Private Isaiah Sanders, 1st/6th Battalion Duke of Wellington's West Riding Regiment. Service no. 2022, later 265269. He also served with the 2nd Battalion, West Riding Regiment.
Private Isaiah Sanders
Isaiah was born in Pontefract in 1895 to parents Isaiah and Mary Sanders.
By the time of the 1901 census he was 5 and living at 3, Temple Street, Castleford, with his parents, 3 sisters and 1 brother. Their father was a coal hewer – a miner.
By 1911 Isaiah was 16 and living at 83, Wellington Street, Keighley, with his parents, 3 sisters and 1 brother and he was working as a 'jobber' at a worsted spinning mill.
He enlisted at the age of 18 on 2nd June 1913, with the 6th Battalion West Riding Regiment (Territorials) and was embodied on 5th August 1914 at the outbreak of war. He embarked for France with the 1/6th Battalion on 14th April 1915 and his name appears in their nominal roll.
The group photograph of 15 men shows Charles Lowndes standing 3rd from left on the back row and Joseph William (Willie) Tatton is 5th from left on the back row and Isaiah Sanders lying down at front left:
Group of 1/6th Battalion West Riding Regiment men, prior to going off to war.
During his service, he was admitted for medical treatment a number of times:
On 6th November 1915, he was wounded in the back by a bomb, rejoined his unit 14th November:
1/6th Battalion Duke of Wellington's West Riding Regiment - war diary for 1915:
Trenches Nov. 6th
Fine, foggy, very cold, frost during night.
1 am. Enemy bombers threw a bomb into our trench at F35, having apparently crawled up, 1 man killed, 2 wounded. Situation quiet except occasional shelling on both sides. Cpl Berry behaved with gallantry in driving off the German bomb attack on the advanced sap of F35.
Casualties:
1776 Pte. W. Binns. D Coy. Killed by Bomb. F35.
2027 Pte. W. Lilley. D Coy. Wounded in face and right arm by bomb. F35.
2022 Pte. I Sanders. D Coy. Wounded in back by bomb. F 35.
24th November. Admitted with Pyrexia (fever) to the 1/2 West Riding Field Ambulance. He rejoined his unit on the 29th November.
1916: 2nd March, admitted with Scabies, rejoined unit 23rd March.
5th August, granted Proficiency Pay Class 1 by his Battalion Commander.
19th August, wounded by trench mortar, rejoined unit at Souastre on 21st November:
1/6th Battalion Duke of Wellington's West Riding Regiment - war diary for 1916:
Trenches Aug. 18th. THIEPVAL AVENUE.
Nothing to report during the day, until 5.2 pm.
In conjunction with other operations to the South a smoke barrage was made along the battalion front which lasted half an hour. Our artillery also shelled enemy front and support lines during this time. Enemy activity was chiefly on our left company, who were heavily trench mortared. At about 6.45 pm the enemy shelling ceased, and the situation became normal.
Casualties:
2 Lt. Johnson, H. Buried and wounded in face by trench mortar.
2 Lt. C. McKeller, shrapnel wound in side.
4546. A/Sgt Atkinson, C. - D Coy. Killed by trench mortar
2374. Sgt Horner, A. - D Coy. Wounded in face.
2193. Pte. Jarman, H. - D Coy. Buried and wounded in face.
3130. Pte. Waddington, I. - D Coy. Buried and wounded in leg.
2022. Pte. Sanders, I. - D Coy. Shock from trench mortar.
4006. L/Cpl. Midgley, A. - D Coy. Shock from trench mortar.
1783. Sgt. Marks, H. F. - D Coy. Wounded in face by shell.
2043. Pte. Watson, H. - C Coy. Shrapnel wound in side.
4535. Pte. Eastwood, S. - C Coy. Shrapnel wound in left wrist.
1946. Pte. Lister, C. W. - C Coy. Bullet wound left hand.
2696. L/Cpl. Armstrong, W. R. - A Coy. Wounded in right hand by explosion of smoke bomb.
1917: 12th March. Wounded in left arm by rifle grenade, admitted to hospital at Carniers on the 16th, then evacuated to UK on Hospital ship 'Stad Antwerpen' on 22nd March:
Hospital ship Stad Antwerpen.
1/6th Battalion Duke of Wellington's West Riding Regiment - war diary for 1917:
Trenches March 12th. South of NEUVE CHAPELLE.
Enemy started early, about 8 am to send over vane bombs and trench mortar whizz bangs, 4.2" & 5.9". He was particularly active with his heavy trench mortar on centre and left Coys, keeping up his fire all day without any interval till about 4.30 pm. He also fired a considerable number of whizz bangs at our wire in front of POPE and HUN posts.
Our artillery were slow in taking up retaliation and were not effective. Late in the afternoon our 6" howitzers did some useful work.
Casualties:
6712. Pte. Troughton, W. - C Coy. Killed by trench mortar.
2487. Pte. Western, L. - A Coy. Killed by bullet.
4072. Cpl Daly, J. E. - C Coy. Wounded in head and face by trench mortar.
After dark the hostile fire continued, also a number of vane bombs & a raid was feared. The artillery were accordingly warned of the threatened skit and an arrangement was made with platoon officers in the front line that if an attack developed red flares would be sent up & the S.O.S. rockets would then be sent up.
8.3 pm. C Coy sent up the S.O.S. & our artillery immediately open a hot fire on the place previously arranged & S.O.S. lines.
A long time elapsed before any news got back, but Boch appeared to have entered our trenches near HUN post, where some boxes charged with explosive about 10" x 10" x 10" were found with a fuse of gun cotton and a detonator. Unfortunately five of our men were missing, & it must be presumed they were taken prisoners.
The night was very dark and the trenches after 2 days bombardment by heavy trench mortar an awful state and nearly all communication trenches to the front line were blocked.
Casualties:
5606. Pte. Boothman, J. - B Coy. Killed by shell.
6610. Pte. Beaumont, G. - B Coy. Killed by shell.
5807. Pte. Cartwright, G. E. - B Coy. Wounded by shell in face. (At duty).
6510. Pte. McCarthy, W. - B Coy. Wounded by shell in arm and shoulder. (At duty).
5150. Pte. Riley, M. - B Coy. Wounded by shell in foot. (At duty).
6686. Pte. Robinson, H. - B Coy. Died and No. 7 C.C.S. 14.3.17.
2967. L/Cpl. Paikes, H. - C Coy. Wounded by vane bomb, in arm.
4167. Pte. Longfellow, H. - C Coy. Wounded by shrapnel, in wrist.
5428. Pte. Egginton, A. P. - C Coy. Wounded by shrapnel, in buttock.
4462. Pte. Hicks, D. - C Coy. Wounded by trench mortar, in wrist.
6599. Pte. Pemberton, P. - C Coy. Wounded by trench mortar, in hand.
6562. Pte. Murgatrotd, S. - C Coy. Wounded by trench mortar, in thigh.
6732. Pte. Wedgewood, L. - C Coy. Missing.
4026. Pte. Hodgson, E. - C Coy. Miissing.
6707. Pte. Taylor, J. L. - C Coy. Missing.
6685. Pte. Rouse, H. - C Coy. Missing.
6681. Pte. Benson, H. - C Coy. Missing.
6634. Hampton, W. - D Coy. Wounded by rifle grenade in leg.
2919. Thompson, I. - D Coy. Wounded by rifle grenade.
2202. Pte. Sanders, I. - D Coy. Wounded by rifle grenade.
4594. Pte. Leach, J. A. - D Coy. Wounded by rifle grenade at duty.
Trenches. 13th March.
The remainder of the night and the early morning passed fairly quietly and the battalion was relieved early by 7th West Riding Regiment.
Isaiah's terms of service (four years) expired on 3rd June 1917 but he appears to have immediately re-enlisted because he was posted to the 2nd Battalion, West Riding Regiment and joined his unit at Hendercourt on 7th September as part of draft of 135 men arriving from Savy.
He received three blue overseas chevrons on 7th June 1918.
He was disembodied from the Army on 21st January 1919. His civilian trade was a miner and his home address was 15, Edward Street, Highgate, Goldthorpe.
Isaiah married Jessie Dorathea Duncan on 24th May 1920 at St Jude's Church in Hunslet. They were both aged 25 and living at 80, Grape Street, Hunslet. Between 1920 and 1930 they lived at 15, Edward Road, Bolton Upon Dearne, Wentworth, with parents and eventually on their own at 12, Edward Street Thurnscoe, Wentworth, with wife Jessie until his death at the age of 35 in 1930, after which Jessie moved to Penistone.
The Leeds Mercury report for Tuesday May 6, 1930. Page 5:
FATAL BUS ACCIDENT
Isaiah Sanders (34), a screen hand, of 15, Edward Road, Highgate, Goldthorpe, died in Barnsley Beckett Hospital last night. On Sunday he was attempting to board a bus at Platts Common when he slipped and fell under the wheel. He was taken to hospital suffering from several fractured ribs, laceration of the left lung, and severe shock.
Isaiah was awarded the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal for his war service.
He is not named on any local roll of honour for Keighley, nor is he named in the "Keighley's Gallant Sons" list of early volunteers.
Source information:
Birth, marriage and death records.
1901 and 1911 census.
WWI Service Medal and Award Rolls, 1914-1920.
Army service records.
Keighley News archives, Keighley Library.
British Newspaper Archive
National Archives war diary for 1/6th Duke of Wellington's West Riding Regiment. WO95-2801
Photographs by Andy Wade.
