Kenneth Lincoln was born on 30th April 1925 in Knaresborough, His mother was Mrs Nellie Lincoln (nee Gibbon), He served in the Royal Navy at HMS Collingwood, a training shore station, in Gosport Hampshire. He was only 2 weeks into his training when a bomb hit his accommodation hut killing the new 17 and 18 year old recruits. Kenneth died 18th June 1943 aged 18. He is Buried in Garforth Cemetery Section D Plot 443

Ernest Lincoln was born in Hempnall, Norfolk and was baptised on 4th Dec 1897. He served in 5th Battalion, Kings Own Yorkshire Light infantry. He died in a hospital in England on 6th December 1918 aged 22 and just 8 months after he married Nellie Gibbon. [see: https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/410116/e-j-lincoln/]

What a tragedy for Nellie to have lost her husband after such a short time in the First War and her only young son in the Second War.

In 2013, the BBC reported on the 70th anniversary Commemoration of the Bombing of HMS Collingwood Shore Base. This is an extract from the report:

"The Royal Navy has commemorated the 70th anniversary of a World War II bombing that killed 33 of its young sailors and was initially "hushed up". A sleeping hut at HMS Collingwood in Fareham, Hampshire, was hit on 18 June 1943, killing sailors who had joined up a fortnight before. But victims' families were initially told the trainees died in an ammunitions accident, A chapel service has been held to remember the victims. Relatives of survivors then visited the site where the bomb landed."

"The German bomb struck one of the base's 36-man sleeping huts in the early hours. Most of the sailors who died were aged 17 and 18."

HMS Collingwood Association chairman, Mike Crowe said:

"The bombing at the time was kept hushed up. "It would have been a wonderful bit of propaganda had the Germans discovered what they had done with just one bomb."

The bombing was still an unknown story in 1958 when Mr Crowe attended HMS Collingwood. During the event earlier, a wreath was laid near a tree that was planted for the bombing's 50th anniversary.

Commander Andy Phenna, executive officer at HMS Collingwood, said: 

"If we don't remember the sacrifice our forbearers made we cannot move on to the future."

As result of the announcement delay, Kenneth's name was omitted from the original Roll of Honour Tablet in St Mary's Church, Garforth. However we were able to correct this in 2018 when the new War Memorial was erected in Garforth Cemetery