Foster | John Mason
Biography
John Mason Foster was killed in action on 14 October, 1944. He was aged 23 at the time. He was a Private in the 1stBattalion of the South Lancashire Regiment (Service No. 3663588). He was initially buried on the premises of A vd. Wijst, Overloon and re-interred on13 May 1947 in grave I. C.14. in the Overloon CWG Cemetery.
Family Background
John Mason Foster (who was known as Jack) was the son of John Dearnley Foster and Evelyn Mason who had married in Burnley, Lancashire in 1921.
Jack’s father was the son of James Lacey Foster and Ada Foster. James was born in 1870 in Bingley, Yorkshire while Ada was born in 1871 in Batley, Yorkshire. They had children as follows: Sam 1893 Bingley; James William 1894 Lumb, Lancashire; Emma 1896 Lumb; John Dearnley 16 February 1899 Shipley, Yorkshire; Mary 1902 Hartlepool, Durham; Fred 1905 Lumb; Ben 1909 Burnley and Ada 1912 Burnley. However, Fred died in Burnley in 1908 aged 3. The birthplaces of the children suggest that the family moved fairly frequently.
In 1901, James and Ada were living at 18, Milton Street, West Hartlepool, Hartlepool, Durham. With them were their first four children, which included John Dearnley Foster. James was working as a Public Works Contractor. In 1911 they were living at 54 Lowerhouse Lane, Burnley. With them were their six surviving children who were born by then, including John. James was working as a Building Contractor. Sam was working as Bricklayer assisting his father while James William was a Mason Apprentice, assisting his father. Emma was a cotton weaver. They were at the same address in 1921. Five of their children were still living at home, but not Sam or John. James was a Bricklayer Contractor, working for himself. James William was a Bricklayer for Kelshaw & Lee, Guy Meet. Emma was a Cotton Weaver for Mitchell Brothers, Cotton Manufacturers. Mary was a Dressmaker for Mrs Smith Dress & Blouse Maker.
Jack’s mother was Evelyn Mason, the daughter of Joseph William Mason and Margaret Astin who had married in Burnley in 1899. Joseph was born in 1871 in Ingleton, Yorkshire and Margaret around 1876 in Burnley. Evelyn was born on 8 July 1899 in Burnley and seems to have been their only child.
In 1901 Joseph, Margaret and Evelyn were living at 38, Talbot Street, Burnley, Joseph was a cotton weaver. In 1911, the family were living at 51 Williams Road, Burnley. Both Joseph and Margaret were cotton weavers.
In June 1921, Joseph and Margaret were living at 75, Basford Street, Burnley. However, their daughter Evelyn had married John Dearnley Foster early that year and they were living with Evelyn’s parents. Joseph and Margaret were still working as cotton weavers for the Heasandford Manufacturing Company. John Foster was working as a Booking Clerk for the Lancs and Yorks Railway Company. Later that year, John and Evelyn had their first child, John Mason Foster (Jack), on 25 August 1921. They had another child, Doreen Foster, on 15 March 1923, also in Burnley.
James Lacey Foster of 9 Arkwright Street, Burnley, died on 6 June 1932. It seems he was a well known figure. The Burnley Express of 11 June 1932 stated:
“Burnley Builder’s Funeral – The Late Mr James L Foster
The funeral took place last Wednesday in the Burnley cemetery of the late Mr. James Lacey Foster of 9 Arkwright St, a well known builder, who died at the residence of his son at Knott End near Fleetwood early last Monday. Mr. Foster was 62 years of age and after an illness lasting some time, had visited his son in order to recuperate. His sudden death came as a great shock to his many friends throughout Lancashire and the North.”
His sons, James William Foster and John Dearnley Foster, Builders administered his estate.
By September 1939, John and Evelyn Foster were living at 1 Essex Avenue, Burnley. With them was Doreen but not Jack. John was still working as a Railway Clerk.
It is understood that Jack had been living in Ulverston before he joined up. A John Foster, born 25 August 1921, was living in the household of a widow, Sarah Whiteway, born 30 April 1883, at 36 Newton Street, Ulverston in September 1939. He was working as a Plumber’s Improver. Also present was Samuel Baker, a married man born in 1882 who was a Building Contractor. It is interesting that a Mr S Baker attended James Lacey Foster ‘s funeral in 1932 – so this may have been the Samuel Baker who was in the same household as John Foster in Ulverston in 1939.
Military Career
Jack was in the 1st Battalion of the South Lancashire Regiment at the time of his death. However, a photo of him shows him wearing badges on his sleeve from the 55th (West Lancashire) Infantry Division. While there is no evidence that the 1st Battalion of the South Lancashire Regiment was in this division, it is known that the 1/4th and 2/4th (TA) Battalions of the South Lancashires were in that division for a time. It is known that Jack enlisted in the Spring of 1942 so it may have been that this was with one of those Battalions.
The 2/4th Battalion was raised in 1939 as a 2nd Line Territorial Army battalion duplicate of the 1st Line 4th Battalion, later redesignated the 1/4th Battalion. Both the 1/4th and 2/4th battalions served in the 164th Infantry Brigade, part of the 55th (West Lancashire) Infantry Division. This division remained within the United Kingdom, training for future operations as well as training replacements for combat units and assigned to anti-invasion duties. It may be that this was where Jack was trained and then later transferred to the 1st Battalion.
Following the evacuation from Dunkirk in 1940, the 1st Battalion of the South Lancashire regiment had been transferred to the 8th Infantry Brigade (which included the 1st Suffolk Regiment and 2nd East Yorkshire Regiment) attached to the 3rd Infantry Division, nicknamed Monty’s Ironsides. With this division, it landed at Sword Beach on D-Day and fought its way through Normandy, taking part in the battles for Caen and the Falaise Pocket.
From 16 to 18 September, they moved in three stages through Belgium to reach Lille St Hubert, just south of the Dutch border, south of Eindhoven. Here they were to assist the East Yorkshire and Suffolk Regiments to make a bridgehead over the Escaut Canal which they crossed on 20 September to reach Hamont, just west of the Dutch border and then reaching Weert in the Netherlands by the 22nd, despite the Allied forces facing difficulties from bridges which had been destroyed.
They remained in this vicinity until 25 September when C Company moved eastward towards Schoor as part of a plan to clear the west bank of a canal which lay further east. The whole Battalion were expected to take part in this the following day, but it had been decided that they were to move to Maarheeze that day, so only C Company took part in this. Their progress was slow, so they were ordered to disengage and continue after the rest of the Battalion to Maarheeze. On 27 September they moved on again to reach Bakel which is just northeast of Eindhoven. The following day they moved again slightly further north to Mortel to allow the American 7th Armoured Division to occupy the area at Bakel. The Americans were moving through to St Anthonis. The Battalion remained at Mortel until 1 October when they moved further north to Heumen which is just south of Nijmegen and north of Cuijk and then to nearby Mook on 3 October.
By this time, Operation Market Garden further to the north had failed to take the bridge at Arnhem. This left the Allies in a narrow corridor through the Netherlands. An attempt was made by the American 7th Armoured Division on 30 September to widen this by attacking Overloon from their position at St Anthonis to try to widen this corridor east to the River Maas, but this attack failed.
The 1st Battalion of the South Lancashire Regiment remained at Mook until 8 October when they moved south to Wanroij. It had been decided that the Americans were to withdraw and leave widening the corridor through Overloon, Venray and Venlo to the British. Initially, it was intended that the attack on Overloon would begin on 11 October. However, this was postponed until 12 October due to the very wet weather and ground conditions.
On 12 October the attack started at noon with a very heavy artillery barrage. The 2 East Yorks. led the attack on what was described as Dog Wood to the west of Overloon while the 1 Suffolks targeted Overloon itself. Both achieved their objectives by 1500 hours, but with some mopping up still to do. The 1 South Lancs. were initially held in reserve but at 1700 hours A and D Companies were ordered to advance to clear a remaining area with one troop of the 3 Grenadier Guards in support of each forward Company. They met very little opposition and by dusk were in position on the forward edge of a clearing to the west of Overloon. They moved a little further south the following day, but were then instructed on 14 October to move to a road between Rouw and Halfweg northeast of Overloon to secure control of a junction leading from that road to Schaartven. This was the day on which Jack was killed in action. The exact circumstances of his death are not known, but one Company experienced heavy small arms fire and encountered mines while moving into their required position.
The Burnley Express of 29 October 1944 reported his death as follows:
“Mr & Mrs Foster of 1 Essex Avenue, Burnley, have been informed that their son, Pte. John Mason Foster, of the South Lancashire Regiment, has been killed in action in Northwest Europe. Pte. Mason, who was 23, joined the Army over 2 ½ yrs ago. Previously he had worked at Ulverston”.
On 13 October 1945, several family members paid tribute to him in the Burnley Express as follows:
“Foster – In proud and loving memory of our dear son, John Mason, killed in action Oct 14th, 1944.
‘He gave the greatest gift of all
His unfinished life
He rests with those who paid the supreme sacrifice
Only those who have loved and lost
Know the price of war’s bitter cost’
From Mam and Dad,
‘Always Smiling, always content
Loved and respected wherever he went’
Doreen and Alfred
‘We think of him in silence
We often speak his name
What would we give to see you, Jack,
Come smiling back again’
Grandma and Aunties, 23 Thorne Street.”
Aftermath
Jack and Doreen’s father, John Dearnley Foster, died in 1947 in Manchester, just three years after his son.
In 1949, their mother, Evelyn Foster, married Percy Crutchley in Burnley. Percy was a widower, born on 19 January 1888 in Staffordshire. He had married Sadie Clarke in 1910 in Wakefield. Sadie was born on 1 October 1880. In September 1939, Percy and Sadie had been living at 97, Curzon Street, Burnley. Percy was working as an Omnibus Conductor, Public Service. It was reported in the Burnley Express on 19 March 1947 that Sadie Crutchley died aged 63, wife of Percy Rawlinson Crutchley. Evelyn only survived a further 6 years after her second marriage as she died in 1955 in Burnley, aged 55. Percy R Crutchley died the year after on 28 April 1956 in Burnley.
Jack’s sister, Doreen, married Alfred Goddard in 1945 in Burnley. Alfred himself had served in WW2. In June 1944, Alfred was a 22-year-old Tank Commander who, having volunteered for Special Operations with the 6th Airborne Division, was landed behind enemy lines as part of the D Day landings. He was badly wounded in action when a shell exploded near his Tetrach Light Tank. He recovered from his injuries at Manchester Royal Infirmary and pledged that at the end of the war he would return to marry one of the nurses who cared for him with skill and compassion during his darkest days. His next active duty was as part of Operation Market Garden at Arnhem where he suffered a perforated eardrum, but fortunately he survived the remainder of active service without further injury. At the end of WW2, he kept his promise, returning to marry his nurse, who was Jack’s sister, Doreen, in Manchester. Alfred and Doreen had three children, Michael, Paul and Pat. Alfred remained in military service, qualifying as an army parachutist at the Parachute Training School at RAF Aqir in Palestine, later taking up posts at the Air Ministry in Whitehall then in Egypt. Other postings in his civilian career included RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, and at RAF Strike Command in High Wycombe where he was Command Secretary until his retirement aged 60.
In later life Alfred and Doreen moved to Scotland to be closer to their son. Sadly, Doreen passed away aged 91 on 6 August 2014 in Biggar.
For his actions following D Day, Alfred was awarded the Chevalier (Knight) in the Ordre national de la Légion d’honneur by the French Consul General to Scotland at his home in Biggar in 2017. He reached his 100th birthday on 3 March 2022.
Doreen’s son relates that his mother swore she would not let Alfred die and clearly struck up a strong relationship with him such that they married after the war ended. She was so devastated by her brother, Jack’s, death that she very rarely talked about him as his loss remained with her throughout her days.
