Lance Corporal 13579 James Dillon was killed on the 26th September 1915.  After some research at the PRO and on the 1901 census I believe it is possible that he was my great-uncle.

Like many of my age, I didn’t ask all the questions of my father that I should have, before he died.  I do not remember him speaking of this James as an uncle, but then he didn’t speak much of any of his father’s relations, and it looks as though this James was a ‘Black Sheep’.

James is remembered on the LOOS memorial, and his entry in the CWGC register says he was 30 years old.  That means he would have been 16 at the time of the 1901 census, and my grandfather would have been 13.  On the census I can only find one instance in Sheffield of two brothers, one Patrick aged 13 and one James aged 16. At the time of his death James’ father and mother are listed as ‘deceased’ and my grandfather’s wedding certificate of 1912 shows that his father was also deceased. For these reasons I believe James may well be my great-uncle. At the time he was a Butcher’s Boy and my grandfather was a Heating Knife Blade Cutler.  Their father was James born in Sheffield, their mother was Margaret born in Ireland and there were 5 other children; Thomas (21), Edward (19), Ellen (17), John (14) and Catherine (11). They lived at Cuthbert Bridge Road in Nether Hallam, Sheffield.

James Dillon joined up on 5th September 1914 and according to his service record in the PRO he became a Lance Corporal (unpaid) on 16th July 1915, receiving his substantive rank as a Lance Corporal (paid) on 10th September 1915, the day the battalion left England and a few days before he was killed.

The entry for James in the CWGC register says he was the ‘Husband of Amy Armitage (formerly Dillon), of 39, Park View Road, Owlerton, Sheffield.  My father was born in Owlerton in September 1915, 3 weeks before James was killed. Amy, his wife, apparently married again after James was killed, and her maiden name before she married James was Kavanagh.  Using the 1901 census I found Amy Kavanagh, Park View Rd and she was the 7 year old daughter of Edward Kavanagh.  Interestingly their next door neighbours at that time were called Armitage and they had two sons, John (7) and William (6).  It looks as though she married one of these after James was killed. Maybe a childhood sweetheart.

I said at the start of the page that James was the Black Sheep.  When he was killed there was a pension of 15/- settled on his wife Amy for herself and their child, Edward, probably named after Amy’s father Edward. However, James’ service record also has a note that the authorities ‘Request verification of paternity of child Edward Dillon Kavanagh’.  Edward was born 29 December 1913 ‘out of wedlock’ as James and Amy did not marry until 28 July 1914.  Paternity was proven and the pension was paid from 15th May 1916.

Also in his service record is a note from Amy, in a well written hand, dated January 1916; “Sir, I am returning the form which I have signed and thank you very much for the articles of my late husband and should you ever receive any more I should be pleased to receive them.  Yours truly,  Mrs. A. Dillon

I don’t know for sure if James was my great-uncle, nor do I know what happened to Amy or their son Edward. But it is a small personal history of one more soldier of The Great War.