Lieutenant Harold Mellor Fort, Royal Engineers

The principal references used in the preparation of this narrative were from a number of sources. They include census records, official registries in the United Kingdom, medal rolls, army lists, division and unit histories, the London and Edinburgh Gazettes and many other sources available on the Internet. All sources are contained in the REFERENCE section at the end of the narrative and are cited throughout in the ENDNOTES. Every effort has been made to accurately portray the life and military service of Lieutenant Harold Mellor Fort, the main character of this research, and Lieutenant Colonel Henry Mellor Fort, his cousin.

This research was prompted by the acquisition in 1977 of a British War Medal and Victory Medal named to Lieutenant H.M. Fort. As no regiments or corps is included in the naming on these two medals for officers, some original confusion arose as to whom the medals might have been issued. The medals were purchased from a dealer in the U.K. who had done some very preliminary research to determine the recipient of the medals. The dealer appears to have consulted Army Lists for the period of the Great War in which two Lieutenants by the name of H.M. Fort were listed; one in the Royal Engineers and one in the Royal Army Medical Corps. To further confuse things, both men had served in the 10^th Battalion of the Manchester Regiment and in the Royal Engineers. The dealer picked information from both of their military records to make it seem that both of them were one in the same individual. More detailed research performed by the author determined that they were two different individuals who indeed had both served in the Manchester Regiment, who had come from the same home town in Lancashire, and who actually were cousins, their fathers being brothers and their mothers being sisters. Their family tree is shown below with their lineage going back to their grandfather, William Fort.

Research shows that the medals in question actually were awarded to Lieutenant Harold Mellor Fort. This was determined by the fact that Henry Mellor Fort already was a Captain in the Army when he became eligible for the medals, but the medals are named to a Lieutenant H.M. Fort.

The Fort Family Tree Showing Lineage Back to the Grandfather of Harold and Henry Mellor Fort.

Where specific details regarding the service of both Harold and Henry have not been uncovered directly, the locations and service of their respective military units have been used to suggest where they might have been or what they might have been doing during the time that they spent in the Army and while serving in the Great War.

2. EARLY LIFE AND FAMILY INFORMATION

Harold Mellor Fort’s father, James Wilson Fort, was born in Preston, Lancashire in 1857.[1] He married Louisa Neller in Oldham, Lancashire on the 24^th of February 1886[2] and Harold was born eleven months later in Lancaster on the 25^th of January 1887.[3] Harold was baptized at St. Mary’s Church in Lancaster on the 17^th of April 1887.[4]

The 1891 Census of England and Wales provides the following information regarding the Fort family at the time of the census.

Census Place: 7 New Road, Lancaster, Lancashire.
Name and Occupation	Relation	Marital Status	Age	Sex	Birthplace
James Wilson Fort, Registered Dentist (Dental Surgeon	Head	Married	34	Male	Preston, Lancashire
Louisa Fort	Wife	Married	38	Female	Oldham, Lancashire
Harold Mellor Fort	Son		4	Male	Lancaster, Lancashire
Jane Wildman, Servant	General Servant	Single	19	Female	Burton, Westmorland

Figure 1. 7 New Road, Lancaster (the house with the green door). The Childhood Residence of Harold Mellor Fort in 1891.
(Photograph courtesy of Google Earth)

The 1901 Census of England and Wales provides the following information regarding the Fort family.

Census Place: 39 King Street, Lancaster, Lancashire
Name and Occupation	Relation	Marital Status	Age	Sex	Birthplace
James W. Fort, Dental Surgeon	Head	Married	44	Male	Preston, Lancashire
Louisa Fort	Wife	Married	49	Female	Oldham, Lancashire
Harold M. Fort	Son		14	Male	Lancaster, Lancashire
Elizabeth Shard, Servant	House Maid		19	Female	Dalton in Furness, Lancashire

James Wilson Fort died early in 1902.[5] Young Harold was attending Lancaster Grammar School at the time and in April of 1902 he entered Oldham Hulme Grammar School (Pupil No. 395) and remained there until December of 1902. The school archives show that his mother, Mrs. Fort (widow) resided at 146 Greengate Street at this time.

Figure 2. Oldham Hulme Grammar School.
(Postcard photograph courtesy of the Oldham Local Studies and Archives)

Harold continued his education at a university (perhaps the University of Manchester) where he studied law, and on the 21^stof June 1905 he successfully passed the Law Society intermediate examination.[6] Following three more years of study he took the Law Society’s Final Examination on the 23^rd and 24^th of March 1908 and in May of 1908 the Law Society Gazette announced his passing of the examination.[7] Following the passing of this examination Harold began his private practice as a Solicitor in Oldham as shown in the 1911 Census of England and Wales.

Census Place: 305 Park Road, Oldham, Lancashire
Name and Occupation	Relation	Marital Status	Age	Sex	Birthplace
Louisa Fort, a widow of private means	Head	Widow	59	Female	Oldham, Lancashire
Harold M. Fort, Solicitor in private practice	Son	Single	24	Male	Lancaster, Lancashire

Figure 3. 305 Park Road, Oldham, Lancashire. The Residence of Harold Mellor Fort in 1911.
(Photograph courtesy of Google Earth)

Since Henry Mellor Fort is not the main character of this narrative, the details of his childhood have been omitted from this section. As shown in the Fort Family tree, Henry was born in 1881, the son of Thomas Fort (1853-1921) and Hannah Maria Mellor (1853-1933).

By June of 1900, Henry was far enough along in his primary education that he was able to take and pass the preliminary examination in Arts required by Owens College of the University of Manchester.[8] On the 27^th of September 1900 he matriculated at Owens College for medical studies and on the 18^th of October he registered as a Medical Student.[9]

Figure 4. Owens College, University of Manchester.
(Photograph courtesy of Wikipedia)

In January of 1902 Henry took the preliminary scientific examination in Chemistry and Experimental Physics at the University of London and in February of that year he was informed that he had successfully passed this examination.[10] On the 26^th of July 1904 he passed the Final Examination for graduation from the Victoria University of Manchester.[11]

Harold apparently became involved with an Officers Training Corps following the start of the Great War, as the London Gazette dated 29 November 1916 lists him as being appointed from Cadet to 2^nd Lieutenant in the Manchester Regiment with a date of rank of the 23^rd of November 1916. Following a period of training he was posted to France on the 11^th of April 1918 where he joined the 10^th Battalion of the regiment in the 126^th Brigade of the 42^nd East Lancashire Division.[12] He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant on the 23^rd of May 1918.[13]

On the 14^th of April 1918, shortly after Fort’s arrival in the battalion, the 10th Manchesters moved back to the front and spent three weeks in and out of the front line trenches north east of Rossignol Wood. The battalion was relieved on the 6^th of May. At Pas Wood the battalion took some time training up newly arrived American troops. In June it returned to the trenches south of Hebuterne. Heavy shelling and trench raids were a feature of life there and influenza began to take its toll on officers and men.

The 42^nd division kept up the pressure on the German lines and by August the battalion attacked Serre. By the 20^th of August Serre was taken and the allied troops were now taking back the battlefield of the Somme. At Miraucourt, the 10^th Manchesters along with the 5^th East Lancashires won an important battle and later the battalion took the village of Riencourt, winning many medals in the process.

On the 15^th of September the battalion occupied Havincourt Wood again, as it had 15 months previously. The men of the battalion were subjected to a gas attack in this area.

On the 23^rd of September the battalion was near Tresault patrolling no man’s land prior to an attack there on the 27^th. At 2.30am the 10^th Manchesters followed the barrage cresting Highland Ridge and chased the Germans through Couillet Wood reaching the abandoned trenches of Welsh Ridge. There the battalion was relieved by the 8^th Manchesters. On the 29^th the New Zealanders passed through and swept on towards LaVacquerie and the Hindenburg Line was broken.

On the 12^th of October 1918 the 10^th Manchesters relieved the New Zealanders on the River Selle and attacked the German lines across the river. In hand to hand fighting men lost in the dark were led by the example of the NCOs and officers, in a ferocious battle lasting five hours. The battalion achieved its objectives with honour. On the 6^th of November the battalion took Hautmont after fierce hand to hand fighting. Sadly this engagement cost the lives of many men four days before the armistice.

On the 11th November 1918, as part of the 126th Brigade, 42nd Division the battalion finished the war in France, at Hautmont, southwest of Maubeuge.[14]

Fort’s Medal Index Card indicates that he also served with a battalion of the Royal Sussex Regiment during this period, although details of this service have not been found; therefore it is not possible to know just how much action he saw with the 10^th Manchesters during the period described above. However, it definitely known that on the 28^th of August 1918 Lieutenant Fort was seconded to the Royal Engineers.[15] If he left the 10^th Manchesters on this date, then he was not at Havincourt Wood, Tresault, Highland Ridge, Couillet Wood, Welsh Ridge, on the River Selle or at Hautmont. He probably was posted to the one of the division’s field companies or perhaps to the divisional signal company. It seems strange that a man who was a Solicitor in civilian life and an infantry officer would have been seconded to the Royal Engineers during the last two and a half months of the war; however, the needs of the division were what had to be satisfied at the time and his transfer to the Royal Engineers surely was justified in the eyes of some staff officer at division headquarters.

Harold Mellor Fort appears to have returned home shortly after the end of the war. He resigned his commission on the 4^th of January 1921 and was permitted to retain the rank of Lieutenant.[16]

Figure 5. 2^nd Lieutenant Henry Mellor Fort, 10^th Battalion, Manchester Regiment, circa 1909.
(Photograph courtesy of The Manchester Regiment Image Archive)

Henry Mellor Fort was commissioned a 2^nd Lieutenant in the 6^th Volunteer Battalion of the Manchester Regiment, perhaps sometime early in 1908. On the 1^st of April 1908 he was appointed as a 2^nd Lieutenant to the 10^th Battalion of the Manchester Regiments when that battalion was formed.[17]

Figure 6. Extract from The London Gazette, 6 November 1918, Showing Officer Transfers from the 6^th Volunteer Battalion to the 10^th Battalion, Manchester Regiment.

In 1909 Henry served on the Colour Guard for the presentation of the battalion’s new colours. They were presented at Worsley Park in Manchester by H.M. King Edward VII.

Figure 7. Colours of the 10^th Battalion, Manchester Regiment.
(Photograph courtesy of The Manchester Regiment Image Archive)

The King’s Colour is on the left and the Regimental Colour is on the right, as viewed in the photograph. The Colours had special significance for the battalion, representing its history, traditions and accomplishments. The Regimental Colour carries the battle honour “South Africa 1899-1902’ emblazoned on it. The officers in the photograph are, from left to right:

Henry Mellor Fort was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant while serving in the 10^th Manchesters and on the 1^st of February 1911 he was promoted to the rank of Captain in the regiment.[18]

With the outbreak of the Great War on the 4^th of August 1914, with the need for Army doctors to treat the expected casualties and with Henry Mellor Fort’s credentials as a medical student and doctor, he was transferred to the Royal Army Medical Corps during the first month of the war with the rank of Captain.[19] Precisely where he served for a period of a year from his transfer to the R.A.M.C. is not know; however, on the 14^th of August 1917 he was posted to Salonika as battalion surgeon (or perhaps the assistant surgeon) of the 10^th Battalion, Manchester Regiment. This posting must have been agreeable to him as he probably was well known to the officers and men of the battalion who were still with the unit when he joined it. However, Henry did not get to see much of his cousin in the battalion as Harold did not get posted to the unit until April of 1918 and he was seconded to the Royal Engineers in August of 1918.

Captain Henry Mellor Fort, M.B.,[20] R.A.M.C. was appointed to be an Acting Major on the 31^st of January 1919 while specially employed as a Surgical Specialist at the 21^st Stationary Hospital, Salonika.[21] The 21^st Stationary Hospital was at Sarigol, near Kilkis when Fort was posted to it.[22] This special employment did not last long as he relinquished his acting rank and reverted to the rank of Captain on the 15^th of April.[23] Doctor Fort was demobilized from the Army with the rank of Major in the Royal Army Medical Corps shortly after the war ended, but he remained active in the Territorial Army.

Both cousins were awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal for their service during the Great War of 1914-1918. Henry applied for his medals on the 2^nd of May 1922 and he received them on the 15^th of November 1922. At the time he was residing at Falcon House, King Street, Oldham, Lancashire. Harold applied for his medals on the 5^th of January 1925 and they were issued to him on the 16^th of January 1925.[24] He was residing at 36 Clegg Street, Oldham, Manchester at the time.

Figure 8. The British War Medal and Victory Medal.
(Image from the author’s collection)

The Medal Index Cards showing their entitlement to these medals are presented below.

Figure 9. Medal Index Card of Harold Mellor Fort (front).
(Image courtesy of Ancestry.com)

Figure 10. Medal Index Card of Harold Mellor Fort (back).
(Image courtesy of Ancestry.com)

Figure 11. Medal Index Card of Henry Mellor Fort (front).
(Image courtesy of Ancestry.com)

Figure 12. Medal Index Card of Henry Mellor Fort (back).
(Image courtesy of Ancestry.com)

In addition to the British War and Victory Medals, Henry Mellor Fort was awarded the Territorial Decoration on the 13^th of October 1920 for his service during the war.[25]

Figure 13. A Territorial Decoration of the Type Awarded to Henry Mellor Fort.
(Image courtesy of Wikipedia.com)

In 1921 Doctor Henry Mellor Fort was appointed surgeon to the Bolton Police, a town in the Greater Manchester area.[26] On the 23^rd of June of that same year he was appointed Certifying Surgeon for Oldham West under the Factory and Workshops Act,[27] an act of Parliament intended to regulate the conditions, safety, health and wages of people working in factories. Henry also remained in the Territorial Army into the nineteen thirties and he is shown on the General List as Major Henry Mellor Fort, T.D., M.B. being promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the R.A.M.C. on the 31^st of October 1929.[28] He continued his service in the Territorial Army until at least 1932 as he is shown as a Lieutenant Colonel, R.A.M.C. in the Army List of that year.

By 1936 Henry was suffering from a serious ailment that required him to vacate his position as the Certifying Surgeon at Oldham West.[29] He died at the age of 56 on the 31^st of July 1936 at the Royal Infirmary in Oldham, Lancashire. His residence at the time was 149 King Street in Oldham. His obituary in the British Medical Journal of the 15^th of August 1936 (page 373) lists his following accomplishments and society memberships, some of which have already been mentioned:

· House surgeon and casualty surgeon at the Manchester Royal Infirmary prior to serving in the Royal Army Medical Corps.

The will of Henry Mellor Fort was probated at London on the 9^th of September 1936. His effects went to his widow, Alice Dorothy Fort, in the amount of £9,250 7s 10d (about US $1,016,800 in 2018 Dollars).

On the 26^th of September 1923 banns were published in the Parish of St. Marks Oldham for the marriage of Harold Mellor Fort to Phyllis Muriel Bedell, age 26. The marriage took place in the parish on the 24^th of October.[30]

In 1939 Harold and Phyllis were living at the 305 Park Road address in Oldham. He was listed as a Solicitor and she as a former private secretary to H.M. Inspector of Mines. In the 1939 Register Phyllis was shown as having “Unpaid domestic duties.” The Electoral Register for 1945 shows them living at Printers Arms, Saddleworth, Colne Valley, West Yorkshire.[31]

Harold Mellor Fort died on the 6^th of October 1958 at King Edward The Seventh Nursing Home on Beaumont Street, London W.1. His will was probated in London on the 12^th of February 1959 with all effects to his widow, Phyllis Muriel Fort, in the amount of £3,495 18s 3d (about US $105,500 in 2018 Dollars).

Figure 14. The King Edward The Seventh Nursing Home, London.
(Photograph courtesy of Google Earth)

ENDNOTES

[1] Birth Index, 1856.

[2] Marriage Index, 1886.

[3] Birth Index, 1887.

[4] Baptism Register, 1887.

[5] Death Index, 1^st Quarter, 1902.

[6] The Solicitor’s Journal, July 15, 1905, p. 637.

[7] The Law Society of England and Wales is the professional association that represents and governs solicitors for those jurisdictions.

[8] U.K. Medical and Dental Student Register, 1882-1937.

[9] Ibid.

[10] The Lancet, 22 February 1902.

[11] British Medical Journal, August 6, 1904, p. 309.

[12] Medal Index Card and The Long, Long Trail.

[13] The London Gazette, 11 July 1918.

[14]The Manchester Regiment 1758 – 1958.

[15] The London Gazette, 5 October 1918.

[16] The London Gazette, 3 January 1921.

[17] The London Gazette, 6 November 1908.

[18] The London Gazette, 7 March 1911.

[19] The Monthly Army List, August 1914.

[20] Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, or in Latin: Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae (abbreviated in many ways, e.g. MBBS, MB ChB, MB BCh, MB BChir (Cantab), BM BCh (Oxon), BMBS), are the two first professional degrees in medicine and surgery awarded upon graduation from medical school.

[21] The London Gazette, 21 May 1919.

[22] The Great War Forum: apwright.

[23] The London Gazette, 26 June 1919.

[24] Harold’s medals are shown as issued on this date on the roll of the Royal Sussex Regiment. The Medal Index Card shows him as a 2^nd Lieutenant in the Manchester Regiment, a Lieutenant in the Royal Sussex Regiment and presumably a Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers. As was common with these two medals issued to officers, no regiment is shown with the medal naming; however, the MIC definitely shows the issuing regiment as the “R.Sussex R.”

[25] The Edinburgh Gazette, 6 July 1923.

[26] Manchester Medical Collection.

[27] The London Gazette, 28 Jun 1921.

[28] The London Gazette, 12 November 1929.

[29] The London Gazette, 9 June 1936, p. 3664.

[30] Marriage register.

[31] Saddleworth is a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It comprises several villages and hamlets as well as suburbs of Oldham.