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Born
William Farndale, son of Martin and Catherine Farndale
(FAR00364) born Tidkinhow Farm, 29
Jan 1892.
(BR and family knowledge)
William Farndale registered Guisbro District Apr-Jun 1891
(GRO Vol 9d page 503)
Lived
1901 Census – Tidkinhow Farm, Stanghow
William shown aged 10.
1911 Census – Tidkinhow, Boosbeck
William shown now aged 20, a butcher
William Farndale, was a butcher at Guisborough before he went to Alberta Canada about 1913.
He moved to Earl Grey near Regina, Saskatchewan in 1914 and continued his
trade as a butcher.
(Family knowledge)
In 1913 William arrived in Canada, but he went to Early Grey
in Saskatchewan.
He is shown on the passenger list on the Victorian,
a ship on the Allan Line, departing 13 August 1913 from Liverpool to Quebec,
a labourer, aged 22.
He faught with the Canadian Army
in World War I, where he was wounded, and he died in 1918 and is buried in Earl
Grey. He was unmarried. (Our Huxley Heritage)
Military Service;
William Farndale, joined the Canadian Army on 19 April 1916
at Regina, Saskatchewan and went to France.
He was wounded in action at Vimy Ridge on 13 December 1916 while serving
with the 28th Battalion; he had a gunshot wound in the right forearm and was
in hospital in Epsom, England. He was discharged from the Army at Calgary on
18 Feb 1918. He was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
After his return to Regina, he used his car to evacuate the sick during the
great ‘flu epidemic of 1918. He caught the ‘flu while still weak from his
wound and died at Earl Grey, Saskatchewan, Canada, aged 25 years on 23 Nov
1918.
(Record of Service)
(Ottawa Free Press, 19 December 1916)
Admission
to Hospital Record on 1 January 1917 – 18th General Hospital,
Private William Farndale, 104060. Radius RF Arm.
The ninth
member of the family of Martin
and Catherine was born on 29 January 1892. His parents called him William
after the child who had died two years before. As with the others, he went
first to Charltons
School and then to Boosbeck.
He left at 14 in 1905. Soon after this, he became an apprentice butcher in Saltburn with a Mr Ormsby.
He then served in a butcher's shop. Later he had a butchers shop in Charltons which
he shared with his elder brother Jim.
They then took another in Commondale. They began by sharing a bullock with a
man in Guisborough who had a slaughter house. Later they were selling three
bullocks a week and were well remembered in their horse drawn delivery van.
Alfred remembered him at their mother's funeral (14 July 1911) as William consoled
him.
In 1913 Jim went to Canada
and shortly afterwards William followed to become the fifth member of the
family to emigrate there. He first went to join Martin at Trochu and got himself a job there as an assistant
butcher. What happened next is not clear, but it seems that in about 1914 he
moved to Earl Grey in Saskatchewan, presumably to continue his trade as a
butcher. At some time, probably 1915, he joined the army and went to France.
His enlistment date is shown as 19 April 1916 at Regina, Saskatchewan.
1916 Canada Census – Manitoba, Saskatchewan
William Farndale, emigrated to Canada in 1912, lived at
Last Mountain, Saskatchewan, lodger, butcher working on own account with a
shop
He was wounded in action at Vimy Ridge on 13 December
1916, while serving with the 28th Battalion. All we know is that he was hit
in the arm by an explosive bullet. His medical records show:
"Loss of function, right arm ... penetrating gun shot wound at forearm with
compound commimuted fracture of radius ... bullet entered inner surface of
forearm, two inches below elbow, and passed directly through the arm, coming
out on the other side, and splintering the radius in its passage. Severe
inflammation of the arm followed, and inflammation, and sequestrum formed and
was removed. Had erysipilis while in hospital, 23rd CC Station, 24th General
Hospital (British) Etaples from 17 Jan to 23 April 1917, Reading War Hospital
from 23 April to 12 July 1917, MC Hospital Epsom, since 12 July 1917...
wounds all healed. The wound and exit wound shows the remains of a sinus from
the radius not discharging now. Has wrist drop, and is wearing a dorsiflexion
splint. Flexion and extension of elbow are greatly limited and pronation and supination
are absolutely stopped, in a position of partial supination. Is otherwise
normal. (date of report 27 July 1917)".
Alfred, his younger brother, remembers asking for leave to visit him in
hospital in Exeter, but since he was under orders himself for France, he was
not allowed to go. Indeed later William went on leave to Trochu and Tidkinhow and the family remember questioning him about France and
the fact that Alfred was, by then, in Ypres.
He wrote from hospital, almost certainly in 1917, to his sister Grace:
"Left hand of course
Jan 12
Dear Sister
I will try and write to you. I find I am doing fairly well but I have got a
very bad arm. I was hit with an explosive bullet which made a hole through
two inches wide and broke both bones. They give me very little hope of my arm
being any good but I hope it will not be so bad. I had an awful hard time in
France. I had four operations in two weeks. They could not get it stopped
bleeding and I got so weak that I could not feed myself. But I am alright
now, but not able to get up yet for two weeks or so. I may have to have
another operation. Not sure yet. Going to have my arm x-rayed shortly. I want
you to write a letter for me to Sister Armstrong, 23 CCS, BEF, France. Give
her my address and tell her I am getting along alright. This is not a very
nice hospital, but good doctors. If you send a parcel, send me a toothbrush
and hairbrush. I expect I will be here three months. I tried to get into
Yorkshire so you could come and see me, but this is as far as I could get. If
my arm does not get better it is likely I will get sent back to Canada in the
Spring, but I will never see France any more. I am awful sorry that Alf had
to go. If ever he gets to France I will want to go back again.
Your affectionate brother
W.F."
We know that he returned to Earl Gray and that in the great flu epidemic of 1918
he drove patients to hospital, caught flu himself and died. The wording on
his memorial situated in Earl Gray is very indistinct. It says:
“Farndale. 28th. In
Memory of Pte Wm Farndale, 28th Batt. UEF. Died Nov 26th 1918, aged 25 years.
Erected by his fellow Comrades and the citizens of Earl Grey and district, in
grateful recognition of his services to King and Country.”
Actually the age is not quite right, since in November 1918 he would have
been aged 26. William had been engaged to a girl in Earl Grey at the time of
his death. She wrote to some members of the family but there was no trace of
her since. William is remembered as different from the rest of the family,
but still with the same characteristics of responsibility and reliability.
His early death was tragic. We have his campaign medals (British War Medal
and Victory Medal) from the Great War.
Died
Gravestone
“Farndale. 28th. In Memory of Pte Wm Farndale, 28th Batt.
UEF. Died Nov 26th 1918, aged 25 years. Erected by his fellow Comrades and
the citizens of Earl Grey and district, in grateful recognition of his
services to King and Country.”
(Mon R)
The gravestone of William Farndale at
Earl Grey, Saskatchewan, Canada. Born 29 January 1892.
 
And with thanks to Catherine Paterson
who sent me the following photographs in 2019:
The Veteran’s Tree Trunk Memorial in
memory of William Farndale in 2019
.
William’s gravestone in 2022 just
before cleanup
William’s gravestone in 2022 after
being restored by B & B Gravestone Cleaning Services.
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The boys of
Tidkinhow in about 1910.
John, James,
Alfred, William, George and inset Martin
Photograph
his medals and post here
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