Pte 26621 Joseph Emil Johnson

• Age: 20
• From: Liverpool
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 19th Btn
• K.I.A Sunday 30th July 1916
• Commemorated at: Thiepval Memorial
  Panel Ref: P&F1D8B &8 C.

Joseph Emil Johnson was born in Liverpool on 05th January 1896, the son of Samuel Johnson and his wife Annie (nee Kennelly) who were married in 1891 in Liverpool. He was baptised in St. Francis Xavier's Church, Liverpool, on 01st February 1896. Annie had been married before to a George Hugh Harvey with whom she had two children, Annie Isabella and Arthur William. On the marriage record, 21st Feb 1876 at St Mary, Edge Hill, George was a 24 year old bar proprietor of 6 Bedford Street Nth, father Thomas a sailor, whilst Ann was aged 21 of 4 Hope Place, father John a sailor. Samuel had a child Maria from a previous relationship, no marriage record found. However a Catholic baptism has been found in 1885 for Elizabeth Maria, father Samuel Johnson, mother Sophie Maria Devisher (real name Joanne Pearson).  

By the 1881 Census Annie, 23, with Anna and Arthur, was living at 84 Opie Street with her widowed father John Kennelly and brother.  She is described as a car driver’s wife; her husband is not in the household. 

It is not known what happened to George Hugh. 

In 1871 Samuel was aged 13 and a pupil of Mount St Mary’s Catholic College, Spinkhill, Derbyshire. When his mother Mary Hilton Johnson died in 1887 he was living with his family at 36 Rawcliffe Road, Walton. He was described as an Analytical Chemist on the probate.

Samuel was described as a chemist in the first census after their marriage in 1891, (recorded as Johnston). They were living at 174 Queens Road, Everton; Samuel, 34, was born in Ulverston, Lancashire. Annie was 33. They had three children, Anna I., Arthur W., and Maria, 6 (likely Samuel’s daughter from his first marriage).  

Samuel and Annie had three children:  Herbert Otto, born in 1892, Rosalina Leonora 1893, and Joseph Emil. It is not known why both boys had Germanic middle names, perhaps they were names of German chemists he had studied. 

News of cruelty towards his children was featured in the Liverpool Weekly Courier on Saturday 27 November 1897: 

CRUELTY TO CHILDREN.  

At the Liverpool police Court on Tuesday, before Mr Stewart, Samuel Johnson, a man of respectable appearance, described as a chemist by profession, was brought up in custody charged with having neglected his three children in a manner likely to injure their health. Inspector Cole of the National Society of the Prevention of Cruelty to Children said the prisoner had been before the court on October 20th, but the case against him was adjourned for a month in order to give him an opportunity of improving the condition of the children. Instead of an improvement the condition was worse. The prisoner, he was informed, had been offered a situation in which he could earn £2 a week, but he would not work. The prisoner was also charged with having used threatening and abusive language to his brother, Richard Bright Johnson, on Saturday last. Mr F. Murphy appeared for the prosecution, and said that the prisoner was under some impression that his father had left him some money which the brother had wrongfully appropriated to himself. That was not so and a will which he had in his possession would show. Mr R. B. Johnson said the prisoner had followed him along the street from Williamson Square to the Central Station threatening to assault him, charging him with stealing a watch and asking him for money. The prisoner, who admitted to the main part of the charge, was ordered to pay a fine of 40s, or in default to be imprisoned for one month. For neglecting his children he was sentenced to three months hard labour.  

A possible scenario is Samuel’s mental health deteriorated further and he was admitted to Whittingham Asylum,nr Preston on the 11th June 1901 and died on the 21st Jan 1902. 

On the 1901 census the family are living at 7 Paley Street, Everton where an Arthur Harvey is the name on the Electoral Roll for this address. Annie, aged 45, appears as the head of the household and is still recorded married. Living with her are her children, Herbert aged 9 and Joseph aged 5. Her step children are also living with her, 23 year old Anna who is a book binder and Arthur aged 21 who is a gas lamplighter. Anna had served an apprenticeship as a book binder which was fairly unusual for a girl at this time. Annie and Samuel had another child Rose born in 1893, but it’s not known where she is at the time of the census.

Annie is a widow at the time of the 1911 census, she’s living at 21 Plumpton Street in Everton in the house of Thomas Hayes, 76, a widower born in Ireland, and his daughters Agnes and Helena.  Annie, 53, is described as a sister-in-law, housekeeper. Both sons, Herbert and Joseph, and daughter Rosa were working in the book binding business. Both of Annie’s stepchildren were married. (The families were closely connected as Herbert Johnson and Agnes Hayes were witnesses at Arthur’s marriage in 1910). 

Joseph enlisted in Liverpool and served in the 19th Battalion, The King’s Liverpool Regiment as Private No 26621. The amount of the War Gratuity suggests that he volunteered in the spring of 1915.

Formed on 07^th September 1914 the 19^th Battalion trained locally at Sefton Park and remained living at home or in rented accommodation until November 1914. They then moved to the hutted accommodation at Lord Derby’s estate at Knowsley Hall. On 30th April 1915 the 19th Battalion alongside the other three Pals battalions left Liverpool via Prescot Station for further training at Belton Park, Grantham. They remained here until September 1915 when they reached Larkhill Camp on Salisbury Plain.

He arrived in France on 29th December 1915.

Joseph was killed in action on the 30th July 1916, aged 20, at the village of Guillemont, France, during the Somme Offensive.

19^th Battalion Diary 

MALTZ HORN FARM

BATTLE begun. ZERO hour 4:45 am. The Battalion reached its objective, but suffered heavy losses, and had to evacuate its position owing to no reinforcements.

Everard Wyrall gives details of the attack in his book The History of The King’s Regiment; 

"The 2nd Attack on Guillemont- 29th July 1916 the 89th Brigade the 20th King's were to attack on the right and the 19th on the left. During the evening of the 29th the night was dark and foggy when the Battalions moved off and the 19th with Lt Col G Rollo commanding, when passing the South east of the Briqueterie they were heavily shelled first with H E and then with a new kind of asphyxiating Gas shell which had curious results, at first it had no nasty effect but about 8 hrs later men began to fall sick with violent headaches and pains in the stomach. All ranks had to wear gas masks which in the darkness and mist made the going terribly difficult. It was indeed wonderful that they were able to reach their Assembly point at all. But they did and by 2.45 a.m. on the 30th July 1916 the Btn was assembled having suffered about 30 Casualties on the way up ready for the Zero hour at 4.45 a.m.

It is known that the two left Companies of the 19th under Capt. Dodd and Capt. Nicholson advanced in touch with the 2nd Royal Scots Fusiliers on their left although they suffered many casualties from Machine gun Fire did not encounter many Germans and reached their final objective about the time allocated, beginning at once to dig in south of the orchard on the South east corner of Guillemont.  

On the left of the 19th the Scots Fusiliers most gallantly forced their way through Guillemont to the eastern side of the village but were soon overwhelmed by the enemy and few returned. 

At 8 a.m. finding that the village was not held the two left Companies of the 19th received no word from the rear or either flank believed themselves to be totally isolated so were forced to fall back and dig in, their position being untenable.

At midday the effective fighting strength of the 19th Btn was just 7 Officers and 43 other ranks" 

When darkness fell on the battlefield the 30^th Division held a line from the railway on the eastern side of Trones Wood , southwards and including Arrow Head Copse, to east of Maltz Horn Farm. On this line the division was relieved by the 55^th Division during the early hours of the 31^st July.

Casualties in the 19^th Battalion were 11 Officers and 435 Other Ranks 

The events of 30^th July 1916 were regarded at the time as Liverpool’s blackest day. There follows an extract from The History of the 89^th Brigade written by Brigadier General Ferdinand Stanley which gives an indication of the events of the day.

Guillemont

Well the hour to advance came, and of all bad luck in the world it was a thick fog; so thick that you couldn’t see more than about ten yards. It was next to impossible to delay the attack – it was much too big an operation- so forward they had to go. It will give some idea when I say that on one flank we had to go 1,750 yards over big rolling country. Everyone knows what it is like to cross enclosed country which you know really well in a fog and how easy it is to lose your way. Therefore, imagine these rolling hills, with no landmarks and absolutely unknown to anyone. Is it surprising that people lost their way and lost touch with those next to them? As a matter of fact, it was wonderful the way in which many men found their way right to the place we wanted to get to. But as a connected attack it was impossible.

The fog was intense it was practically impossible to keep direction and parties got split up. Owing to the heavy shelling all the Bosches had left their main trenches and were lying out in the open with snipers and machine guns in shell holes, so of course our fellows were the most easy prey.

It is so awfully sad now going about and finding so many splendid fellows gone.   

Joseph was at first reported Missing, and his name appeared as such in the list of K.L.R. casualties published on 18th September 1916.  

King’s(Liverpool Regiment) - Johnson, 26621, J. E.;   

His death was later presumed, for official purposes, as having occurred on or since 30th July 1916 and was reported in the Liverpool Echo on Friday 17th August 1917: 

JOHNSON—Previously reported missing July 30, 1916, now presumed killed that day, in his 20th year, Private Joseph Johnson, K.L.R.—Sadly missed his Mother, 38, Radcliffe-street. 

Joseph's body was not recovered or was subsequently lost as he has no known grave and is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial. 

The Thiepval Memorial, the Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, bears the names of more than 72,000 officers and men of the United Kingdom and South African forces who died in the Somme sector before 20 March 1918 and have no known grave. Over 90% of those commemorated died between July and November 1916. 

On 01st August 1932 the Prince of Wales and the President of France inaugurated the Thiepval Memorial in Picardy. The inscription reads: “Here are recorded the names of officers and men of the British Armies who fell on the Somme battlefields between July 1915 and March 1918 but to whom the fortune of war denied the known and honoured burial given to their comrades in death.”

He earned his three medals.

His Army pay and a War Gratuity of £4-10s went to his mother Annie. 

Joseph’s loss was not the only grievous loss suffered by the family as his brother Herbert also served in the 8th Battalion of The King’s Liverpool Regiment as Private 30165 8th Battalion. He died of wounds on 22nd of September 1917 at the Battle of Ypres. Herbert now rests at Nine Elms Cemetery, near Ypres in Belgium, where his epitaph reads, 

“ON WHOSE SOUL SWEET JESUS HAVE MERCY”

A notice in the Liverpool Daily Post on 06th December 1917 reads:

JOHNSON: September 22nd at casualty clearing station in his 25th year, Private Herbert Johnson K.L.R. (for nine years with the Central Printing Company) Sadly missed by his mother and all at 38, Radcliffe Street.

Annie, by then living at 38 Radcliffe Street, was awarded a combined pension for both sons, but the amount cannot be determined.  

Their mother appears to have died in 1934, aged 77.

His sister Rosa entered the County Asylum in Rainhill, date unknown.  She died there  “after much suffering” in 1941.

J. and H. Johnson are commemorated in St. Francis Xavier Church, Liverpool.    

Joseph's name is recorded in the Hall of Remembrance in Liverpool Town Hall, Panel 66.

Herbert's name is also recorded in the Hall of Remembrance at Panel 60 Right.  

We currently have no further information on Joseph Emil Johnson, if you have or know someone who may be able to add to the history of this soldier, please contact us.