Milton Holgate

 

Age 30        Married with 1 child

Private 34462
8th Bn., East Lancashire Regiment

Killed in action on
Sunday 11th February 1917

 

Milton was a Sabdener from birth and lived with his wife, Lauretta, their child and his parents George and Selina at 4 Pendle Street West, Sabden. 

Milton was an active member of the community being secretary to both The Band of Hope and the Wesleyan Sunday School, where he had been the organist for fifteen years.  He was employed at Messrs Lockwood and Buckley’s, Union Mill as a weaver, also serving on the committee of the weavers union.  Milton’s great passion was gardening and poultry rearing, winning many prizes at Sabden’s Horticultural Shows.

Just four months after enlisting in the army, Milton's wife Lauretta was officially notified that he had been killed in action.  In the next post a letter came from Private James Holliday (himself severely wounded in April 1917) who was a friend and comrade of Milton from Sabden. It read, 

“Dear Mrs Holgate, 

I am very sorry to inform you, as I thought it my duty, that your husband Pte. Milton Holgate No. 34462 East Lancashire Regt., Gun Section, has been killed in action on February 11th.  You must not worry yourself much, for he had a peaceful death.  We buried him in the British Cemetery in France, so you will know he is in a nice grave, for I went myself to see it.  We all were very sorry to lose him, for we were all together.  I and John Hodkinson got off lucky.”

(John Hodkinson was another Sabden soldier.)

Milton is buried at the Maroc British Cemetery, Nord, France. 

In Sabden he has been remembered on both the School and Church Plaques.