Menin Gate Memorial
Pauline Priano has submitted the following:-
James William Cutmore born April 4th 1888 at Brandon, County Durham, and baptised June 6th into the Wesleyan Methodist faith, was the eldest of 10 children, 5 sons and 5 daughters, born to George Cutmore and Susannah Liddle, known as Susan. George was originally from Poslingford, Suffolk where he was born in 1865, having migrated to the north east he married Susan, in 1887 in the district of Lanchester, who was born in 1890 at Oakenshaw, County Durham. They settled at 96 Liddle Street, Cornsay Colliery, where George was employed as a coke drawer, however in 1891, Susan, James (3) and 11 month old Elizabeth were staying as visitors with George’s parents James and Hannah Cutmore at 20, Newcastle Street, Brandon, 8 miles away. Although they remained at Cornsay as their family grew with the arrival of Isabella in 1892, George 1897, Arthur 1899 and Joseph 1901, they had moved to 16, Stable Street and taken in a 3 boarders, 60-year-old Hugh Mague and 43-year-old Charles Cooper, coke drawers, also Charles’s son Robert who at the age of 15 was employed as a brickworks labourer. James’s parents had a further 4 children by 1911, Matthew born 1903, Annie 1905, Emma 1908 and Henry 1910, whilst he in 1910, at the age of 21 years, was married in the district of Lanchester to Lucy McQuirk, who although born in New York, America in 1890 was British by parentage. Their daughter Alice May was born May 15th 1910, they lived at Liddle Street, James was employed at Cornsay Colliery as a coal miner/hewer.
On the outbreak of war he was one of the first to enlist at Durham, assigned as Private 2959 to the 8th Battalion Durham Light Infantry, a Territorial Force. Having been split into 4 companies the new recruits trained over the following 9 months at Boldon, Ravensworth and Newcastle, during this period he had risen to the rank of Lance Corporal. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Turnbull, they left Newcastle-upon-Tyne railway station for France, April 19th 1915 attached to the 151st Brigade, 50th Northumbrian Division. Within days they had moved from France to the battlefields of the Ypres salient in Belgium and were in the thick of the fighting during the 2nd Battle of Ypres.
Lance Corporal 2949 James William Cutmore Durham Light Infantry was killed in action only 7 days after his arrival on the Western Front. His sacrifice is recorded as one of the 54,614 names inscribed on the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing, Ypres, Belgium, which commemorates servicemen from Britain and the Commonwealth who died on the salient, 1915-July 16th 1917, who have no known grave. Lance Corporal Cutmore was 27 years of age.
James' brother George Cutmore served with in WW1 and perished October 20th 1917 in Belgium.
The shock and grief felt by James' widow must have been overwhelming, having lost her husband after so brief a time. Lucy received all monies due to him, his awards of the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal and a pension until she remarried in 1919 to George T. Hindmoor born 1891 at Hedley Hill, County Durham, with whom she had a son Edward, born in the district of Lanchester in 1921 who died in 1939 aged 18 years. Lucy Hindmoor-Cutson nee McQuirk died in 1951 aged 61 years, George T. Hindmoor in 1955 aged 64 years.
Alice May Cutmore married December 13th 1930 in the district of Lanchester to Robert Collinson Smith of Hedley Hill, County Durham born December 9th 1906, their son Robert Collinson Jnr was born that same year. Robert Collinson Smith Snr died aged 76 years in 1983, Alice May Smith nee Cutmore in 1988 aged 77 years.
James William Cutmore’s mother Susan Cutmore nee Liddle died in 1936 aged 67 years preceding her husband George who died aged 75 years in 1940.
In God’s safe keeping. Rest In Peace.
James William Cutmore is remembered at Satley on S116.01 at Cornsay on S116.01 and at Quebec on Q2.05
He is also remembered in The DLI Book of Remembrance and Battalion History
