Entries tagged with “laxey_villa” from Palmerston Residents Association

Two of the members of our association have written a wonderful article about a family connection between our area and the first world war. They have also very kindly offered help to anyone needing advice or guidance about tracing a family war connection in France. The story begins at Laxey Villa, a home on Larkfield Road that will be familiar to many of our readers. Our Family has always believed this to be our great-grand mother Sarah Johnston, between this young married couple outside Laxey House which still stands in Larkfield road to this day. We don't know what the connection is with the Armstrong family maybe a house keeper or just a friend Sarah had a hard life, like most families at the turn of the century. She threw out her drunkard of a husband and did her best to rear all her eight children. She lived at number 2 Carew Street, Ballymacarrett. When the political situation in Ireland came about, some of her boys joined the Ulster Volunteer Force to fight against the home rule bill being enforced on Ulster Protestants. My grandfather John Johnston was already a soldier in the Royal Inniskillen Fusiliers. When war was declared three more of her boys signed up. What Sarah thought about this we don't know, but she must have been devastated. Of the four boys that went to war her youngest son Hugh was killed on June 1915 aged 19 and is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial to the missing, Ypres Belgium. John was wounded 1st July 1916 the other two sons came home safely. This is a photo of Hugh & John taken 1914 before going to France. This is what started our search. I was always told that Hugh had died at the Somme and 18 years ago while travelling through that part of France I decided to look for his grave .After a long very hot day of pushing my daughter in her wheelchair up stoney lanes to little war graves cemeteries and taking lots of photos with no film in the camera [ stupid me ] our search was unsuccessful. So after a lot more research I found Hugh had died on 6th June 1915 at a place called Bellwarde near Ypres Belgium. This is Bellwarde today, a nice peaceful place Since then Carol and myself have joined the Somme Association and read books walked the fields of France and Belgium loved it so much that we spend a fair part of each year in France learning more all the time meeting people from all over the World and sometimes helping out at the Ulster tower. If anyone would like help in researching their relatives who fought and died in the Wars. If they have a grave or their name is on a memorial. I may be able to help them in their research and supply them with a Memorial scroll. Please contact the association, or leave a comment if you would like to be put in touch with John & Carol.