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| Barnsley Chronicle 11th November 1944 Thanks to Barnsley Archives |
Son of: Fred and Ada Steele nee Sutcliffe. They were married at St Edward's Church on 15th March 1920. Fred (1887-1946, died age 58) was a chemical worker of 13 Harvey
Street, Barnsley, and Ada 1890-1962, died age 72) lived at 30 Harvey Street. The couple lived all their married life at 30 Harvey Street, Barnsley and had 6 children:
- William 1920
- Alice 1922
- Ronald 1923
- Irene 1926
- Fred 1927
- Margaret 1929-1931, died age 2 years.
William Steele
Ronald's brother Bdr. William Steele was serving in South East Asia at the time of Ronald's death, having been there over 3 years. William worked at Woods Glass works, was a member of the Boys Club and was an old Agnes Road scholar.
Ronald was employed at the Metalic and Wharncliffe Woodmoor Brick Works and was an old Central scholar.
Military Service: Ronald was a Private in the Durham Light Infantry, 16th Battalion, Service number 4699867. The Barnsley Chronicle 11th November 1944 tells us that he joined the Army in June 1942, went to North Africa in January 1943 and was wounded prior to our troops entering Tunis. He was later drafted to Italy and after a spell of fighting spent a well earned leave in the Middle East, visiting Cairo. He then returned to the fighting line in Italy.
Death: Died of wounds on 20th October 1944 in Italy. Ronald received shrapnel wounds in the head and right arm and was in hospital 5 weeks before his death.
Buried: Bari war Cemetery, Puglia, Italy, grave number XI. A. 5.
Ronald's grave bears the following inscription
We cannot Lord
Thy purpose see
But all is well
That's done by Thee
R.I.P.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission link: here
Remembered: St Edward's WW2 Memorial plaque, Barnsley
Research by James Corbett and Gill Brookes of St Edward's Church, Barnsley
THIRTY YEARS OF PENT-UP GRIEF
ReplyDeleteMam and dad went to Italy
Where a fallen soldier lies
My dad had never had the chance
To say his last goodbyes
My Uncle Ron was dad’s hero
His brother and best friend
His heart had ached for many years
Since Ron’s life reached the end
At the military grave stone
My dad “lost it” a touch
After over thirty years of pain
The relief was just too much
“I’m here Ron, I’m here”, sobbed dad
Then to his knees fell fast
“I said I’d never let you down
I’m here for you at last”
I’d never known this side of dad
It made me want to wail
I felt all hurt and upset for him
When my mother told the tale
Ronnie Steele. All Rights Reserved. December 2020.
Thank you for posting this very moving tribute to your Uncle Ron. Its a reminder to us all of the lifelong pain that families suffer when a young life is lost. Lest we forget.
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