Toronto Star 21/11/1917
Jean Longstaff has submitted the following:-
Joseph George Lawson was the youngest child of Northumberland shepherd William and his wife Elizabeth Robinson, whom he had married in1861. Their first child Martha was born the year after their marriage, to be followed by William, Daniel, Alexander, Elizabeth, Robert, Alice, Elijah, James, Thomas, Sarah, David and finally Joseph George on 16th September 1886. Born in Lysden in the parish of Bolam, the family went on to move to North Bradford and then Stannington. By 1901 only the two youngest boys, David and Joseph were still living with their parents in Barnham near Norham, where they worked on the farm alongside their father.
Mother Elizabeth died in 1906 and two years later Joseph married another Elizabeth and their daughter, also called Elizabeth was born in 1909. The 1911 census shows that the young family lived and worked on a local estate near Thornbrough, Corbridge. Two years later in August 1913 Joseph, his wife and daughter emigrated to Canada, arriving in Nova Scotia and travelling westwards to reach Manitoba, where they settled in Winnipeg.
On 19th November 1915 Joseph, who had been working as a labourer enlisted with the 123rd (Royal Grenadiers) Battalion in Toronto as Private 766243 and after nine months training at Camp Borden on 9th August 1916 sailed for England with the battalion on board the SS Cameronia. Arriving in Liverpool ten days later they travelled south to camp at Bramshott, Hampshire, where after another four weeks training Joseph was posted to France with the 19th Battalion, 4th Infantry Brigade, 2nd Canadian Division.
On arrival in France he was initially attached to the 2nd Entrenching Battalion but then transferred to the 6th Company, Canadian Engineers for duty at Aix-Noulette, before joining the19th Battalion on 12th December in billets at Calonne, where he was assigned to “D” Company. Promoted to Lance Corporal in July 1917, by November the Battalion had moved into Belgium, and were fighting in the trenches at Passchendaele. On the night of 3rd/4th November they were ordered to establish outposts ahead of the main trench line just south of the town and “D” Company was ordered to proceed up the Zonnebeke-Passchendaele Road to establish an advanced outpost near Crest Farm. During the first part of the night enemy shelling was very light, but early morning saw a very heavy barrage of overhead shrapnel directed by the enemy to all flanks of the Battalion and it was during this barrage that Lance Corporal Lawson was killed. He was buried where he fell, but the grave either could not be located or, if found, the remains could not be positively identified.
His wife and daughter returned to England in February 1919 and by 1921 were living at East Field Cottage, Howden Dene, Corbridge.
Joseph George Lawson is remembered in Corbridge on C52.01, C52.02 and C52.04
In Canada he is remembered on their Virtual War Memorial and in their Book of Remembrance.
Canadian Book of Remembrance
Canadian Virtual War Memorial
The CWGC entry for Lance Corporal Lawson
