did not take part in that attack, in which so many Pals were killed. He had already been wounded, according to the record on 29th June 1916, but possibly on 28th, three days before the attack. In the battalion War Diary for that day the Pals were in the trenches and a patrol was sent out to examine the state of the enemy wire. On the way back Lt. RMS Blease and five other ranks were wounded. Although not named Frank could have been one of the five. There was no particular activity mentioned for the following day. Nor are there any surviving medical records for Frank, but once he had recovered he was transferred to the Labour Corps, with a new number, 529867. This was common practice for a soldier who had been too badly wounded to be fit for front line service. However, Frank must have made some recovery, as he was promoted sergeant whilst in the Labour Corps, and when the war ended he was transferred, again, on 2nd April 1919, to the Reserve Class Z, where he could be called upon should fighting break out again, which fortunately it didn’t. He also went before a medical board and was assessed for a pension as being 20% disabled. There is a belief in the family that he was gassed, which is also possible, but we cannot know for certain.
On 2nd July 1919 Frank married Miss Dorothy Violet Sutcliffe, the girl he had sent the postcard to from Colsterdale. Sadly Frank died on 13th July 1930, at the age of 43, which might support the idea of his having been gassed. He was buried in Lawnswood cemetery, Leeds, and the funeral was attended by several members of the Pals, who acted as an escort. Fred Reddyhof was representing the Pals’ Association. Frank was described as a partner in the firm of FC Edwards, of Upper Headrow, and many of the staff were also present. In addition to his widow Frank also left two little girls, Barbara and Pat.
Sources:
Ancestry – Census Records, Marriage Records, Medal Records, Probate Record, Postcards
Find My Past – Census Records
Forces War Records – Record of wounding
War Diary – activity for 28/29th June 1916
Family Records – Newspaper cuttings, medals, postcard
Researchers: Peter Taylor and David J Owen, with additional information from Frank’s granddaughters.
Please Note:
- All opinions and inferences are the researcher’s own.
- Please refer to our Glossary of Terms for further information on the terms and phrases used in this post