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208660 Pte. William Hirst British Army West Yorkshire Regiment from:Silkstone My grandfather, William Hirst was born in May 1893 in Dodworth near Barnsley. After leaving school he went to Silkstone Colliery to work as a miner. Coal miners were exempt from fighting in the First War but because we had lost so many men in conflict they looked for fit strong miners to join. William's name was put into a hat and, unfortunately, it was drawn out and that was that. He had no choice. He joined the Prince of Wales Infantry in 1916 and went for training near Hull. After some brief training William was sent to France. I have a cross that has scenes of Ypres in it. My grandfather, apparently like many, never spoke of his experiences to any of his eight sons. William went back to working in the coal mines after the war and retired at sixty five. He died at the age of eighty seven. I am very proud of my grandfather and I would really like to trace his regiment. Please type your message:      We recommend you copy the text about this item and keep a copy on your own computer before pressing submit. Your Name:             Email Address:       @ **Please put the first part of your email, (before the @ sign) in the first box, and the second part in the second box. Do not include @, it is automatic. Do not enter your full email in each box or add an @ sign or random spaces.**