Grewelthorpe

Neave William Thomas

Information is needed about WILLIAM THOMAS NEAVE. He was born in Grewelthorpe [Azerley] in 1884.

His parents were GEORGE & MARGARET NEAVE. and they lived for a time at Cow Mires, Azerley with Margaret’s Father Thomas Hammond.


In 1911 the family were living in Ripon. George [age 54], a farmer, was from Lincolnshire and Margaret Hammond [age 51] was from Killinghall. William Thomas was 27 [assist. farmer] and there were 3 sisters Anne aged 28,[dressmaker] Mary aged 16 [Milliner’s shop assistant] and Elsie aged 14. George & Margaret had had 8 children. 1 had died before 1911. They were married in 1882.

During the First World War, William was a Private in the 21st Btn. Machine Gun Corps, Infantry division, and he was killed in France on 24th March 1918. He enlisted in Ripon.
His service number was 142217. His name is on the Pozieres Memorial. France.
W.T.Neave is commemorated on one of the panels in Ripon Cathedral showing names of the fallen in WW1.

Panel in Ripon Cathedral. Photo taken by John French.

In March 1918, the 21st Battalion Machine Gun Corps was fighting on the Somme battlefields in the area around St. Quentin and Bapaume as part of the 21st Division.
The battalion had been formed on February 24, 1918, by merging the four existing machine gun companies of the 21st Division into a single divisional MGC battalion.
On March 21, 1918, the unit was in the line in the Somme sector when the German Army launched the massive Spring Offensive (Operation Michael). The 21st Division was positioned within General Gough’s Fifth Army area (or General Byng’s Third Army on the left flank), which bore the brunt of the initial German “hurricane” bombardment and subsequent infantry attacks. The Division was involved in the intense fighting and fighting retreat that followed the initial breakthrough, specifically participating in the phases known as the Battle of St. Quentin and the First Battle of Bapaume.

The Machine Gun Corps Old Comrades Association are asking for further information so that he can be commemorated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Any one with further information is asked to contact us.