Private John Edmondson

John was born in 1897 and was the son of John Thomas Edmondson and Maria Edmondson.

In 1911 he was shown in the census as a “Silk spinners Piecer” living in John Street Galgate. He then worked at the LNWR co as a loader at Lancaster Station.

John (or Jack as he was known) joined up in early 1917 and was posted to the 1/4th Kings Own.

At the end of July 1917, the 1/4th launched an attack on German positions at Wieltje, in which the Battalion lost 15 officers and 200 other ranks killed or wounded.

In the Lancaster Guardian, a letter was published from his friend John Cannon. John wrote: “We went into action on the 31st July. Jack was with a chum who has been wounded but of Jack I am very sorry to say I can find no trace….I will commend you to the comfort of God…I was with him a good deal in the trenches and he was one of the best and pluckiest I came across”

Johns body was never found and he is remembered on the Menin Gate memorial, Ypres.