Tried to sleep in the morning but didn’t get much. Went into park in the afternoon with Leishman and then to Inwoods’. At church at night as usual and to Inwoods’ to supper. Two sergeants of the Welsh Guard there and we stayed until late.
Monthly Archives: May 2016
20 May 1916; Saturday
On Main Gate Guard from 9.15. Managed pretty well. Had a lot to do at night especially. Leishman helped me through and I put on the guard room clock at 2 o’clock1.
Daylight Saving Bill came into force at midnight2.
See note below re daylight saving. “I put on the guard room clock” presumably means “I advanced the guard room clock by one hour.” 2 A.M. was the time at which the hour officially changed. ↩
Daylight saving time was introduced in Britain by the Summer Time Act 1916 and was implemented in 1916 as GMT plus one hour and Dublin Mean Time plus one hour (Dublin time was 25 minutes behind London at this time). For 1916, DST extended from 21 May to 1 October. ↩
19 May 1916; Friday
On parade as usual. Not much to do. At Inwoods’ at night.
18 May 1916; Thursday
On parade as usual.
17 May 1916; Wednesday
Came off guard at 9.15 a.m. Went to Inwoods’ at night.
↑ Entries in pencil, sometimes faint and/or smudged, from this point for the rest of 1916. ↑
16 May 1916; Tuesday
Up at 7 o’clock. Parade with duties and mounted guard at Lower Gate at 9.15.
Ernie left Home for Great Yarmouth. In the R.G.A. 1
“R.G.A.”: See 12 May 1916. ↩
15 May 1916; Monday
On parade but nothing doing. In charge of a fatigue party in 7 block. Wrote letters. Had walk over moors at night with Leishman and Green. Fine night.
14 May 1916; Sunday
At church parade. Wrote letter to Betty and one to Ernie in the afternoon. Green and I went to Inwoods’ to tea and supper. At church at night. The choir sang “While she dwelt in the land” in the morning.
13 May 1916; Saturday
On parade in the morning. Fine afternoon. Went for walk with Leishman. Walked up from Nether Green car1 to Wyming Valley and back by Rivelin Valley2. Grand walk and grand day. Had tea in Hudson’s café and returned to barracks about 8 o’clock. Commenced letter to Betty.
Received letter from Ernie saying he has joined R.G.A. 3 and leaves Sunderland for Great Yarmouth on Tuesday next.
Leishman4 told me all about dissecting bodies.
“Car”: means tram-car, as usual. ↩
Nether Green (A on the map) is c. 2½ miles WSW of Sheffield city centre, on the Fulwood Road. Wyming Brook (B on the map) is a river which flows from Redmires Reservoirs near the Hallam Moors in a northeasterly direction down quite steep terrain into the lower of the Rivelin Dams. The River Rivelin rises on the Hallam moors and joins the River Loxley at Malin Bridge (D on the map). The Rivelin Valley (C on the map) is a three and a half mile long woodland valley which now includes the popular Rivelin Valley Nature Trail, created in 1967. See also Sheffield map. ↩
“R.G.A.”: See 12 May 1916. ↩
Corporal John Leishman (service number 73063) may have had some medical-technician occupation; as with some other comrades, ALL remained in occasional touch with him when no longer in the same unit. ↩