Lest We Forget

Hebden and World War 2

World War 2 Role of Honour

There are two identical hand-written framed Roles of Honour recording the names of those associated with Hebden who served in World War 2. One is on the north wall of St. Peter's Church and the other is on the wall in the Ibbotson Institute - the village hall. The three men who died are listed above the others. The names below are transcribed in the order they appear on the Role of Honour.

Name (with links to CWGC)	Rank	Regiment	Date Died	Notes
Harker, John Hammond	Sergeant	Royal Air Force	10/02/1942	Son of Richard & Elizabeth Harker, husband of Muriel Harker (née Whitehead).
Longthorne, Fred	Driver	Royal Army Service Corps	26/08/1943	Son of Sam & Maud Annie Longthorne of Ferndene; husband of Sarah Maud Longthorne (née Kayley )
Sturgeon, John Brian (DSC)	Lieutenant	Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve	03/04/1944	Son of Robert & Dorothy Sturgeon of Hole Bottom; husband of Esme V M Sturgeon (née Byas).

Allen, Jack K
Bell, Ronald
Bowdin, Richard D
Bowdin, Edgar
Bowdin, Thomas
Bowdin, Alex
Gill, Arthur
Hancock, William
Hargreaves, R Adrian
Herd, John H
Hawkins, Reginald
Lunham, Harry
Longthorne, Freda
Moore, Alma
Pickles, David J
Pickles, John
Richards, Gordon S
Simpson, Richard N
Stockdale, Shirley
Sturgeon, E Lawrence H
Wall, William
Whitehead, Thomas
Whyte, George D

World War 2 Commonwealth War Grave

There is one Commonwealth war grave in St. Peter's graveyard - that of Sergeant John Hammond Harker of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force who died during a night flying exercise at Brayspool, Ponterbryd, in Cardiganshire on 10th February 1942, aged 27. See here for details of the Commonwealth war grave, and here for further details of the flying incident. His wife Muriel, who died in 1998, is commemorated on the stone below. Sergeant Harker is also commemorated on the Wall of Names at the International Bomber Command Centre in Lincoln, and on the war memorial in Linton.

Sergeant John Harker's Commonwealth war grave, Hebden — Sergeant John Harker's Commonwealth War Grave, St. Peter's Church, Hebden.
Click image for larger resolution