Joseph Wharton

Born in 1879, he was a miner before he enlisted at Houghton-le-Spring in the 14th (Service) Battalion DLI. He was awarded the Military Medal for his bravery in carrying messages under heavy fire on 19th October 1917, during a German raid on 14 DLI's trenches near Lens. He gained the Bar to his Military Medal on 3rd December 1917 at Masnieres during the Battle of Cambrai, when he again carried vital messages under heavy fire across open ground and was badly wounded. Joseph Wharton returned to mining after the War and died in 1953, aged 74 years.