348694 Lance Corporal James Herbert Ball, Royal Engineers

348694 (WR/279511) Lance Corporal
JAMES HERBERT BALL
Royal Engineers

by
Lieutenant Colonel Edward De Santis
Ó 2002. All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, the details supplied in this narrative were extracted from the soldier’s service papers obtained from the Public Record Office at Kew, Richmond, Surrey. Ball’s service papers were very badly damaged by fire and water, hence much of the information contained in the documents was illegible. The author has tried to make this narrative of his service as accurate and as complete as possible; however, many details of his service may be lost forever and some of the information contained herein may be inaccurate regarding exact dates.

James Herbert Ball was born in the Parish of Birkdale, in the town of Southport, in the County of Lancashire in September of 1892. Southport is a coastal town on the Irish Sea in West Lancashire. It is located south of the Ribble Estuary and about 17 miles north of the city of Liverpool. The town was (and is today) a favoured seaside resort and residential town with pleasant parks, extensive sand beaches and the second largest pier in England. The Birkdale area of Southport is famous for its championship golf courses.

Prior to joining the Army, Ball lived at 183 New Road in Birkdale. He was a member of the Church of England and worked as a platelayer [1] for the Cheshire Lines Committee. The Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC) was a joint railway system and the second largest in England after the Midland and Great Northern. The railway consisted of 70 stations and more than 140 miles of track, located mostly in the County of Lancashire. The largest stations of the CLC were Liverpool Central and Manchester Central.

Little is known about Ball’s family except that he had a married sister named Ada Egan. His sister was listed as his next of kin when he first joined the Army in 1916. Presumably his parents were deceased. Ada continued to be listed as his next of kin until Ball married in November of 1917.

The following is a description of James Herbert Ball at the time he enlisted in the Army in 1916:

Age:	23 years and 5 months
Height:	5 feet 5 inches
Weight:	128 pounds
Chest (expanded):	35 inches
Chest (normal):	32 inches
Physical Development:	Good
Vaccinations:	Two in his left arm from infancy
Distinctive Marks:	None
Physical Defects:	Upper dentures and defective lower teeth.
Medical Category:	"A" [2]

Almost two and a half years had passed since the start of the Great War of 1914 to 1918 before James Ball was recruited at Southport, Lancashire to enlist in the 10^th (Scottish) Battalion (Territorial Force) of The King’s (Liverpool) Regiment. He enlisted at the regimental depot at 7 Fraser Street in Liverpool on the 21^st of February 1916. Upon his enlistment he indicated that he was not married, that he had never been convicted of a crime by civil power and that he had no prior naval or military service. He swore the Oath of Attestation on the 21^st of February, however his attestation was not given final certification. He was not called up for immediate active service, but instead he was transferred to the Army Reserve on the day following his enlistment.

Ball went back to work for the CLC as a platelayer. Since he was qualified as a "Proficient" Platelayer, it is probable that this important work is what kept him from enlisting in the Army prior to February of 1916. Furthermore, the fact that he was released to the Army Reserve after enlistment appears to be further evidence that his civilian work was considered to be essential to the war effort and that it served King and Country to a greater degree than putting him in uniform.

Ball worked as a platelayer for the CLC for 18 months after being transferred to the Army Reserve. In August of 1917 he received word that his call up was imminent. Feeling that his skill as a railroad worker could be better used in other than an infantry regiment, it seems that Ball approached his boss, Mr. A.P. Ross, the Chief Engineer of the CLC to intercede on his behalf. On the 14^th of August 1917 Mr. Ross wrote the following note from The Cheshire Lines Committee Engineer’s Office, Central Station, Liverpool:

Mr. Ross’ letter is an obvious attempt to do two things. First to explain why Ball was kept out of the Army for 18 months after his enlistment, and secondly, although not stated in so many words, to ask that Ball not be assigned to the infantry. Ross was asking the Recruiting Officer to post Ball to a unit where his skills as a platelayer could be utilized.

Ball was called up to join the Colours as a Private (Regimental Number 360261) in the Liverpool Regiment on the 3^rd of September 1917. The Certificate of Approving Authority was given for his attestation on this same date and most likely he reported to the regimental depot in Liverpool. He was not posted to his original battalion, as the 1/10^th (Scottish) Battalion of the regiment was already in France. Instead he was immediately transferred to the headquarters of the 6^th Battalion of the Machine Gun Corps. Upon his transfer his Regimental Number was changed to 127925.

The Machine Gun Corps consisted of individually numbered companies at this time. A reorganization of the Corps was taking place that would form a battalion from four independent machine gun companies. The 6^th Battalion was to be formed from the 16^th, 18^th, 71^st, and 192^nd Machine Gun Companies. These companies already had been formed between January and December of 1916 and it was proposed to form them into the 6^th Battalion in the 6^th Division by the 1^st of March 1918.

Ball remained in Liverpool while the reorganization of the Machine Gun Corps was in progress. Apparently the Recruiting Officer was trying to honour the request made by Mr. Ross and at the same time to assign Ball to where his skills could best be utilized. Ball had sufficient time on his hands to be able to get married in November of 1917. On the 11^th of January 1918 he was trade tested and found to be a "Skilled" Platelayer. This qualification, along with the need for railway construction workers, resulted in him being "found suitable for posting to Royal Engineer Railway Troops." This fortunate state of affairs allowed him to transfer to the Railway Construction Troops Depot, Royal Engineers where he was assigned to "C" Company. He was now 348694 Sapper James Herbert Ball, R.E. He reported to his new unit at Longmoor Camp on the 13^th of January 1918. On the day after his arrival at Longmoor Camp he was given a medical evaluation. The examining officer of the Royal Army Medical Corps certified Ball as fit to work as a Platelayer on "Home Service Only" [3].

Sapper Ball was officially classified as a "Skilled" Platelayer on the 13^th of February 1918 and on the 20^th of February he was sent to the Transportation Troops Base Depot in France. He remained at the Base Depot until the 22^nd of June 1918 when he was posted to the 10^th Railway Construction Company, Royal Engineers [4].

Ball served in France until the 22^nd of February 1919 when he was authorized 14 days of leave in the United Kingdom. He returned to his unit in France after his leave and remained with the 10^th Railway Construction Company until the 29^th of October 1919 when he was despatched to England and assigned to the Royal Engineers Training Battalion at Brompton Barracks in Chatham, Kent in preparation for his demobilization. He then was issued Regimental Number WR/279511 [5]. Ball proceeded on the 31^st October 1919 to a Dispersal Unit in Liverpool for demobilization. He was transferred to the Class "Z" Army Reserve on the 27^th of November 1919.

For his service during the Great War of 1914-1918, Lance Corporal James Herbert Ball was awarded the British Wart Medal and Victory Medal [6].

Lance Corporal Ball was not entitled to a mentioned
in despatches oak leaf on the Victory Medal

a. Promotions: James Herbert Ball received the following promotions or changes in rank during his time in service:

Date of Promotion or Appointment	Rank or Position
21 February 1916	Private, The King’s (Liverpool) Regiment
3 September 1917	Private, Machine Gun Corps
31 January 1918	Sapper, Royal Engineers
1 June 1919	Lance Corporal, Royal Engineers [7]

b. Conduct: Ball’s service records show no evidence that he received any Good Conduct Badges during his time in service. His records do show that his name never appeared in his unit’s defaulters book. It may be assumed that he was never convict by court martial for any offence.

a. Education: Lance Corporal Ball’s service papers do not indicate that he earned any Certificates of Education during his time in service:

b. Qualifications: Ball earned the following qualifications during his time in service.

Date	Qualification
21 February 1916	"Proficient" Platelayer (by virtue of his civilian trade)
13 February 1918	"Skilled" Platelayer (from a trade test)

The following medical information was taken from Lance Corporal Ball’s service records during his time in service:

Location	Date of Admission	Ailment	Period of Hospitalization or Treatment
Liverpool	21 Feb 1916	Medical examination on enlistment	Noted to have Defective lower teeth
Longmoor Camp	14 Jan 1918	Medical Examination	Determined to be fit to work as a Platelayer
Liverpool	24 Nov 1919	Medical Examination	Prior to demobilization. Ball made no claim for disability

James Herbert Ball married Frances Brooke in St. Peter’s Church at 2 St. Peter’s Road in Birkdale, Southport, Lancashire on the 20^th of November 1917. After their marriage the Balls took up residence at 153 Liverpool Road in Birkdale. Mrs. Ball lived at this address while her husband was away on active service. Ball’s service papers do not indicate that they had any children while he was in the Army.

Lance Corporal Ball was issued his Protection Certificate and Certificate of Identity at Liverpool on the 31^st of October 1919. The certificates indicated that his Pay and Record Offices would be at Chatham and that in case of an emergency he would rejoin the Colours at Longmoor. Ball was transferred to the Class "Z" Army Reserve on demobilization on the 27^th of November 1919. His total service was reckoned as shown in the tables below:

Location	Period of Service
Army Reserve	21 February 1916 to 2 September 1917
Liverpool	3 September 1917 to 12 January 1918
Longmoor Camp	13 January 1918 to 19 February 1918
France	20 February 1918 to 29 October 1919
Chatham	30 October 1919
Liverpool	31 October 1919 to 27 November 1919

Location	Period of Service
Home Service (from date of Muster)	199 days
Service Abroad	1 year and 252 days
Total Service (from date of Attestation)	3 years and 280 days
Total Service (from date of Muster)	2 years and 86 days

Other than his stated intended place of residence at 203 New Road in Birkdale, nothing is known about Lance Corporal Ball’s life after his demobilization from the Army in 1919. It can be assumed that he returned to The Cheshire Lines Committee to resume his work with the railway as a platelayer.

The 1901 British Census verifies that James Herbert Ball was born in Birkdale, Lancashire. The census record shows the following details:^*

Civil Parish:	Birkdale
Ecclesiastical Parish:	St. Peters, Birkdale
Parliamentary Borough or Division:	Southport, S.W. Lancashire
Administrative County:	Lancaster

At the time of the 1901 Census, James Herbert Ball was 8 years old and living with his parents at 183 Kew Road in Birkdale, Lancashire. His father, James Ball, had been born in Southport and was 31 years of age. James Ball's employment status is listed as "undefined" on the census form. Young James's mother, Jane Ball, had been born in Manchester, Lancashire and was 28 years old at the time of the census. Her occupation is listed as "Stone Mason" and her employment status is shown as "worker." This seems rather odd. In all likelihood the occupation and employment status of James and Jane Ball were reversed either on the original census record or in the Public Record Office transcription of the record.

In additions to James Herbert, James and Jane Ball had four other children: Ada, 6 years old; Alice, 4 years old; William, 2 years old; and Robert, 6 months old. All of the Ball children had been born in Birkdale.

* PRO Reference. RG Number, Series RG13, Piece 3533, Folio 155, Page 37, Schedule Number 202.

1. ADDISON, G.H. The Works of the Royal Engineers in the European War, 1914-1918. MISCELLANEOUS. The Institution of Royal Engineers, Chatham, Kent, 1926.

2. BANKS, A. A Military Atlas of the First World War. Heinemann Educational Books, London, 1975.

3. LETTS, C. Roadbook of Britain. Charles Letts and Company Limited, London, 1977.

[2] This medical category indicated that the man was able to march, that he was able to see to shoot, that he could hear well and stand active service conditions.

[3] The certification form filled out by the R.A.M.C. officer is rather confusing. The form contains two preprinted lines shown in bold below. A third typewritten line was added to the form under the words "Any Theatre Overseas. The "Home Service Only" line obviously was ignored, as Ball was subsequently sent to France in February of 1918.

[4] The 10^th Railway Construction Company had been in France since November of 1914 and remained there until after the Armistice in November of 1918.