The Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalions

Charles Cross.



The photo shows Charles Cross in uniform.

The centre of cap badge is not clear, but the flame over is that of a Fusiliers. The centre would denote what regiment he was in.
Very little is known about Charles from the available H C B records.   It is known that he enlisted in the HCB as a private and was allocated the HCB number 453, although a low number normally allocated to men in 1916 - to keep numbers low, research has indicated that their number records were reused by other soldiers if they went to another Home based Battalion.
HCB records also indicate that he also served as a private in the Labour Corps with the Army number of 525531. The photo opposite shows Charles in uniform - the cap badge is of a Fusilier, but no trace can be found of him in those regiments - research is ongoing.

The following family information has been kindly provided by Katrina Cross. Charles was her grandfather. Charles was born in Godmanchester, Huntingdonshire, on 21 January 1895, he joined the HCB and was posted to Filey where he married a local girl, Kate Richardson, on 27 December 1915.

A family story tells that one of the daughters, of whom there were 7, told her mother that there were soldiers on the beach; her reply was that they weren't soldiers, they were husbands!      [This is because there were many marriages between Hunts. Cyclists and local Yorkshire girls - many accounts of them 'walking out' are recorded in letters home].

Charles died in 1972; his death certificate stating a cause of death as "Old war wounds to the chest."

The photo, left, is of Charles Cross, kindly provided by Katrina Cross.

Charles went to Yorkshire with his friend Harold Seaman.

If you can help with any data on this Huntingdonshire Cyclist please contact me at huntscycles@btinternet.com

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09/04/2012
Martyn Smith ©

The photo shows Charles Cross in uniform. The centre of cap badge is not clear, but the flame over is that of a Fusiliers. The centre would denote what regiment he was in.	Very little is known about Charles from the available H C B records. It is known that he enlisted in the HCB as a private and was allocated the HCB number 453, although a low number normally allocated to men in 1916 - to keep numbers low, research has indicated that their number records were reused by other soldiers if they went to another Home based Battalion. HCB records also indicate that he also served as a private in the Labour Corps with the Army number of 525531. The photo opposite shows Charles in uniform - the cap badge is of a Fusilier, but no trace can be found of him in those regiments - research is ongoing. The following family information has been kindly provided by Katrina Cross. Charles was her grandfather. Charles was born in Godmanchester, Huntingdonshire, on 21 January 1895, he joined the HCB and was posted to Filey where he married a local girl, Kate Richardson, on 27 December 1915. A family story tells that one of the daughters, of whom there were 7, told her mother that there were soldiers on the beach; her reply was that they weren't soldiers, they were husbands! [This is because there were many marriages between Hunts. Cyclists and local Yorkshire girls - many accounts of them 'walking out' are recorded in letters home]. Charles died in 1972; his death certificate stating a cause of death as "Old war wounds to the chest." The photo, left, is of Charles Cross, kindly provided by Katrina Cross. Charles went to Yorkshire with his friend Harold Seaman.
If you can help with any data on this Huntingdonshire Cyclist please contact me at huntscycles@btinternet.com
Return to Soldiers Section.		Return to Main Menu.
09/04/2012	Martyn Smith ©