Dutch museum searching for relatives of Southport soldier killed in WWII ..

Dutch museum searching for relatives of Southport soldier killed in WWII

Dec 10 2010 by John Siddle, Southport Visiter
A MUSEUM is searching for the family of a Southport war hero who was killed liberating a Dutch village in the Second World War.
Trooper Richard Taylor was among five British troops slain by the Nazis as they prepared to launch a huge offensive against German forces in October 1944.
Now, the local history museum in the village of Geffen is looking to put together an exhibition paying tribute to the fallen soldiers, and to invite their families to a special remembrance day event.
The village lay in no-man’s-land as Allied forces controlled it in daylight before it come under Nazi occupation at night.


On October 21, 1944, the eve of a planned British attack, British forces, including Mr Taylor, were sent to the Geffen frontline to observe German activity.
Eyewitness Kees van der Rijt, whose farm had been torched the previous night by the Nazis, recalled: “We were working next to our burned farmhouse when suddenly a grenade arrived near my father and my brother. It hit the ground, did not explode, but flew on.
“The British soldiers got into the tank to return fire but a second anti-tank grenade was a direct hit. It exploded and the tank was instantly on fire. None of the tank crew survived.
“The fallen soldiers were buried next to the tank and the stench lingered for a long time. While the crew were later reburied in Uden, the lost tank stood there for many years.”
Visiter archives show that Mr Taylor, a keen sportsman, served in the Royal Armoured Corps and was killed a week before his 21st birthday.
He had been in the Forces for 2½ years and had been educated at Wigan Grammar and KGV schools. It is feared that he may be an only child.
Museum member Ruud Verhagen said: “What we already know about Richard Taylor is that he was the son of Thomas Taylor and Ophelia Robinson, who lived in St Luke’s Road, and that he died on October 21, 1944, in Holland.
“We are very eager to try and locate more information about him and to get in contact with his relatives.
“It would be great if the Visiter could help us with our exhibition, so the village can recognise the sacrifice Mr Taylor made for us.”
lIf you can help the Toren Museum, contact torenmuseum@gmail.com or write to Ruud Verhagen on at Molenstraat 14, 5386 AB, Geffen, Netherlands.