H Proctor gives little away in his entry in Nurse Oliver’s album but the fact that he was gassed at High Wood
suggests the Somme battles of 1916 or later. This would make him a Beechland
House patient rather than a Hickwells one. His entry reads:
I am an English Tommy.
I get a shilling a day
I live in a little dug-out
Made of mud and clay.
H Proctor. West Riding
Redgt
Gassed High Wood
He shares this page with an entry from 17797 Private Albert Leggett of the 1st Northamptonshire Regiment.
I have been unable to find a positive match for this man but there are a couple of strong possibilities amongst the
medal index cards at the National Archives. He could be 203144 Private Harrison
Proctor of (a territorial battalion of) the West Riding Regiment (later transferred to the Labour Corps as a private and given
the number 381161). Or he could be 19934 Private Harry Proctor of the West Riding
Regiment (later transferred to the Durham Light Infantry as a private and given the number 75262). Alternatively, he may be somebody completely different altogether.
Sources and Acknowledgements
· The National Archives: Medal Index Cards
