Born: 13th February 1913.
Story
John Suart was known as Jack, and was the son of Robert Suart (1881-1965) and Amanda Wyke (1883-1968, pictured below), who lived on Butt Hill, and married in Kippax on 24th October 1903. Jack’s nephew is Roger Monks, who contributes many Kippax-related and coal mining stories on Facebook.
Jack married Muriel Bentley (1915-1989) in Allerton Bywater on 20th October 1934. Jack’s Best Man was George Francis Beever, who was killed during the Second World War on 22nd April 1941. When they married, both Jack and Muriel were living with Jack’s parents at the Victoria Hotel, Main Street, Allerton Bywater, where Jack worked as a Clerk, helping his father run the books. After his marriage, he worked as a cashier at Bentley’s Yorkshire Brewery in Woodlesford (pictured below) until the outbreak of the Second World War. Although his wife was a Bentley, she doesn’t appear to have a direct connection to the well-known Brewery family. Her father, Alec Bentley, was a Police Sergeant in charge of the Whitwood Division. Originally from Oldham, he died in Leeds General Infirmary in 1928 at the age of 38.
Jack was based in India during the War. On 5th June 1942, it was reported that he had started learning Urdu so he could act as an interpreter. He met William Smales who was also from Kippax whilst based in India, and they caught up on local news by reading the Skyrack Express together. Jack also wrote home to complain that the beer in India was expensive and poor stuff. He was getting all his jobs done by a native Indian boy for 8d a week, and said he could go on writing for ever about the things he had seen in India.
After the War, Jack and Muriel moved to 3 Carr Lane Terrace, Glasshoughton. Jack passed away in Glasshoughton on 24th February 1987.
Kippax Roll of Honour 