FREED FROM OBLIVION --- LEST WE FORGET

Serjeant “Bill” William Ernest McMeakin (05-06-1915 - †05-10-1944 Goirle-Poppel (BE)), (Reg.nr: 409435) 

Although it has been more than 75 years since the end of the Second World War, it is still important to commemorate all Allies who were involved in fighting in and around Goirle. They died as a result of acts of war. G. Kobes wrote in 2016: "I want to remind you of the casualties among the Allied forces. To the young men who, far from their homeland, had to pay with their lives for the fight for our freedom. The price is unimaginably high, there is an empty place in millions of families. They, along with many others, gave their lives for our freedom." Serjeant 'Bill', William Ernest MacMeakin is one of them. He died on the border of Goirle (NL) and Poppel (BE) at the age of 29. 

General info: 

Bill McMeakin (William Ernest), Born Saturday, June 5, 1915 in Liverpool, 64. Argos Road, Bootle, a poor area of Liverpool. Mother Lucy Hannah was from Anglesey, an island off the west coast of North Wales. His father's name was also William Ernest, a member of the church council, whose family came from Belfast, Northern Ireland.

William was 1 of 6 children (brothers Robert, Joe and Lesley and sisters Lucy and Evelyn). William attended primary school in Daisy Street and then secondary school in Arnold Street. Bill was an excellent student and excelled in mathematics. After school, he went to work as a clerk at The Royal Liver Insurance in Liverpool, and because his talent was soon noticed, he was trained as an accountant. 

In 1939 he married Beatrice Maud, daughter of Harry and Clara Duncan, who were originally from Scotland. In 1941 they had a daughter, named Patricia. 

*Nationality :British *Part : 49th. British Infantry Division (West Riding) *Unit : 1/4 Battalion The King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (K.O.Y.L.I) *Registration number : 409435 *Rank : Serjeant

What happened? 

On Sunday, April 16, 1939, Bill McMeakin entered military service. When war broke out, his unit was incorporated into the 1/4 Bn. King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (KOYLI). He spent most of his military service – until the invasion – training.

In October 1944, Bill was in charge of a reconnaissance unit consisting of McMeakin, along with Arthur Noble and Michael Halliday, both of whom belonged to the same unit. They had been sent out to make contact with the enemy and to report on their strength and strength. They hit a landmine and were all killed. Place of death/burial: over the ditch to the left of the Roovertschedijk dirt road, approx. 40 mtr. on the Belgian side of the border.

The following is also mentioned on the English list: -- Registered by Chaplain A.A. Chapman, C.F. These 3 men are from the crew of a brengun carrier, which drove over a mine. Number of the carrier T 246390 with figures 56 on a square red field, with figure 4 on a red diamond.

On Poppel's war memorial, McMeakin's name also appears (MacMeakin), as well as those of Arthur Noble and Michael Halliday. It can be inferred from this that those three persons were killed on Belgian territory. This is also reflected in Goirle's list.

William McMeakin, together with his comrades Arthur Noble and Michael Halliday, was reburied more than a month later, on November 14, 1944, at the War Cemetery in Bergen op Zoom.

Grave location:

*Field grave location : Roovertsedijk, left side of the Ley, on the Belgian side of the border * Reburied : Commonwealth War Graves, Leopoldsburg (B) *GPS coordinates : Latitude: 51.11271, Longitude: 5.26833 *Grave location : VII-C. 20 *Epitaph : ''To live in the hearts of those we love is not to die. Treasured memoires.''

Commemorations:

https://wikimiddenbrabant.nl/MacMeakin,_William_Ernest

https://www.tracesofwar.nl/sights/14146/Oorlogsmonument-Poppel.htm 

https://nl.findagrave.com/memorial/14039830/william-ernest-mcmeakin

https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2109830/william-ernest-mcmeakin/

http://www.inmemories.com/Cemeteries/leopoldsburg.htm

Sources: 

*Research: G. Kobes en G. v.d. Klundert- Bertens