Henry Bernal GREENWOOD

18/9, Sergeant. b. 1891, Bradford d. Fri. 30th June 1916 (aged 25)

Henry Bernal Greenwood had grown up in the area, the 1911 census shows him living at the Liberal Club in Clayton aged 19 with his Father William and Mother Mary Ann.

He was employed by Messrs. Jonas Sharp & Sons Ltd. of Hall Ings until he enlisted as a Private at the formation of the 2nd Pals in early January 1915. He quickly gained promotion to Sergeant and stayed with the Pals throughout all their training and early active service until the time of his death.

He married Hilda Greenwood on 21st July 1915, in St. Johns Church, Clayton. His occupation shown on the marriage certificate is a Soldier and living in Ripon. The couple moved to 10, Harlow Road, Lidget Green only a short distance from his parents William and Mary who now lived at 80, Cumberland Road.

During his early twenties he was the Captain of Clayton Association Football Club and his parents were the stewards of Clayton Liberal Club. Again, Henrys death was a sad one to the community as he was a well-known and prominent member of Clayton village life.

Henry was one of the Sergeants in the ‘B’ Company of the 2nd Bradford Pals, and despite press reports of the time Henry had died the night before the 1st July major offensive. The probable reason is that he was killed whilst on covert operations. He, along with forty one other men, were sent over the top the night before the offensive on a reconnaissance trench raiding trip. The party was ambushed and brutally attacked leaving over half of the men killed or wounded just before they reached the barbed wire across the middle of no-man’s land. The survivors brought the wounded back and reported that although the trenches were ‘full of men’ the wire seemed to be cut. This was to prove not to be the case the following morning. The Bradford Press reported that Henry had died of wounds on the 2nd of July 1916, 48 hours after his actual death perhaps in an attempt to cover up the true circumstances. This was a particularly important raid, as another Clayton casualty, 2nd Lieutenant John Worsnop was killed in action along with Greenwood.

Henry is commemorated on the THIEPVAL MEMORIAL.

Hilda Greenwood married a Sutcliffe Harper in 1921, in Keighley. Hilda and Sutcliffe had a daughter Irene E Harper in 1921. From Shipping records Hilda and Irene left Liverpool in 1929 for USA bound for Salt Lake City joining Hilda’s mother Rhoda, who left England to live in Salt Lake City in 1919, Hilda remarried Osbourne Pickles on 9th October 1930 in Farmington, Utah and she died in Salt Lake City on 26th December 1972.