William Henry's Story.
The research into the story of Sergeant William Bowers has been one of confusion. He is recorded on three war memorials and has been researched by John Eaton for his book "Hazel Grove to Armageddon". More recent research for the Stockport Soldiers project only adds to the confusion. There are some aspects of his life and death that are certain. He had been born in Poynton, was a married man and the father of one child and he worked at Robinson's hat works in Romiley. He had enlisted in Stockport at the beginning of the war, around August or September 1914, and landed in France 19th July 1915.
William would see action at Vimy and on the Somme. By October 1917 the battalion were in the Givenchy Sector. The battalion war diary states:
5th October: The battalion relieved the 1st Kings Liverpool in the right subsector of the Givenchy Sector. A Coy. In Support B, D + C in the front line, B and D holding the Givenchy Ridge, the most important tactical feature in the sector.
6th The sector was quiet during the day.
7th Slight enemy activity (Artillery) in the neighbourhood of Givenchy church and keep.
8th At 2 a.m. a German belonging to the 453rd Prussian Infantry was captured by B. Coy. The divisional commander inspected the trenches and decided that a sap must be made to the New Crater.
9th The work on the new sap commenced. Day Quiet
10th The digging of the new sap continued. Day Quiet.
11th The battalion was relived by the 1st Wiltshire, relief commenced at 4pm and was completed at 6pm. On being relieved the battalion marched independently to Gorre Chateau
12th Gorre Area. Day spent cleaning of clothes and equipment.
The Trench map shows the Givenchy Sector, although the diaries do not mention which crater the battalion were building a sap to, the craters can be seen with sap lines heading towards them. Also Givenchy Keep, mentioned in the war diary can be seen.
William is listed as killed in action, within the war diaries there is no mention of any casualties, it can be therefore assumed that William was killed either by shell fire or sniper during the 9th October while worked carried on constructing the sap. His date of death and place of burial are correct, Gorre British and Indian Cemetery was just 3.5 miles behind the lines, it is possible that his body was taken back to Gorre when the battalion were relieved on the 11th. Gorre Chateau was the site of several artillery emplacements, a rifle range and an improvised parade ground and football pitch. Throughout 1916 and ’17 British troops could be seen drilling in the fields next to the chateau or unloading supplies from barges on the La Bassée Canal, which runs just south of the village.
William must have had some connection with Hazel Grove as he is recorded on the local War Memorial. John Eaton concludes that he was living there at the time of his enlistment and that his wife only moved to 32 Hawkins Street, South Reddish after the war. Recent research indicates that a newspaper obituary of the time shows her to be already living there in 1917. It is, of course, possible that she moved there sometime between his enlistment and his death. Equally, his commemoration on the Memorial may be by family who lived in the area. The South Reddish Memorial wrongly records him as serving with the 8th Battalion, Cheshire Regiment. That Battalion saw all its service in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq).