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Can You Help?
If you have information about the following, or if you've got a query, please contact me.

1. "I am requesting any information or contacts regarding the above camp which I remember attending as a child in the 30s or early 40s. I also have a relative who was there in the early 50s.
We remember it was in a field on the hill above Addingham and school trips to Beamsley Beacon and the Strid were taken.
However we tend to differ on some details on the actual camping and camp life etc and would very much appreciate some local (or otherwise) knowledge to settle our differences". ( Brian P Wilson).

"Regarding the camp that use to be on the way up to the Beacon.As children we often walked that way to get to the top of the hill, crossing the river at the spring bridge, before entering I believe Harrison’s farm yard, then we would follow the beck up towards Black Foss waterfall, spectacular in mid winter.The camp was situated in this area and could be easily seen from Addingham.I remember the camp was used mainly by children from the Leeds area, and use to be visited by famous footballers of that time (the early to mid fifties). I remember once John Charles the Leeds United and Wales centre forward visiting the camp, a group of us went up to try and see him only to miss him by about half an hour.
All the best to Addingham"
Harry J Horsman, Perth WA,Australia

2."I am English, living in San Francisco,I work for a society couple and am trying to trace one of their ancestors.Sandra Wiess Smiths grandfather was the founder of what is now Exxon.Her father,Lloyd H Smith married into the Wiess family.Ive traced the father back through a Roland H Smith,to a Rowland H Smith at Pittsburgh in the USA 1880 Census,this census tells me that Rowland H Smith was born in England in abt 1841,a Rowland Smith was born in Addingham that particular year,his mother was named Hannah and Im thinking maybe he added the H in her memory,and emigrated to the USA,I have been unsuccessful in finding any other trace of that particular family and was wondering if you could possibly help,thanks in advance for any assistance you are able to give me". (Dave Jago)

3. "I am currently tracing my family history and i have found that the Fieldhouse's lived in both Addingham and Ilkley in the late 1700's.
I was wondering if you could give me an address or email address of someone who might be able to give me some information or help me with my inquiries into my family history.
I would greatly appreciate this as the history of my family and where they came from is very important to me". (Laura Fieldhouse)

4. "My father was born in Adelaide Terrace, Addingham in 1906. Adelaide Terrace is also mentioned on your website's war pages. I have been unable to trace where this terrace was. It may have been renamed, or demolished, but I would welcome any information about it. (Peter Barnes)

5. "My name's Bryan Jarvis, born in Skipton 1938 & grew up there until my Army service took over at 18 years in 1956. I'm trying to locate a Mr Ernest Taylor who was the OC of Skipton's Army Cadets in the early 50's. I and a few friends were cadets under him, and as was the norm then we were eventually called up to do Military Service. Ernest lived at 96, Main Street Addingham with his parents, a brother and sister but worked for Leeds City planning dept. He too, was called up in July 1956 and he was commissioned into the Royal Engineers, but on May 1st 1957 he was due to fly to North Africa from Blackbushe Airport in Hampshire. Just after take-off one engine failed so the aircraft did an emergency turn to get back to the airstrip, but crashed in nearby trees. He was the only survivor of 35 soldiers and families on board, but suffered very severe burns that needed extensive skin grafts. But he was tough enough to endure this and then return to military service. He left the Army as a Captain in September 1966.
There aren't many of us left from those ACF days but we would like to contact him, with a view to meeting up.
Would you or anyone else in Addingham know of his whereabouts and contact details. If you can help I I would be extremely grateful. Kind regards, Bryan Jarvis

6. "My dad fought in the First World War and was wounded. He was in the West Yorkshire Battalion. I think he was called up in 1916 as he was married to my mum 30 december 1915 at a church in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire. I think that he lived in Gainsborough. So i dont know what Battalion that he served in during the war. He was a L/Cpl, And he told that he was in the Green Houreds, but two of his letters say that he was in the West Yorkshire, and one says The Yorkshire Regiment. So i am not sure what Battalion that he was in. Could you maybe tell me of the west Yorkshire Battalion?"
Regards
Ernest Taylor
Youngest son of L/Cpl William Taylor

7. Book about the First World War in French.
"Bonjour,
Passionné par la grande guerre depuis de longues années, je viens de terminer un roman dans lequel j'évoque le quotidien de ces pauvres types. Vous trouverez ci-dessous un résumé de ce roman ainsi que ma position en faveur de la réhabilitation des fusillés pour l'exemple que je ne cesse de mettre en avant lors de la présentation de mon ouvrage.Modeste démarche à la mémoire de ces hommes qui j'espère, un jour, seront reconnus.Roman historique : LES BLESSURES DE L'AME, édité par la société des écrivains Je reste à votre disposition pour toutes informations complémentaires.
Sincères salutations
Présentation :

Eric Viot, 43 ans, membre d’une association de recherches et études historiques sur la vie des Bretons pendant la grande guerre, passionné par cette période et en particulier par le quotidien des Poilus pendant ce conflit. En 2004, sortie d’un premier ouvrage local qui est un monument de papier à la mémoire des centaines de Manceaux morts pendant la grande guerre. Cet ouvrage est le fruit de nombreuses années de recherche.

« Les blessures de l’âme », à mi-chemin entre le roman et le journal intime, présente le quotidien d’un instituteur pacifiste engagé dans cette « boucherie » que fut la première guerre mondiale et qui, blessé dans son âme, ne sera plus jamais le même. D’une lecture aisée, il se veut accessible au plus grand nombre et prend racine dans une documentation solide et manifeste sur ce conflit.
« - J’ai voulu aborder dans ce roman des sujets qui me révoltent et mettre en avant le fait que bien souvent des vies auraient pu être épargnées : Nos généraux ont consommé sans modération dans des offensives suicidaires, des milliers d’hommes sont morts sur le terrain par manque de soins, d’autres ont été exécutés juste pour l’exemple … Le débat concernant les « mutins » de 1917 et plus largement les fusillés pour l’exemple oppose toujours la classe politique. L’Angleterre veut réhabiliter l’ensemble de ses soldats victimes de ces tribunaux improvisés.
N’est-il pas temps de faire la même chose en France ? Au travers de cet ouvrage, on croise des hommes victimes de ces parodies de procès, bien souvent des hommes courageux qui un moment donné ont dit non à la folie d’une poignée de généraux aussi avides de promotions que désintéressés quant à la survie de leurs hommes ».
Ce n’est pas la « grande » histoire, celle des grandes batailles, de Nivelle, Foch, Joffre, Pétain ou d’autres personnages illustres qui me passionne, non, c’est celle de Georges, François, Arsène et tous leurs camarades qui alimentent les listes gravées dans la pierre des monuments aux morts.
Ce sont ces ouvriers ou paysans qui sont morts loin de chez eux et pour un grand nombre, l’ennemi n’est pas l’unique responsable de leurs disparitions … » "