14215 SGT. F. HUNT. SCO.RIF.

 

Frederick Hunt was born in Bamber Bridge on 9 May 1890 and baptised at St Saviour’s on 8 June.  His father was Moses Hunt (b. 1864 in Darwen), a coal agent.  His mother was Elizabeth Gore (b. 1864 in Cuerden).  Moses and Elizabeth were married in 1885 and they had 8 children, one of whom died in infancy.  The survivors were: Mabel (b. 1886), Harry (b. 1887), the Frederick, Ada (b. 1894), Elizabeth (b. 1896), George (b. 1898) and finally James (b. 1902).  In 1911, the Hunt family was living at 18 St Mary’s Road, Bamber Bridge, but Frederick had married the previous year.  His wife was Agnes Iddon (b. 1887 in Bamber Bridge) and in 1911 Fred and Agnes were boarding with the Higham family at 3 Cambridge Road, Bamber Bridge.  Fred was a coal agent like his father.  Agnes was a rover in a card room (in a cotton mill).

 

At the outbreak of War, Fred enlisted with the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles).  He was assigned service number 14215 and posted to 10th Battalion.  10th (Service) Battalion was formed at Hamilton in September 1914 as part of K2 and came under orders of 46th Brigade in 15th (Scottish) Division.  After training they landed in France on 7-13 July 1915.  Fred landed on 11 July.   

 

The Division moved to the front a few kilometres south of Béthune where they engaged in preparation for the Battle of Loos.  Fred was wounded, presumably by sniper or shell fire, in the days before the battle.  He died on 13 September 1915.  He was 25 years old.

 

On 25 September, the opening day of the Battle of Loos, 253 officers and men from 10Bn were killed.  In many places British artillery had failed to cut the German wire in advance of the attack.  The British used chlorine gas in the prelude to the attack but it was partially ineffectual due to a change in wind direction, so British troops had to advance through their own gas barrage.  Advancing over open fields, within range of German machine guns and artillery, British losses were devastating. The British were able to break through the weaker German defences and capture the town of Loos-en-Gohelle, mainly due to numerical superiority.  However, supply and communications problems, combined with the late arrival of reserves, meant that the breakthrough could not be exploited. 

 

Rank:  Serjeant

Service Number: 14215

Date of death:  13/09/1915

Regiment/Service:  Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), 10th Bn. 
Cemetery/memorial reference: I. A. 16.

Cemetery:  NOEUX-LES-MINES COMMUNAL CEMETERY

Additional information:  Husband of Mrs. Agnes Hunt, of 252 Station Road, Bamber Bridge, Preston.

 

Fred’s brothers, Harry and George, also served but I have no records.  Likewise, Agnes Iddon Hunt had a brother, John Stephen Iddon, who is presumably the J S Iddon on St Saviour’s Roll of Honour.  If that’s the right man, he was born in 1899 and he may have enlisted but not been sent to France.

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