Tag Archives: Chapel

Arthur Linfoot was a member of the South Durham Street United Methodist Free Church in Sunderland, and a regular church-goer elsewhere when not in Sunderland. He records his attendance at chapel and church services of many kinds throughout his diaries.

13 August 1916; Sunday

August 1916, , , ,

Lazy first thing and not very fit. Church parade at 9 o’clock in the “dining hall”. Nice little service. First time under cover since I left Rouen. Received another parcel from home and a letter from Charlie enclosing photographs of himself on a camel. Had walk at night. Beautiful weather.

Charlie on Camel
A photo of Charlie (right) on a camel – possibly one of the photos mentioned in this diary entry.

6 August 1916; Sunday

August 1916, ,

Up at 7 o’clock. Field service at 11 o’clock and preaching good. Went up by the new little church in the afternoon and commenced reading “List, Ye Landsmen!” by Clark Russell1. Beautiful day and beautiful scenery. Had short walk at night with Duggins. Wrote up diary. Turned in about 9 o’clock. Orders to be up at 4 o’clock in the morning.

  1. William Clark Russell (1844-1911); writer of sea and horror stories. List, Ye Landsmen! (subtitled “A Romance of Incident”) is a seafaring adventure set in the year 1815. See also List, Ye Landsmen! and Arthur Linfoot’s Library. ↩

16 July 1916; Sunday

July 1916, , , , ,

Up at 7 o’clock. Still standing by and no church service. Rumours of Germans’ retreat up the line. Wrote to Willie Whittaker. Fine morning. Service in the field in the afternoon but it rained and so we stopped before the sermon. Rained a bit at night. Wrote letter home in reply to one received and also to Willie Whittaker and Franchie Inwood. Went to bed early at night. Lay awake with toothache, but generally slept well.

1 killed and 9 wounded of the 57 Ambulance at La Boisselle.

12 July 1916; Wednesday

July 1916, , , ,

Up at 7 o’clock. Church parade at 11 o’clock. Very nice service – C of E – and good hymns O God Our Help, Jesu Lover of my Soul etcetera. Read Bible a bit. Read British Weekly and enjoyed article by Claudius Clear1. Went to concert in the open by the Town Major’s house. Our C.O. and a captain took part in good dialogue. I dropped a 2 franc piece and couldn’t find it at a shop. Called again with Walsh and the woman recognised me and told me where she had found it – on the window sill. Washed shirt, pants and socks and wrote a few letters.

  1. Claudius Clear: alter-ego of William Robertson Nicoll (1851 – 1923), a Scottish Free Church minister, journalist, editor, and man of letters who founded the British Weekly, a Nonconformist newspaper. ↩

18 June 1916; Sunday

June 1916, , ,

Up at 7 o’clock. Church parade at 9 o’clock. Open air service. After service we were given a pair of socks each. First field service I have attended. Spent the afternoon in the field writing a letter to Mr Inwood and watching aeroplanes playing about. Fine day. Went to service in the field again at night. Read Epistle of St. James. Had a discussion with Lee about singing words in hymns which we don’t believe. Short walk in the village.

Can hear guns at the front very distinctly.
Had one cup of coffee.
Received 4 letters.

11 June 1916; Sunday

June 1916,

Up at 6 o’clock. Detailed off for fatigue and told to sweep up first and then had to wash out the hospital. Finished about 9 o’clock and did nothing further. Wrote letter in the afternoon. Meals as usual. ASC1 section returned and were pretty full of what they had seen. A lot of dirtiness talked. Went to a service at night in the village with Lee and La Vere2. C of E and enjoyed it very much. Sang “O Jesus I have promised.” Called in at the R.C. church. A soldier playing the organ and played all sorts of things. Pretty organ. Some missionary figures in the church. All coloured. Splendid windows. Big, high church. Met a chap who objects to swearing. Walked back with him.

  1. “ASC”: Army Service Corps, later the Royal Army Service Corps ↩

  2. ALL wrote this name as one word, Lavere, from 24 July onwards. ↩