Pte 24661 Harold Albert Alker

• Age: 23
• From: Wigan
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 18th Btn
• Died Wednesday 3rd July 1918
• Commemorated at: Berlin South West Cem
  Panel Ref: III.C.8

Harold Albert Alker was born 12 September 1894. His father and mother are not recorded but he appears on the 1901 Census aged 7 as the grandson of blacksmith, James and Anne Alker (nee Ball) at 90 Ormskirk Road, Upholland, Lancs.

It is likely that their daughter Louisa Annie had Harold in September 1894 out of wedlock prior to marrying her cousin who lived with them Arthur Alker whom she married in January 1898. They had 6 more children pre 1911 of which two sadly died Doris Annie aged 6 in 1907 and Arthur Stanley aged 0 in 1906. Another daughter Dorothy Louisa was born in 1912.

The 1911 Census shows Harold aged 16 as a colliery waggon filler above ground at White Moss Colliery, he is still living with his grandparents James and Anne now at 104 Ormskirk Road, Upholland.

He enlisted as Private 24661 Harold Albert Alker into the 18th Battalion of The King's Liverpool Regiment and reached France on 07th November 1915.

The battalion diary for the action of 22/03/1918 states:
 
"The Battle of St. Quentin  22nd March 1918 the weather was Thick Fog like the day before .....
The 18th were established south west of Vaux........
The 18th were to make a Counter Attack against the new German Offensive.....
By mid afternoon  it was obvious that Stevens Redoubt could not be held, and when both its flanks had given way, its Commander ordered a withdrawal,  but not all the 18th troops were able to retreat however, many were captured, especially No.3 Company which was evidently surrounded, as only about a dozen men from this Company managed to escape. By late afternoon the situation had become critical and the Battalion withdrew to Ham, arriving there at 7.30 p.m.
Its losses for that day were quite heavy in terms of those wounded or taken Prisoner!"

Harold was one of those taken Prisoner, but we are not sure whether he was wounded. The POW records show that he was captured at Ham on 23rd March 1918. On 3 July 1918 his death aged 23 was reported at 4.15 a.m. in the Stendal POW camp in Germany 78 miles West of Berlin, where he presumably was initially buried but he was one of the 140 bodies moved by the CWGC into the 1,176  Berlin South West Military Cemetery at Brandenburg, Stahnsdorf , Plot III Row C  Grave 8 which is 22 km South West of Berlin.

His headstone bears the epitaph:

"HE IS GONE WE FOLLOW SLOWLY TREASURING A MEMORY HOLY".

In 1922-23 it was decided that the graves of Commonwealth servicemen who had died all over Germany should be brought together into four permanent cemeteries. Berlin South-Western was one of those chosen and in 1924-25, graves were brought into the cemetery from 146 burial grounds in eastern Germany. There are now 1,176 First World War servicemen buried or commemorated in the Commonwealth plot at Berlin South-Western Cemetery. The total includes special memorials to a number of casualties buried in other cemeteries in Germany whose graves could not be found. The following cemeteries are among those from which graves were brought to Berlin South-Western Cemetery:- ALTDAMM PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, 8 kilometres East of Stettin, in the Province of Pommern (Pomerania), contained the graves of 46 soldiers from the United Kingdom, three from Newfoundland and two from Canada, who died in 1915-1918. BUDEROSE PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, near Guben, in the Province of Brandenburg, contained the graves of 18 soldiers from the United Kingdom, one from Canada and one from Australia, all of whom died in 1918. CROSSEN PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, 3 kilometres East of Crossen, on the river Oder, in the Province of Brandenburg, contained the graves of 66 sailors and soldiers from the United Kingdom, one from Australia and one from South Africa all of whom died in 1918. DOBERITZ PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, about 19 kilometres West of Berlin, in the Province of Brandenburg, contained the graves of 38 sailors and soldiers from the United Kingdom who died in 1914-1918. HASENHEIDE GARRISON CEMETERY, on the South side of the city of Berlin, contained the graves of 369 Russian, 125 French, and 58 Belgian, American, Italian, Rumanian, Portuguese or Serbian soldiers; 63 sailors, soldiers and Marines from the United Kingdom; and one Indian soldier. HEILSBERG PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, in Ostpreussen (East Prussia), contained the graves of 50 soldiers and one Marine from the United Kingdom, who died in 1917 and 1918. Only twelve of which were found when the graves were being recovered; the remainder are still buried at Heilsberg. KLEIN WITTENBERG OLD CEMETERY, 3 kilometres West of Wittenberg, in the Prussian province of Saxony, contained the graves of 23 soldiers, one Marine and eight civilians from the United Kingdom and one soldier from India, all of whom died in 1915; the NEW (or PRISONERS OF WAR) CEMETERY, those of 71 soldiers and three civilians from the United Kingdom, two soldiers from Canada and one from Australia, who died in 1915, 1917 and 1918; and WITTENBERG OLD SMALL CEMETERY those of two soldiers from the United Kingdom who died in 1914 and 1915. The first and third of these cemeteries are associated with the outbreak of typhus at the Wittenberg camp in December 1914. LAMSDORF PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, in Schlesien (Silesia), contained the graves of 81 soldiers from the United Kingdom, one from Australia and one from New Zealand, who died in 1917-1919 (it was used for French burials in 1870-71). MAGDEBURG MILITARY CEMETERY, in Prussian Saxony, contained the graves of 24 soldiers and one Marine from the United Kingdom who died in 1915-1918. MERSEBURG TOWN CEMETERY, in Prussian Saxony, contained the graves of 12 soldiers from the United Kingdom who died in 1914-1917, and the PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY those of 33 soldiers from the United Kingdom who died in 1917-1918. OPPELN TOWN CEMETERY, in Upper Silesia, contained the graves of 41 soldiers from the United Kingdom who died in 1921-22. They belonged to the British force stationed in Upper Silesia during the Plebiscite. Thirty of them, who died after the legal termination of the war, were left buried at Oppeln. SCHNEIDEMUHL PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, in Posen, West Prussia, on the borders of Poland, contained the graves of 76 soldiers from the United Kingdom, five from Australia, three of the Royal Guernsey Light Infantry, and one from Canada, who died in 1915-1918. Eighteen of the graves could not be recovered. STARGARD PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, in Pomerania, contained the graves of 37 soldiers and one Marine from the United Kingdom, two soldiers from New Zealand and one of the Royal Guernsey Light Infantry, who died in 1917-1918. STENDAL PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY, in Prussian Saxony, contained the graves of 140 soldiers from the United Kingdom, two from Canada and one from Newfoundland, who died in 1917-1918. ZERBST (HEIDETOR) CEMETERY, in Anhalt, contained the graves of two soldiers from the United Kingdom who died in 1914-1915, and the PRISONERS OF WAR CEMETERY those of 45, who died in 1917-1918.

British Records acknowledged his Death on 6th July 1918

His Soldiers Effects reflects that his pay of £15 8s 8d was sent on 23/04/19 to his Mother Louisa Alker and a War Gratuity of £16 on 23/09/1919

His grandmother Ann Alker of 104 Ormskirk Road, Upholland, Wigan appears to have claimed his Pension.

Harold Albert is commemorated on the Upholland War Memorial.

Grateful thanks are extended to Alan Chapman and Ian Chambers without whom this biography would be somewhat incomplete.

We currently have no further information on Harold Albert Alker, If you have or know someone who may be able to add to the history of this soldier, please contact us.