George William Benson (1888-1917)
Born in Melsonby served with DLI killed in action in Battle of Arras
George William Benson died on 13 April 1917 in the fields of mud which surrounded the town of Arras, in Picardy, Northern France. He was serving with the 1/9th Battalion of the Durham Light Infantry at the time, a long way from the green fields of North Yorkshire which he called home.
George was born in Melsonby, a village near Richmond, North Yorkshire, in July 1888. His father, John, was a farm labourer from Haxby, near York, but, due to the nature of his work, he and his wife, Hannah, and later their children, regularly moved around the farms of North Yorkshire and County Durham. In all, John and Hannah had ten children, although only seven survived childhood. George was the second to youngest of the surviving children.
On 11 November 1915, George enlisted in Darlington, initially in the 5th (Reserve) Battalion of the DLI as a private. It seems likely that after basic training, he went to France in July or August 1915, but certainly on 16th January 1917, he was posted to the 9th Battalion, DLI.
During April 1917, the battalion was engaged in the Battle of Arras. On the 13th, the men came under sustained machine gun fire and heavy shelling, suffering many casualties. One officer and 13 other ranks died that day. George was among them.
George’s body was not identified so his name is commemorated on the Arras memorial.
Civil Parish: Darlington
Birth date: 1888
Death date: 13-Apr-1917
Armed force/civilian: Army
Residence: Low Grange Farm, Melsonby, Nr Richmond, North Yorkshire (1891 census)
Stapleton, North Yorkshire (ecclesiastical parish of Croft St peter’s, Civil parish of Stapleton 1901 census)
Employment: Labourer
Family: Parents: John Benson (b 1854), Hannah Benson (b 1853)
Siblings: Thomas Benson (b 1876 in Darlington), Elizabeth A Benson (b 1879 in Dalton, Yorkshire), Sarah J Benson (b 1880 in Hartforth, Yorks), Frances Mary Benson (b 1883 in High Langdale, Yorks), Margaret Benson (b 1886 in Broken House, Yorks), Lawrence Benson (b 1890 in Melsonby), Harriet Benson (1894-1906, born in Darlington)
Military service:
Private 325888
Regimental number 7538
5th (Reserve) Battalion DLI
Transferred to 9th DLI in January 1917
Medal(s): British War Medal
Victory Medal
Gender: Male
Contributed by Kelloe Visitor, Trimdon Station