Joseph Reginald's Story.
EARLY LIFE
Joseph Reginald Rushton was born on 7 July 1896 and baptised at St George's Church, Sutton, south Macclesfield on 28 February 1897, the son of Mary (née Hazledine) and George Henry Rushton, a shopkeeper of 8 Snow Hill Terrace, Macclesfield.
By 1901 the family had moved to 8 Windmill Square, Macclesfield, where four-year-old Joseph was living with his parents and siblings William (17, a blacksmith) and Lily (9).
Joseph's mother died in 1910 and in 1911 fourteen-year-old Joseph was working as a silk hand and living at Bamford House, Black Road, Macclesfield, with his widowed father and siblings Lilly (19), twins Bertha and Florence (9) and brother Frank (6).
In 1916 Joseph's father George married Eliza Clayton.
Prior to enlistment, Joseph was employed as a paper worker for Messrs Backhouse and Coppock.
WW1 SERVICE
In December 1915, Joseph enlisted in Macclesfield with the Cheshire Regiment. He was drafted to Salonika in August 1916, and temporarily attached to the 9th South Lancashire Regt, rejoining the 12th Cheshire Regiment in November 1916.
On 10 May 1918, the Macclesfield Times reported that Joseph had been seriously wounded:
Pte J R Rushton, son of Mr and Mrs Rushton, Bamford Buildings, Gunco Lane, who has been with the Cheshire Regt in Salonica for about two years, has been severely wounded in the head and back. The official intimation received by the parents states that the wounds were caused by shell, which had penetrated the brain and chest. Twenty-one years of age, Pte Rushton was educated at St Peter's School. He also attended the church and was a member of the Young Man's Class. He was, prior to enlistment, employed by Messrs Backhouse and Coppock. Pte Rushton was very well-known in local junior football circles.
The following week, the newspaper reported that Joseph had succumbed to his wounds:
Mr and Mrs Rushton, Bamfords Buildings, Gunco Lane, have received a telegram [informing them] that their son, Pte J R Rushton, Ches Regt, died of wounds in hospital in Salonica on May 4th.
Joseph was treated and died at No. 31 Casualty Clearing Station, Salonika, Greece. The precise location of this hospital is not known.
COMMEMORATION
Private Joseph Rushton is buried in Sarigol Military Cemetery, Greece, grave ref. B. 298. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission holds casualty details for Private Joseph Rushton, and he is listed on the Imperial War Museum's Lives of the First World War website.
In Macclesfield, Private Joseph Rushton is commemorated on the Park Green, Town Hall, St Michael’s Church and St Peter's Church war memorials, and on the Macclesfield Ancient Order of Foresters roll of honour.
SOURCES
GRO (England & Wales) Index: Births, Marriages, Deaths
Census (England & Wales): 1901, 1911, 1921
WWI British Army Service Records (Find My Past)
MH106: WWI Representative Selection of Military Hospitals Admissions and Discharge Registers (Forces War Records): MH106/652 First World War Representative Medical Records from No. 31 Casualty Clearing Station
Commonwealth War Graves Commission website
Lives of the First World War website
Macclesfield Times: 10 and 17 May 1918
Research by Rosie Rowley, Congleton.