The pages of the Salford and City Reporter from 100 years ago throw up some great stories and this one is not only sad but a little unusual.
The newspaper reported on the death of Private Alan Sedgewick, 30, who resided with his mother at Charles Street, Pendleton.
Alan had what I would imagine was a very interesting job before war broke out in August 1914; he was a pianist and violin player in an orchestra which made Atlantic crossings to and from America.
He had a taste of excitement when early that year a group of Irishmen attempted to board the boat to sail to America, however the authorities thought that they were members of the Irish Republican Army and had them arrested.
Watch: Horrible History – The Manchester Martyrs, 1867
This must have made Alan determined to join the army, and under the Lord Derby scheme (in which men between 18 and 41 who were not in a reserved occupation could enlist) he joined the D Company, 4th Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers.
Alan did his initial training at Bury and was then moved to Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria several days later.
Among his daily tasks he was made to build huts for the troops to sleep in.
However the newspaper reported that, Alan “not being used to the life and laborious outside duties, fell sick and was placed in the Military Hospital at Barrow”.
Sadly his condition deteriorated and he was moved to the Surgical Hospital at North Lonsdale, Barrow where he was operated on for an internal injury.
His condition worsened and he died three days after the operation, however before he lapsed into unconsciousness, he managed to recite from memory the 23rd Psalm, a reading often heard at funerals – “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters”.
It would appear that poor Alan knew that his time was up and was saying farewell to the world.
In a horrible twist of fate, his mother received a telegram from Alan on the morning that he died, telling her not to be alarmed at the change of address but that he was sick in hospital.
Later that same day she received yet another telegram informing her that her son had died in the hospital without regaining consciousness.
His body was conveyed to his home address in a coffin, supplied by the Government – the only consolation for his grieving mother.
His funeral service was held at St Thomas Church, Pendleton, which was his regular church of attendance.
At the reading he was described as being a “quiet and reserved man, and lived only for his music and the pleasure it gave to others”
He was buried at Southern Cemetery in Manchester with full military honours.
I found this story to be sad, because Alan Sedgewick sounded as if he was a shy and sensitive soul, not one cut out for the rigours of the army life, yet he volunteered to join up and do his bit and died without seeing combat.
