Jean Longstaff has submitted the following:-
The son of John Henry Watson Hails and his first wife Sara Eliza New, from Norfolk, James William, known just as William, was born in South Shields on the 22nd December 1882 and was two years younger than his sister Lillian Agnes. Sara died after William’s birth and John Henry married local girl Isabella Scott in October 1886, and the family moved from Edith Street to Campbell Street. After leaving Holy Trinity School by the time of the 1901 census William was working on board the ship “Vala” ship number 90911, as a seaman, but was back on dry land in January 1904 when he married Jane Isabella West in South Shields and their first daughter, named Lillian Agnes after William’s sister, was born the same year, to be followed by Maria and then Nora in 1907.
The 1911 census lists Jane, Lillian and Nora living on Military Road, South Shields (their middle daughter Maria had died aged one). There is no trace of William on a passenger ship to Canada, so he may have worked his passage. In June 1913 Jane and the two girls arrived in Canada on board the SS Empress of Britain, ship number 120940, heading for Toronto and a reunion with William.
By August 1915 when William enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force he had been working as a chauffeur and the family were living in London, Ontario. With a full rigged ship tattooed on his chest, and tattoos up both arms William became Private 603108 of the 34th Battalion and after three months training arrived in England on board the SS California, ship number 115305, on 1st November 1915. Based initially at Bramshott in February he was transferred further along the south coast to the 23rd Battalion at West Sandling and on 1st May 1916 was drafted to France with the 13th Battalion.
William joined them on 25th May in Corps Reserve in the Patricia Lines and then the Battalion were called upon to be part of a counter attack on the Ypres Salient, originally planned for the 8th June, but postponed due to the atrocious weather, it instead took place on 12/13th June. Instructions were that every man would carry “270 rounds of ammunition, one day‘s rations, one iron ration, full water bottles, two grenades and five sand-bags. Every second man will carry a shovel." The attack was a Canadian victory, but not without loss, and the losses of the 13th Battalion were severe and included Private William Hails who was “killed by concussion from an enemy shell while in action near Sanctuary Wood”.
William’s wife and children remained in Canada and Jane remarried in 1919.
William Hails is remembered in South Shields on S86.027, S86.039, S86.081, S86.082 page 7 and S86.086
He is also remembered in Canada on their Virtual War Memorial and in their Book of Remembrance.
Canadian Book of Remembrance
Canadian Virtual War Memorial
The CWGC entry for Private Hails