King’s Own Scottish Borderers, 5th Battalion
Born: 20th January 1918
Story
Alf Barrett (pictured above whilst on leave in Kippax, 1942) was the seventh of nine children, born to Alfred Barrett (1878-1952) and Alice Milner (1882-1967) who married in Allerton Bywater on 29th March 1902. Alf’s other siblings were involved in the War effort, and are also featured.
Alf’s father was a miner, and vowed that none of his sons would follow him into the same profession. So when Alf left Kippax School in 1932, aged 14, he went into the tailoring trade, working as a Cutter for a Clothing Manufacturer. In his spare time, he enjoyed his hobbies of playing rugby, pigeon racing and gardening. His period of service during the War is listed below:
January 1940: Enlisted in King’s Own Scottish Borderers on 15th January 1940 in Berwick-Upon-Tweed.
1940-1941: Trained in Scotland (Callander).
July 1941: Passed first gas chamber test.
January 1942: Passed 3-inch mortar course.
February 1942: Passed second gas chamber test. Passed war course.
1942: Trained in Aviemore with mountain troops in preparation to go to Norway. Later trained with airborne troops. Served as a 3-inch mortar man.
February 1944: Passed first rifle and Bren gun course.
April 1944: Passed second rifle and Bren gun course.
October 1944: 5th Battalion King’s Own Scottish Borderers joined with 52nd (Lowland) Division and became part of the assault landings on Walcheren Island, at the mouth of the Scheldt Estuary in Holland.
January 1945: Part of Operation Blackcock. Pushing the enemy back through the Roer Triangle, Roermond and Sittard in Holland and Heinsburg in Germany. Fought through to Germany, taking part in the capture of Bremen.
October 1945: Awarded the France-Germany Star.
October 1945-March 1946: Part of the Army of Occupation on the River Rhine.
March 1946: Discharged on 21st March 1946, at the Military Dispersal Unit in York.
Alf’s Military Conduct Report reads as below:
Exemplary. This man has served with 5th Battalion King’s Own Scottish Borderers for almost six years and has proved himself to be a cool and reliable soldier in action. In periods of rest, as a storeman at Divisional Training Centre, he proved himself reliable and trustworthy.
In April 1946, Alf returned to Kippax to live in the family home, and resumed working in the tailoring trade. In the following years, he continued to work in tailoring, and met his future wife at work in 1947. They married on 16th April 1949 and Alf left Kippax to live in Farsley. They had one daughter, before moving to Armley in 1957.
Alf continued working in tailoring until 1962, when he had a change of career, and became a hospital porter. He and his wife moved to Farnley in 1978. Alf loved his job at the hospital and stayed there until his retirement in 1982. He spent his remaining years following his hobby of gardening, until his death on 19th March 1993.
His widow continued to live in the same house until her death in 2018, whilst his only daughter married in 1970 and had one daughter in 1974. They lived in Armley until 1978, when they decided to move back to Kippax.
Alf would be very pleased to know that his daughter, granddaughter, plus two great grandchildren are continuing to follow the family tradition by still living in Kippax.
Kippax Roll of Honour 