I'd love to give the medals back to his family - man's mission to return medals of fallen WWI hero to family
“I would love to give the medals of this fallen hero of WWI back to his family”
The words of Peter Watson, 79, who has made it his mission to return three medals to the family of a Sunderland soldier, nearly 110 years since he made the ultimate sacrifice in the infamous Battle of the Somme.
One of the medals Peter said was a commemorative award given to soldiers who perished during the Great War. It has the name and rank ‘Private Gardner Wilkinson’ engraved on the back with his serving number 4683 also etched into the metal.
The other two medals in the collection includes another service medal with an engraving of the then monarch of the time, King George V, which Peter also believes was given to Private Wilkinson for his service during WWI. The final medal in the collection is named the Atlantic Star.
Peter, who lives in Blyth, came into possession of the three medals when clearing out the home of his then seriously ill nephew, Paul.
He said: “Paul was seriously ill and asked me to clear some of his belongings out of his house. When I showed him the medals, he said they had been passed down from his parents, but didn’t know where they had come from.
“I took them to the military museum in Alnwick where they were able to trace Gardner’s name and number. They said he was registered as being from Monkwearmouth in Sunderland, but had signed up for the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, with whom he fought during WWI.
“They said he was killed in conflict during the Battle of the Somme in 1916. They didn’t say how old he was, but I imagine he would have been born in the late 1890s.”
Peter and Paul now just want to ensure the medals are returned to Private Gardner’s family, over 100 years after he made the ultimate sacrifice for King and country.
Peter said: “He was obviously from Sunderland and so I’ve contacted the Sunderland Echo in the hope that one of Gardner’s ancestors still lives in the city and recognises his name and service number.
“I would love to return the medals to his family.”
If you are an ancestor of Private Wilkinson or have additional information about him and/or the whereabouts of his family, then please contact me by emailing [email protected] and I will pass your contact details on to Peter.