Redheugh Gas Works
Pauline Priano has submitted the following:-
William Winchester born at Gateshead, County Durham, the youngest of 6 known children had 1 elder brother and 4 elder sisters. His father John Matthew Winchester of Wooler, Northumberland married at Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1877, Agnes Thompson Beveridge born December 22nd 1853 native of Coldstream, also in Northumberland. Their daughter Margaret Thompson was born at Belford the following year however they had moved to Elswick on the outskirts of Newcastle-upon-Tyne by 1881 possibly in the hope of John finding work as he was an unemployed stonemason. They remained at Elswick for almost 10 years where they had a further 2 daughters Isabella in 1882 and Euphemia 1886 before moving to the Ponteland area to Smallburn Cottages where he could ply his trade. In 1892 their son Nicholas was born at Smallburn however 3 years later they had moved to Gateshead where daughter Jane and William were born in 1895 and 1896 respectively. They settled at 7, Fourth Street, with their children Nicholas (9), Jane (6) and William (4), John Matthew worked as a mason for the railway, their eldest daughter Margaret had married in 1898, whereabouts of Isabella (19) unknown, Euphemia lived at 29, Whitehall Road West with her widowed maternal grandmother Margaret Beveridge as a domestic help. The following year at the age of 49 years John Matthew Winchester died leaving Agnes without any means of income, Agnes Winchester nee Beveridge died in 1909 aged 56 years when William was only 14 years of age. His brother Nicolas a packer and sister Jane went to live with sister and brother-in-law Margaret and John Thomas Fenwick and daughter Agnes at 66, Sydney Grove, Bensham. William was taken in by his paternal aunt Jane and her husband George Tait at 86, Copeland Terrace. His uncle worked as a labourer, William when he wasn’t attending school worked as a grocer’s errand boy.
On the outbreak of war William was 18 years of age, he enlisted at Gateshead in 1914 assigned as Private 1883 Durham Light Infantry and transferred to the 9th Battalion which had HQ’s in the Gateshead, Felling, Blaydon, Chopwell and West Ryton areas. He later transferred to the 1st/9th Battalion as Private 325137, departing for the Western Front, June 27th 1915, joining his regiment in the field which had left Newcastle-upon-Tyne railway station April 19th 1915 bound for France arriving at Boulogne the following day as part of the British Expeditionary Force.
As part of the 151st Brigade, 50th Northumbrian Division, the battalion was fighting on the salient in Belgium where they served until August 1916 in the trenches near Ypres and at Armentieres before moving south to join the fighting on the Somme. During September and October 1916 they attacked towards Starfish Line north of High Wood, the Flers Line at Eaucourt l’Abbaye and finally at the Butte de Warlencourt November 5th 1916. They captured the Butte but were unable to hold it and were forced to fall back at the cost of 300 men killed or wounded.
In April 1917 they fought at Arras and in September carried out a major attack at Cherisy, Pas de Calais. Private William Winchester was killed in action September 15th 1917 and interred at Heninel Communal Cemetery Extension 500 metres off the road from Heninel to Cherisy, Pas de Calais, France, grave E. 19. He was 21 years old and single.
As his sole beneficiary his sister Margaret Fenwick received all monies due to him and his awards of the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.
In God’s safe keeping. Rest In Peace.
William Winchester is remembered at Redheugh on R43.01 at Bensham on B134.02 and at Gateshead in G39.004
He is also remembered in The DLI Book of Remembrance page 245
