German Bombardment of Harlepool 1914 . Grand mother was there !

[Johnsonsyard]

Hi Everyone, My Grandmother was in Hartlepool in service in 1914 when the Germans started shelling.. Hid under the kitchen table. Is there any way I could find out where she was living ?

Regards


Nick

[nanny jan]

Hi,

You might find something here:

http://www.thisishartlepool.co.uk/history/bombardmentofhartlepool.asp


Nanny Jan

[barryd]

It is sometimes more difficult to find the living than the dead!

No census until 1921.
No birth certificate as she was born much before WWI.
A Death Certificate would have given an address but fortunately she survived.
No Electoral Registers. She was a woman and she also may have been underage.
"In Service" living with her parents or living in her employer's house?
The only possible record would be if she was married out of the same employer's house that she was hiding under the table. And that would be hard to prove.
If she was in Service and living with her employer the chances are that it would be in one of the more affluent parts of British West Hartlepool.

[nanny jan]

You might find this interesting:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-england-tees-30149597


Nanny Jan

[steadyrollingman]

Just seen this as am trawling through the archives... Do I take it there are no lists of those injured during the Bombardment? I did a long search for one a year or two ago, to verify a rumour that my Granda's cousin lost an arm, but had no luck.

[Mart 'n' Al]

This probably won't help you in your search, but Bertie Young, the younger brother of my grandfather died in the bombardement and his death was recorded locally. One report said he was in the house looking out the window waiting for his sister, while another report said that he was waiting for her in the front garden.

This incident was never mentioned in my childhood and I don't know how widely known it was in the family over the last 100 years. I only became aware of it earlier this year.

Martin

[steadyrollingman]

Yeah, that's a thought actually - probably best to go through the local newspapers at some point. I seem to remember seeing a list of deaths online somewhere, but you'd think in this day and age there'd be a list of casualties too, by now... I was down on the Headland a year or so ago and remember seeing the War Memorial but pretty sure that was just for servicemen, not civilians.

[pjs12]

There is also a Memorial for the Bombardment on the Headland.

Ian

Edit: Just been looking through my photographs and found one of the Memorial on the Headland, photo file too big to post here but this is what the plaque on the memorial says.

The Bombardment of the Hartlepools
This memorial commemorates all those across the Hartlepools who were killed or wounded due to the naval bombardment on 16th December 1914
At least 114 civilians, 9 soldiers and 7 sailors were killed, with 500 others being seriously wounded
Contemporaries truthfully stated that no local family was untouched by the events of that day
The scenes depicted on the sides are taken from local artist James Clark's painting "The Bombardment of the Hartlepools" (1915) which portrays the attack as it occurred close to this spot
The figures symbolise those who found themselves caught up in the attack, young and old, civilian and military
"We will remember them"

[steadyrollingman]

Ah yes, the "no local family was untouched" rings a bell... That's the Memorial near the Heugh isn't it, not the one in Memorial Gardens?
But if there were 500 serious injuries in one night, doesn't sound like the papers will be providing a comprehensive record of what happened to who. Worth looking into one day though...