Remembering Harold Shephard, Jack Nixon & James Greenhalgh

Every day on the British Army Ancestors Facebook page I take time to commemorate a British soldier. This post will look at three of the men I have remembered recently.

Remembering 263011 Pte Harold Shephard, 5th Leicestershire Regiment

I interviewed Harold Shephard at his home in Loughborough in February 1984 and took this photograph of him. He had signed up with the 5th (Territorial Force) Battalion, Leicestershire Regiment in 1911 and he served overseas during the First World War with the regiment between 1915 and 1919. The Leicestershire Regiment badge can be clearly seen tattooed on his left forearm. A transcript of my interview with him appears on my First World War Veterans blog and clicking on the link will take you to it.

Remembering Rifleman John Frederick Nixon, 16th Rifle Brigade

Jack Nixon is a great uncle I never knew. He was my grandfather’s brother and he was killed in action one hundred years ago today on the 3rd Octovber 1918. My great-grandmother had seen all five of her sons got to war and in later years she must have wished, over and over and over again, that Jack had just held on for those extra few precious weeks until the Armistice and somehow survived the madness of a global conflict that impacted millions of lives. Alas, it was not meant to be. Read more about Jack on my First World War Remembrance blog. In the photo above, Jack is the man sitting down. On his left is the oldest Nixon brother, Edgar, and on the right is my grandfather, Walter. Jessie Nixon, their sister, completes the family photo which dates to about 1911.

Remembering James Greenhalgh, 4/5th Loyal North Lancashire Regiment

James Greenhalgh, or maybe his mother, or a sister, or a sweetheart has sewn his Military Medal ribbon onto his tunic. The photo must date to post April 1917 after he’d been awarded the gallantry medal for the part he played at Arras that month.  Then again, in my book, they all deserved a bloody medal. Respect to all of our British Army Ancestors – and RIP to my great uncle Jack, remembered especially on this day.