Sergeant John Robert Robson Oct 1888 - 1978

Sergeant John Robert Robson

John Robert Robson (Jack) was born in Spennymoor, Durham in 1888.  His family were coalminers and moved around a great deal before settling in the Dudley area in the early 1900s.  Jack himself worked in the pit from the age of 14.  He was married in 1913 and joined the army on October 24th 1914 as part of the Northumberland Fusiliers.  He was quickly transferred to the newly formed Somerset Light Infantry and began his training with the 8th Battalion in Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire. As part of D company, he embarked for France just before the battle of Loos in September 1915.
 
In February 1916, he transferred to the Royal Engineers 182 tunneling company as a sapper.  He served with the RE for three months until he was wounded and transferred home.  He spent some time in the Military Hospital in Bagthorpe, Nottingham and the Sanitary Royal Hospital Chelsea before being discharged in February 1917.
 
He eventually returned to coalmining at Dudley Colliery. Presumably he joined the Home Guard in 1940.  I think the photo of him in the Home Guard might have been taken in front of Dudley School but this is just a guess.  He is seated in the front row, on the right.  His great-nephew remembers visiting Dudley while the Home Guard took part in training.  They had set up a zip wire on Dudley Welfare and he remembers my grandma (Jack's daughter) going down it.
 

Photograph and information kindly supplied and written by Susan O'Hagan

John Willie Sams