Also Served: Alfred Catherall - Alfred CATHERALL
19 Eaton Street, Prescot Private 56033, Cheshire Regiment Alfred was born on 27th September 1881 in Hawarden but is shown in the 1891 & 1901 census as living at 37 Beaconsfield Street, Prescot. By 1911 he is married with 3 daughters living at 1 Eaton Street, Prescot. This census also shows that Alfred and his wife, Francis, had one child who had died, and this was Joseph Arthur Catherall who was born in February 1908 but died a month later. He was buried at St Mary's Churchyard on 21st March 1908.
In the 1914 Electoral Roll, Arthur is listed as living at No 19, Eaton Street (image below)
Alfred was widowed in 1914.
His service number is from a range issued to the 21st (Labour) Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment, which was raised in Chester in August 1916. The Military Service Act of March 1916 had introduced conscription for men aged 18 to 41, though widowed men with dependent children, such as Alfred, would have been exempt. This suggests that he may have volunteered, but I'm not 100% certain of that.
They moved to France in October of that year and it is likely that Alfred went with them at that time.
In April 1917, the Battalion was converted to the 62nd and 63rd Companies of the Labour Corps, which had been formed in January of that year, and Alfred was renumbered to Private 199433.
His service entitled him to the British War Medal and Victory Medal.
This extract from the Medal Rolls shows Alfred amongst a large group of men who were transferred to the Labour Corps
After the war, Alfred married for a second time, to Ellen Appleton in 1921. The extract below is from Lancashire Archives online catalogue, recording details of the wedding. Alfred was employed at the time as a Crane Driver at the Wire Works.
The 1939 National Register extract shown below records that Alfred was still at Eaton Street, and that he worked at the Wire Works as a Non-Ferrous Roller Picker
He died in 1964, aged 82.
Ref. No.: A1641
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