Shot in the Head

James was born in Ballynure in 1896 but brought up in Tiger's Bay, North Belfast. He worked in Workman and Clark Shipyard but enlisted in the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers in 1913 as a Reservist. His attestation notes that he was 18 years old and only 5 ft 2 ins tall. He was called up immediately on declaration of war in August 1914.

James is noted to have suffered a gunshot wound to the head, neck and left shoulder in 1916, another gunshot wound in 1917 and yet another to his hand in 1918 before being demobilised in February 1919.

James wrote a letter to the mother of James McCann to assure her that her son had been given a proper burial. The letter has been treasured by the McCann family. At our Castleton Lanterns exhibition at the Red Barn Gallery in 2013, the two families met for the first time since that letter was written almost 100 years ago.