Woman Finds Name And Regiment Number Of World War Soldier On £10

A woman is trying to crack the mystery behind a bizarre message she found scrawled on a £10 note.

Claire Carney withdrew some money from a cash machine in Norwich, when she spotted the name John Hodgson, his regiment details and age written on a tenner, the Macclesfield Express reports.

Baffled by the weird message, she Googled the name and regiment number and was led to a site called macclesfieldreflects.org.uk, which lists Private Hodgson as a soldier who died in the First World War.

The £10 note has the man's name, age and regiment details. Credit: Macclesfield Express

At a loss for what to do next, Claire sent a snap of the tenner to Rosie Rowley, the website's administrator and researcher, who was just as confused. She told the Macclesfield Express: "Who wrote the information on the banknote, and why, is a mystery."

Claire, however, has a theory that the details on the ten spot might be a tribute to his memory. She told the paper: "I like the idea that someone wrote his details on the note because they didn't want his name and the ultimate sacrifice he made to be forgotten."

Private John Hodgson died aged just 21. Credit: Macclesfield Express

According to Rosie and the team at macclesfieldreflects.org.uk, John Hodgson was born on 19 December 1894, in Macclesfield. He was one of eight children - with siblings called Ethel, Esther, Hannah, George, Mary, Harry and Elsie.

He enrolled at Macclesfield Technical School in September 1909, before joining the 7^th Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment, where he trained as part of the 159^th Brigade 53^rd (Welsh) Division.

Credit: macclesfieldreflects.org.uk

In July of 1915, he sailed to Alexandria in Egypt and onto the island of Lemnos in August. Shortly after they arrived they came under fire and Private Hodgson was registered as missing. He was assumed to have died on 9 August 1915. He was just 21.

His name is present on a memorial in Macclesfield as well as the Helles Memorial in Turkey.

But, why his name has suddenly turned up on a £10 note in Norwich is anyone's guess.

Source: Macclesfield Express

Featured Image Credit: Macclesfield Express

Topics: army, soldier

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

@ClaireReid19