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Lance Corporal, York and Lancaster Regiment, 2nd battalion
Walter Sampson Poskitt was born in Glasshoughton on 8th October 1900 to Fred Poskitt (1873 – 1937) and Martha Ann Cupit (1874-1915) who married on 18th February 1893 at Castleford All Saints Church. Walter, the fourth child and second son of seven children born to the couple, was baptised at the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, Glasshoughton on 31st October 1900 when the family were living at Church Field, Glasshoughton.
In 1901 the family, of the same address, comprised Fred, Martha Ann and four of their children, three of whom were born at Castleford and Walter aged five months born in Glasshoughton. Fred was a hewer.
By 1910 the family had moved to live at 14, Eldon Terrace, Flushdyke, Ossett where they had their youngest child, Mary Caroline. In 1911 Walter was ten years old and at school; he lived only a few doors along Eldon Terrace from Charles Robert Wilkinson aged thirteen.
(Left)Eldon Terrace as remembered by Douglas Brammer in his book Sketches of Past Times Flushdyke & Ossett 2017.
Charles Robert Wilkinson died in WWI and is remembered at the Ossett War Memorial and his biography can be seen on Ossett Heritage at this link; https://ossettheritage.co.uk/ossett-in-ww1/ossett-ww1-fallen/all/charles-robert-wilkinson/
In early 1915 Walter’s mother, Mary Ann, passed away aged 40 years and three years later, in spring 1918 he lost his sister, Maggie, aged 15 years.
The next time we see Walter Sampson Poskitt is 1921 when he was in the Main Mechanical Transport Stores at Hinaidi Cantonments, Baghdad where he was serving with the Mesopotamia Expeditionary Force in the Royal Army Service Corps Mechanical Transport Company. Walter was 20 years old and single. It’s not known when he enlisted but because of his age it seems likely to have been post WWI but he may have signed on for several years.
He was back in the U.K. by early 1932 when he married Annie Maria Weston of Ravensthorpe, Dewsbury. In the same year a May issue of the London Gazette reported that Walter Sampson Poskitt was appointed to an official position of postman albeit in Mirfield and Birmingham. In 1939 Walter, unsurprisingly a postman, his wife Annie Maria and their four children, Gwendoline (born 1933), Donald (1934), Randolph (1936) and Walter H. (1939) were living at 9, Brook Square, Dewsbury. In summer 1940 the couple had a fifth child, Gerald.
Walter Sampson Poskitt at war
Germany declared war on Great Britain on 3rd September 1939 and shortly afterwards Walter, now aged 39 years, enlisted and joined the York and Lancaster Regiment, 2nd battalion, with service number 4736555 and rank of Lance Corporal. At the out – break of WWII the 2nd Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment was based in Khartoum on garrison duties. In July 1940 they moved to Egypt and then to Palestine, part of the 14th Infantry Brigade in the 6th Infantry Division. In May 1940 the Brigade moved to Cairo and was then broken up. The 2nd Battalion went to Alexandria and on 1st November 1940, they sailed for Crete, arriving at Suda Bay on the 2nd November. In early 1941 the 14th Brigade was reformed and spent its time building defences on the island.
Walter may have had a part in these actions but the evidence of the date of his enlistment is unknown. What is known is that he was awarded the General Service Medal for his service with the York and Lancaster. It is also known that he died in service on 31st January 1941 and that the details of Walter’s death were modified by the War Office to show not simply that he had “died” but that he “died as a result of an accident”. The Newcastle Journal and North Mail carried the following news on Thursday 12th June 1941 which reveals the accidental death in January and the fact that Walter’s body was not found until June 1941.
The accident happened at Jarrow, South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England on the south bank of the River Tyne. It appears that Walter was embarking at the time of the accident, perhaps with the intention of returning to his Regiment.
Walter’s widow, Annie Maria, the mother of four young children all under the age of nine, had little choice but to wed again. In late 1948 she married Charles Gott in Dewsbury District. The couple appear not to have had any children.
Walter Sampson Poskitt, York and Lancaster Regiment is Remembered with Honour at Dewsbury Cemetery (Cons. Sec. K. Grave 187). His name is also remembered at the Dewsbury Cenotaph at Crow Nest. Walter will also be remembered by his name at the Ossett War Memorial alongside his brothers and sisters in arms; The Ossett Fallen.
Dewsbury Cemetery Dewsbury Cenotaph Plaque
SOURCES
Researched by The Ossett Fallen Team 2023. Biography by Alan Howe.
Commonwealth War Grave Commission.
https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2407480/walter-sampson-poskitt/
