George William Lightfoot was born on 21 st February 1898 at Norton and was one of six children of William and Alice Lightfoot. His father was
born in Preston Brook around 1869 and had worked as a canal porter for at least six years when their son William was born. Alice had been born in Newton by Daresbury around 1871. William’s sister Hilda May had been born in 1894, and his brother Frank Sidney had been born on 13th July 1896, both at Newton by Daresbury. Three other children, one boy and two girls, died in infancy. Another sister Phyllis Ina was born in 1920.
In 1901 the family were living at Cotton’s Bridge Cottages, off the Bridgewater Canal Bank at Preston Brook. By 1911 the family were living at Sunny Hill in Preston on the Hill, with William’s father working as a porter for the Ship Canal Company, while Frank Sidney was working as a clerk in a chemical works. William was not employed.
William served in World War One in France, having enlisted in December 1914. His first regiment was the Royal Scots Greys (in the
1st, 2nd, 16th and 7th battalions as a private with service number 2501) and he was awarded the 1914-15 Star, the Victory Medal and the British War Medal. In late 1918 he appeared on the Absent Voters’ List, by which time he was in the 6th Reserve Regiment Cavalry which had formed in 1917 from previous mounted regiments. He was a private with the service number 26758.
The 1921 Census recorded William as living at home with his parents and he worked as a machine attendant in the Provender department of the Manchester Ship Canal Bridgewater department. However, he was recorded as being out of work at that time.
In 1922 he married Alice Withenshaw of Bartington, and they had two sons, Douglas and Russell. They set up home at Laburnum Cottage in
Little Leigh. William worked as a warehouse porter on the canal.
Sadly, William (known as Billy) was killed on his bicycle at Tall Trees in Bartington, on June 23 rd 1964, in a collision with a mini-van. He had
been retired two years. He was buried at St Michael and All Angels, Little Leigh.
