WALKER FAMILY 1800-1919 (continued)

Arthur Valentine Walker became a postman in central Leeds. This is how me met Annie Georgina Weston born in 1872, the daughter of William Weston, a railway superintendant. The couple eloped, subsequently Annie was disowned by her family. They had 6 children; Arthur born 1895,A female infant born in 1896 who died at the age of two, Frederick William born in 1898 and named after Arthur's brother.  Winnifred May born July 27th, 1899 and Wilfred, the youngest born a couple of years later(see picture below).     In 1915 when England joined the first World War, Arthur and his eldest son, Frederick joined the British forces.  Arthur became a Sapper in the Light Railway Section of the Royal Engineers (picture on previous page) stationed in France.  The sappers had a very dangerous job...  They were the mine and bomb diffusers.  Arthur cleared the way for the Engineers and trench builders.

During 1917 he collected and wrote many postcards to his son, daughter and wife at home in Leeds.  The postcards are made of heavy paper with beautiful hand stitched pictures.  Thankfully he managed to bring the unsent postcards, the Vistory and British medals home at the end of the war.

Arthur's son, Frederick was not as lucky.  He joined the Royal Navy as an Able Seaman an sailed out on the Light Cruiser, the H.M.S. Comus.  In 1916 The Comus fought in the Battle of Jutland, the largest battle at sea.  Unlike many other ships, the Comus and its crew survived the intense battle.  Frederick joined the Destroyer the H.M.S. Narbrough.  On the 12th of January, 1918 the Narbrough and its sister ship the Opal, were returning to Scapa Flow from a patrol off of the east coast of the Orkneys during a blizzard.  Sadly the two ships smashed into the rocky coast of South Ronaldsay and sank.  The entire crews were lost at sea except one Able Seaman who was found clutching a cliff near the wreck site a few days later.  Frederick William Walker's Memorial can be found at the Portsmouth Naval Memorial in Hampshire, England.

The picture to the left is Wilfred Walker, the son of Arthur Valentine Walker and Annie Georgina Weston, taken in WWII

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