William Thompson Besford was the son of John Besford (1872-1954) and Mary Ann Besford (nee Thompson). He was born on 10th September 1899.
The 1901 Census recorded William aged 1 living with his parents at 7 Single Row, Newsham, Blyth, Northumberland.
The 1911 Census recorded William as aged 11. He was living at 26 Crawford Street, Blyth and by this time had two brothers, John Besford (8) and George Robert Besford (2).
By the time of the 1921 Census, William was 21 and working as a Coal Miner. He was a Putter at the Straker Pit which was owned by the Cowpen Coal Company. William’s father John Besford (1872-1954) was 49 and working as a Hewer at the Straker Pit. William’s brother John Besford (18) was working as an apprentice blacksmith at Cowpen Colliery workshops. All three were recorded as unemployed since the miners were undergoing a lock-out by the coal owners at the time, having refused to accept reductions in pay.
As well as his parents and brother John, William was living at 9 Cowpen Square, Blyth, with his brothers George Robert Besford (now 12) and David Besford (8). His grandfather William Thompson (after whom he was named) was also living there.
A report in the Blyth News dated 25th November 1943 provides information on what happened to William during the Second World War:
“Gunner William Bessford, eldest son of Mr. and Mrs. J. Bessford, of 9 Cowpen Square, Cowpen, has written home to say that he is now in Germany having been transferred from Italy. He was taken prisoner in June 1942. Bessford fought at Dunkirk. He has been in the Army since the war began. Previously he worked at Cambois Colliery.”
Although the report spells William’s name as “Bessford”, this is undoubtedly William, as his address and the names of his parents are as per previous records. In addition, records held by the National Archives in Kew record that William T. Besford, Gunner in the Royal Artillery, service number 774033 was held in German Prisoner of War Camp, Stalag number 344 at Lamsdorf (Oberschlesien).
It seems that William must have been one of the 338,000 allied soldiers evacuated from Dunkirk during Operation Dynamo between 26 May and 4 June 1940.
It is almost certain that he must have then served in North Africa as on being taken prisoner he was first held in Italy, before being moved to Germany as allied forces invaded Italy in 1943.
Stalag 344 at Lamsdorf (now Łambinowice in Poland) was located in Silesia. The Lamsdorf camps were used by the Germans to detain over 300,000 prisoners from different countries. Prisoners were used as forced labour in agriculture and industry. It is estimated that around 40.000 prisoners died due to inhumane treatment, hunger and exhaustion. British POWs were treated less severely than their Soviet and Polish counterparts and William was repatriated at the end of the war.
William Thompson Besford died on 10th August 1997, just one month short of his 98th birthday.
Ancestry
William Thompson Besford’s father, John Besford (1872-1954), was the son of Alexander Besford, a cousin of David Besford (1863-1954). Alexander was a coal miner who was living with his wife Betsy and their family at 21 Cowpen Square, Cowpen , Blyth, when the 1881 census was taken. Alexander was the son of Ann Besford, sister of John Besford (1826-1914).
William Thompson Besford was thus the great-great grandson of Robert Besford (1792-1844), and his ancestry goes back to the marriage of his 6x great grandparents James Besford and Margaret Robson who were married at Rothbury in 1679.
