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Wright George Roland (d. 1943)/Bradford fabrics

KathyP

master brummie
Does anyone know of Bradford Fabrics in Bham before WW2 and their district rep George Roland Wright who lived n Russell Bank Road, Sutton Coldfield
 
Members might find it useful to know a little more about what lies behind Kathy's request for information.

On the night of 21/22 June 1943 a Wellington of 166 Squadron crashed near Neerkant in Holland and all five crew members lost their lives.. The navigator on this aircraft was Pilot Officer George Roland Wright. It appears that George lived from 1938 at "Undercliffe", Russell Bank Road, Four Oaks and he was probably the local rep for a firm called Bradford Fabrics.

A Dutch gentleman, posting on another social platform, is trying to find out more about George and his family in Sutton. His aim is to commemorate the sacrifices made by all those who helped to bring back freedom to Neerkant and in particular to erect a memorial there to George and his four comrades. Which of course is a pretty good reason for us to try and help with Kathy's request for any local information if we possibly can.

Chris
 
Is there some confusion?

George Roland Wright was born in Bradford. On the 1939 register, his parents and a brother are listed at 300 Undercliffe Street.

It appears George married in 1938, so was possibly living there until then.
 
CWGC lists him as '...of Willerby, Yorkshire' which seems to come under the KIngston Upon Hull district and there is a matching George R Wright at 131 Spring Bank, Hull.

Bradford Fabrics Ltd were a Bradford company of Peckover St. There are some newspaper snippets about them and separately about George (marriage and death).
 
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I wondered if he might just lodge in Sutton as the area rep. Using it as an area base but living in Yorkshire.
 
Possibly, a bit of a coincidence though, that his parents live in Undercliffe St and he's staying at a house called Undercliffe.

I do like weird coincidences mind.
 
Thanks for the interest.

I believe that the Dutch researcher agrees with that Bradford background. What he has established is that George took up residence in Four Oaks in around 1938 (the time of his marriage?) as the local rep for the company. And also it seems that he gave the Sutton house (a new one perhaps?) a name related to his roots.

I suspect that what he is after is any information about George’s life in Sutton/Birmingham between 1938 and 1943 - especially family and so on, and what became of them.

Chris
 
Thanks for the interest.

I believe that the Dutch researcher agrees with that Bradford background. What he has established is that George took up residence in Four Oaks in around 1938 (the time of his marriage?) as the local rep for the company. And also it seems that he gave the Sutton house (a new one perhaps?) a name related to his roots.

I suspect that what he is after is any information about George’s life in Sutton/Birmingham between 1938 and 1943 - especially family and so on, and what became of them.

Chris
International Bomber Command Centre memorial ref
 

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Thanks, Tinpot. The location of the widow does make you wonder if George and family had returned to Yorkshire (temporarily or permanently) whilst he was serving in the RAF. I did think she might have followed her husband to live near the aerodrome to which he had been posted, RAF Kirmington in Lincolnshire. But Willerby, her stated location in Yorkshire, was located on the wrong side of the Humber and so a temporary move to live with George is very unlikely.

It seems that Mary Wright was a teacher in a local Junior School during her time in Sutton.

Chris
 
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The house is listed on 1939 reg but no names are recorded. This suggests it was might be new and unoccupied. Maps seem to show small cluster of houses only.
The other problem, as you know, is there were no e rolls during the war. Also I am not sure whether Sutton was part of Birmingham then in which case I don't know where those erolls are to check who is listed immediately after the war.
 
George's wife Mary appears to be listed with her mother (Emily) and her sister (Ella) at 13 West View, Bradford on the 1939 register.

George & Mary don't seem to have had any children. Mary possibly re-marries a Kenneth C Edwards in 1947 (Hull). They don't seem to have had any children either and there is a death that could be hers - reg. Tunbridge Wells 1981 (dob 1-1-1912 matches 1939 register).

Mary's brother, James, was killed in a flying accident 7 July 1943.
 
If George joined up early on in the war then he can't have spent much time at the house in Sutton. Wonder if the researcher has his records and knows when he enlisted?
 
Thanks Mike - that is what I thought - although parts of Sutton are on Ancestry for 1955 and 1960 e rolls.
There are some places that include Sutton in their name in Yorkshire. A small village Sutton under Whitecliffe?Sutton Bank? An area near Selby? Possibilities.
 
There are some places that include Sutton in their name in Yorkshire. A small village Sutton under Whitecliffe?Sutton Bank? An area near Selby? Possibilities.
I wondered that but there is a house called Under Cliffe listed on 1939 reg in Russell Bank Road, Royal Sutton Coldfield but empty.
Did he ever actually live there?
 
If George joined up early on in the war then he can't have spent much time at the house in Sutton. Wonder if the researcher has his records and knows when he enlisted?

There is an article in the Shipley Times and Express, 11 Aug 1943 reporting his death. It says 'He received his wings in 1942, having joined...' That's all I can see from the results summary.
 
I think the following is all we have to go on. According to the Dutch researcher:

One of the crew members was thus Flight Officer George Roland Wright (Navigator), service number: 148758.​
George (born 1908) was the son of Thomas Edgar and Ethel Mary Wright from Undercliffe Street, Bradford.​
As far as I know George had 2 brothers and 1 sister (1 brother was called Donald, 1 brother was called Thomas and his sister was called Winifred Margaret).​
George was the husband of Mary Wright (nee Driver) and they were married on July or August, 1938 at Eccleshill Parish Church in Bradford.​
George lived on Undercliffe Street in Bradford until his marriage.​
Mary Driver lived at West View, Undercliffe until she married George.​
Here, however, my search for information regarding George falters.​
George joined the Auxiliary Airforce in 1938 (so he is unlikely to be on the 1939 register, because I heard military personnel were not recorded on this register).​
I did, however, obtain information from a contact in Bradford that George most likely lived after 1938 at “Undercliffe”, Russell Bank Road, Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield. This address was mentioned on a probate from George. (Undercliffe is the name of an area of Bradford where George grew up. My contact in Bradford discovered that the houses at Russell Bank Road all have names and one was/is called “Undercliffe”. It looks like he possibly named his house after the area he’d grown up in).​

It looks from this that there is little doubt about the Sutton Coldfield connection. And possibly that George was RAFVR - one of those who volunteered before the war for aircrew training in their spare time and were brought into use when they were needed. It's either a remarkable coincidence that Mary's brother was also RAF aircrew - or, more likely, he and George were mates together prewar in the RAFVR. And it is starting to look as though George and Mary's time in Sutton might well have been brief.

What multiple tragedies befell some unfortunate families in those dreadful days.

Chris
 
Mary's brother, James, who also died was much younger (15 years) than George, so possibly inspired by him.

George's brothers, Donald Roger died in 1955, reg Lancaster and Thomas Norman died in 1980, reg Leicester.

Winifred Margaret died unmarried in 1928.
 
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