Private
Charles Alderson
100381 31st Battalion Canadian Army
Killed in Action 25th September 1916, aged 34
Formerly lived at the Cricketers Arms
Buried in the Sunken Road Cemetery, Contalmaison, France - II B 2
Commemorated
in the Canadian
Book of Remembrance page 45
Commemorated
on theSt Peters
Memorial, Burnley
Charlie Alderson was the son of Anthony Alderson and the husband of Ada M Alderson of 13305 Ryder Street, West Edmonton Alberta. He was born in Birstall in Yorkshire on 19th December 1882 and was brought up in Burnley and emigrated to Canada where he joined the Canadian Forces as Private 100381 in the 31st Battalion of the Canadian Infantry (Alberta Regiment).
“Two
Brothers-in-Law. Another Burnley Canadian Killed."(
Burnley Express 11/11/1916)
News has been received that Pte. Charlie Alderson of the Canadian
Contingent has been killed in action on 25th September the very next day
that his brother in law Pte.
Charlie Blakey was killed. Pte. Alderson was born at Batley in Yorkshire
and was brought whilst a lad to Burnley where he was brought up by his
aunt in Yorkshire Street. Three years ago he and his wife emigrated to
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and then twelve months ago he joined the Canadian
forces. Eight months later his regiment was sent over to England and after
a short stay was drafted out to France. His many Pickup Croft football
pals will be very sorry to hear of this sad loss, and sympathy goes out
to his widow who is still in Canada with her father.
Pte. Alderson was very well known in Burnley having served his apprenticeship to plumbing with his uncle, the late Mr W. Scott of Yorkshire Street. Afterwards he started a business on his own account in Oxford Road. He was a regular attended at Pickup Croft Sunday School and played for that club when connected with the Sunday school league. He was also a member of the Burnley Football and Cricket clubs, and was very well respected by all the members, especially the bowling green section, he having taken part in their annual competitions. Pte. Alderson was a keen Conservative worker of over ten years standing, and was known and respected by all the officials and workers, particularly in St Paul’s ward, with which he was connected. He was especially keen in all the late Lieut. Arbuthnot’s elections and now shares that gallant gentleman’s fate by dying for his country. Mr Alderson married a daughter of Mr Nothard who up to three years ago was a Burnley Cab Proprietor. So sadly two of the latter’s daughters have lost their husbands in two days. Mrs Alderson sent word of her husband’s death to Mrs Alderson of the Cricketer’s Arms, Anne St.
Notes
In the Burnley Express Roll of Honour for November 1916 he was remembered
by - his wife Ada M Alderson of North Edmonton, Alberta Canada and sister
Rose of Cricketer’s Arms, Anne Street, Burnley
In memorium for Oct 6th 1917;- Mr Mrs Proctor and May.
Sept 25th 1918 Mrs Ashworth, Ben, Jim and Jack Cricketer’s Arms.
Wedding on 5/9/06 at St Peter’s Church. Charley Alderson, aged 24 bachelor, plumber of 53 Anne Street, son of Anthony Alderson(deceased) mason, married Ada Mary Nothard aged 26 spinster of 48 Lindsay Street daughter of George Nothard Cab Driver. Witnesses were William Sagar and Phoebe Alice Nothard. (Greenwood).
Charlie Alderson was also commemorated on the Pickup Croft Sunday School Memorial which was dedicated on 16th September 1922. Pickup Croft was a mission church of St Peter’s Parish and was also used as an Infant School.
His enrolment papers for
the Canadian Forces show that he enlisted on 3rd July 1915. and that he
was 5ft 7 ins tall and his girth was 37 ins.
I have been doing family history up till a a few years
ago and had found out much about my family in Burnley, dating back to
my Great, Gr, Gr, Gr Grandparent's lives there. There were James Pete,
(born 1778), and his wife Mary( born 1778). James Pate was Innkeeper
of The Red Lion Inn, Burnley and also had taken out approx. 45 licenses,
and was a public carrier between Burnley and Manchester. Other carriers
also used the inn's stabling facilities.
As time passed, I believe it was Archibald Pate (1810-1881) , James
and Mary's son, who eventually became Landlord of a pub on Anne St,
mentioned as the residence of Private Charles Alderson in your information
on him. This pub passed on to Rose Pate,(my grandmother) an only child
of Ethelbert and Rose Hannah (nee Eastwood) , who had begun running
the pub , 52//53 Anne St ,then called "The Live and Let Live"
in 1879, with the name changed to The Cricketer's Arms in 1883 b/c it
was located very close to Burnely's Cricket Gounds. Ethelbert died in
1897. It was at that time my Grandmother Rose, an only child, inherited
the Cricketer's Arms.
Rose Pate married John Ashworth, a policeman from Pontefract, who then
became Landlord of The Cricketer's Arms. One of their 3 sons, the youngest,
John,(b. 1915) was my Father. The eldest Son was James Ashworth who
inherited the Cricketer's Arms and was to look after his approx 20 yr.
younger brother,my Father John Ashworth.
In 1924 however, James let Phoebe
Blakey, (nee Nothard). the WW1 widow of Charlie Blakey, both of
whom had already emigrated to Canada before WW1 broke out, and whom,
while visiting her birthplace town of Burnley temporarily for an unknown
reason, become the guardian of my Father,John Ashworth, aged 7. She
brought him to Canada with her when she returned. She was, by then,
I think, residing in New Westminster, B.C. If not, she and her sister
Ada soon moved there. She had emigrated to Canada with her husband Charlie
Blakey, her brother in law Charles Alderson whom had married her sister
Ada, and Phoebe's and Ada's father.
As you state in the info on Charlie Blakey and Charles Alderson on your
"Burnley in the Great War" website, Charlie and Charles, brothers
in law, were killed only 1 or 2 days apart. Ada and Phoebe always lived
and moved to different locations to be together, so I can only hope
that their strong relationship helped them cope with the tragic news
of their husband's deaths, made even more devastating by the closeness
of dates of their deaths.
I believe that Phoebe and Ada (nee Nothard) also had a younger brother
Frederick, but I have found no record of him emigrating to Canada with
the rest of his family.
I am also very interested in contacting any family members of Charlie
Blakey or Charles Alderson, but I don't know how possible that may be.
Perhaps listing my info on your "Burnley in the Great War"
website might connect with someone, somewhere.
For unknown reasons, all contact was lost between my family and my Father's
brothers at least by the WW2 years. The were my "phantom"
family, of whom my Father remembered little and said less. It is a long
story as to how I located my Uncle James when he was 80 yrs. old., and
the long trek of discovery this started me on to get to the point I
am in now piecing together my family history.
(courtesy of Dianne Carlson (nee Ashworth)
British Columbia, Canada
