CASTLETON LANTERNS. Imagesof Unknown Servicemen.

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1 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :29 Page 1 1 CASTLETON LANTERNS Imagesof Unknown Servicemen In 2013 a box of old lantern slides were found in a loft at Alexandra Presbyterian Church, York Road, Belfast. Originally known as Castleton Presbyterian Church, the name Alexandra was adopted when the Castleton congregation merged with York Street Presbyterian Church in The slides were portraits of servicemen who had been members of Castleton before they went off to the Great War. The slides had been made by the famous Belfast photograper Alex R Hogg. The Great War ended on 11 November The slides were shown in the church on 16 December Many of the young men had made the supreme sacrifice. Their church and many of their home streets remain. Their memory was almost gone, but an ongoing project is gradually identifying who these young men were. This is their story.

2 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :29 Page 2 2 CASTLETON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (FOUNDED 1895) In the course of the nineteenth century Belfast expanded at an ever increasing rate as tens of thousands of people poured into the city from the surrounding countryside and further afield. One consequence of this was the founding of new churches to meet the spiritual needs of Belfast s growing population. One of these churches was Castleton Presbyterian Church. The formation of the congregation The congregation of Castleton was formed under the auspices of the Church Extension Committee of the Belfast Presbytery. In April 1895 Rev. James Knowles, a native of Ballymena, who was minister of Spa, near Ballynahinch, was called to work in Castleton. An iron church was erected at the junction of York Road and Castleton Avenue with the opening services held on 12 May Rev. Albert Pattison Black The next minister of Castleton was Rev. Albert Pattison Black, a son of the manse. His father, Rev. Samuel Black, had been minister of Corrick in County Tyrone. Prior to being installed in Castleton on 15 December 1914, he had been minister of Castledawson. During his ministry Castleton had the largest Bible Class in the British Isles, while the League of Church Loyalty grew to over 500 members. New Meeting House As the congregation developed so it outgrew the iron church. The well-known firm of Young & Mackenzie was appointed to design a new meeting house which was built of red brick. On Saturday, 27 March 1897 the ceremonial laying of four memorial stones took place in the building then in the process of construction. Rev. Knowles retired in July He remained, however, the senior minister of the congregation until his death in Union with York Street During the Belfast Blitz in 1941 the Castleton church building was damaged, while the meeting house of the York Street congregation was destroyed. It was then agreed to unite the two congregations under the name Alexandra. In order to facilitate this union, Rev. Black retired as minister of Castleton on 31 December 1941, becoming minister emeritus of the new congregation. He died in The first minister of Alexandra Presbyterian Church was Rev. F. Rupert Gibson, formerly of York Street.

3 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :29 Page 5 5 BELFAST PHOTOGRAPHER ALEX. R. HOGG Alexander R. Hogg, the man asked by Castleton Presbyterian Church to make the lantern slides from existing photographs of the congregation s men at the front, was one of the best-known and most accomplished Belfast photographers of his day. Family background Alexander Robert Hogg was born in Tullywest, near Saintfield, County Down, in 1870, the son of David and Mary Hogg. The Hogg family had been tenants on the Price estate for a number of generations prior to Alexander s birth. By 1890 David Hogg had moved with his wife and three children to Belfast. For over ten years they lived at 3 Trinity Street in the north of the city. In Belfast, David Hogg worked as a foreman in a stabling yard and later as a storekeeper. The Hoggs were Presbyterians. Alexander was apparently a member of the Third Presbyterian Church, Rosemary Street. Photographer From an early age Alexander was interested in photography. For a number of years he was gifted amateur, before setting up as a professional photographer, lanternist, and cinematographer in the family home in Trinity Street in By 1911 he was living in Chichester Road with his wife Sara Marion, a nurse who had been born in San Francisco. She died in In 1921 he opened a new studio in High Street, moving to Great Victoria Street in He lived above this studio with his second wife Margaret and here he died on 25 August Alexander s younger brother David, a school teacher, was also a photographer, though he remained an amateur. Photographs Most of Hogg s photographic work was through commissions from a wide range of businesses, professionals, and public bodies. He was employed on many occasions by Belfast Corporation, and for a time was the official photographer of the shipbuilding firm Workman Clark & Co. The Hogg Collection in the Ulster Museum includes some 5,500 glass plate negatives as well as numerous lantern slides. His photographs provide a fascinating insight into social and housing conditions in early twentieth-century Belfast. Hogg specialised in lantern slide shows. He appears in Belfast newspapers as early as 1897, giving illustrated lectures to VIP audiences at large venues such as the Grosvenor Hall and the Ulster Hall, on subjects such as Irish history, religion and reports from the wars in India. Below: A.R. Hogg photographing the dome of Belfast City Hall. BELUM.Y2030_H National Museums Northern Ireland, Collection Ulster Museum

4 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :29 Page 6 6 SERVICEMEN WITH STORIES Adair Name: Patrick Bryan Rank: Battery Sergeant Major Address: Greenmount Street Occupation: Fireman Regiment: 16th Battery, Motor Machine Gun Service. Other Details: Survived the war Signed the Ulster Covenant Mentioned in Dispatches Meritorious Service Medal Fee Name: Samuel Rank: Stoker Address: Harrisburg Street Occupation: unknown Regiment: Royal Navy HMS Hawke Died: (torpedo) Memorial: Chatham Naval Memorial Fulton Name: John James Rank: Sergeant Major Address: Mountcollyer Street Occupation: Labourer Regiment: Royal Army Medical Corps Other Details: Survived the war Mentioned in Dispatches Kennedy Name: Peter Rank: Stoker Address: Ritchie Street Occupation: Fireman in Workman Clark & Co. Regiment: Royal Navy, HMS Queen Mary Died: Memorial: Portsmouth Naval Memorial

5 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :29 Page 7 7 SERVICEMEN WITH STORIES Magill Name: James Rank: Lance-Corporal Address: Upper Canning Street Occupation: Shipyard worker in Workman Clark & Co. Regiment: Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Other Details: Survived the war McCann Name: James Rank: Lance-Corporal Address: Glasgow Street Occupation: Rivetters Boy Regiment: Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Died: Memorial: Thiepval McCann Name: Francis Ernest Rank: Sergeant Address: Glasgow Street Occupation: Plater's Helper Regiment: Royal Army Medical Corps Other Details: Survived the war Reid Name: James Rank: Private Address: Rowan Street Occupation: Worked at Midland Railways Regiment: Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Died: Memorial: Thiepval

6 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :29 Page 8 8 NAMES RANKS & REGIMENTS Brown Name: Alfred Rank: unknown Regiment: Royal Navy Doak Name: Gerald Garfield Rank: Squadron Quartermaster Sergeant Regiment: Royal Army Service Corps Duke Name: Wilson Gray Rank: Private Regiment: YCV Royal Irish Rifles Brown Name: Frederick Rank: Sapper Regiment: Royal Engineers Duff Name: John Rank: Second Lieutenant Regiment: Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Fraser Name: William Rank: Second Lieutenant Regiment: Royal Highlanders Black Watch

7 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :29 Page 9 9 NAMES RANKS & REGIMENTS Freebairn Name: Thomas Scott Rank: Private Regiment: Canadian Expeditionary Force Hunter Name: Robert Rank: Private Regiment: Canadian Expeditionary Force Hutchinson Name: Ernest Rank: Private Regiment: Highland Light Infantry Houston Name: John Rank: Lance-Corporal Regiment: Royal Highlanders Black Watch Hunter Name: James Nelson Rank: Seaman Regiment: Royal Navy Ingram Name: Samuel Rank: Seaman Regiment: Merchant Navy

8 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :30 Page NAMES RANKS & REGIMENTS Kennedy Name: Joseph Rank: Sergeant Regiment: Royal Army Service Corps McCall Name: Samuel Rank: Rifleman Regiment: YCV Royal Irish Rifles McKnight Name: Henry Rank: Rifleman Regiment: 15th (North Belfast) RIR Kirkwood Name: George Rank: Rifleman Regiment: YCV Royal Irish Rifles McClure Name: Thomas James Rank: Lance-Corporal Regiment: Royal Marine Light Infantry Palmer Name: John Rank: Sergeant Regiment: 1st Battalion RIR

9 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :30 Page NAMES RANKS & REGIMENTS Pollock Name: David Rank: Rifleman Regiment: 15th (North Belfast)RIR Trimble Name: John Rank: Lance-Corporal Regiment: Royal Irish Rifles Robinson Name: Thomas Rank: Sapper Regiment: Royal Engineers Wright Name: John Rank: Sergeant Regiment: Northumberland Fusiliers

10 Castleton Stands 7 AW:Layout 1 22/10/ :30 Page HELP IDENTIFY THE UNKNOWN SERVICEMEN The Castleton Lanterns project (castletonlanterns.co.uk) seeks to identify the unknown soldiers who served in the First World War from Castleton. The website aims to Shine a light on our men who served in the Great War. Volunteers are needed to help trace the lost stories of these Unknown Soldiers. There are a few simple and easy-to-follow steps that any interested researcher can use which might recover the personal stories of these Castleton men. You can begin by talking to older members of the community and record what they know or were told about First World War ancestors. There may be records, medals, photographs or other ephemera still held by individuals in the wider community. Forgotten boxes in attics can be a treasure trove for information, old documents and artefacts. Historical records which can provide valuable information on soldier ancestors include: Presbyterian Church in Ireland Roll of Honour The 1901 and 1911 census records Vital records of baptisms/births, marriages and death/burial The Commonwealth War Grave Commission Military records held at The National Archives (London), many of which are now available online The Military Archives of Ireland Belfast Presbyterians in the Great War (a website with links to useful information) If a soldier left a will it might be available on the National Archives of Ireland database of solders wills Investigate the Regiment s movements in First World War at The Long, Long Trail: The British Army in the Great War of Examine local newspapers from the First World War. The majority of these newspapers are not yet online but are available through the Local Studies department of LibrariesNI. Crucially, share your research findings with the Castleton Lanterns project and other important First World War commemoration research projects. By discovering more about these Unknown Soldiers from Castleton we will help to preserve for posterity a record of the sacrifice they made during the Great War. g To find out more, karen@castletonlanterns.co.uk