BISHOP, Joseph

Joseph Bishop was the son of Joseph and Mary Bishop of Dudley and the husband of Martha Bishop of 35 John Street, Dudley. He enlisted in the Royal Engineers and volunteered in 1915 for tunnelling duties with the 170th Tunnelling Company, the first to be formed. It worked in Artois in the front line near Loos. It soon became a well organised and sophisticated branch of warfare and experienced miners were the obvious men to choose for this work. Among the dangers were counter-mining and gas but accidents were rare. It is not clear how but Sapper Joseph Bishop was killed on the 11th April 1916. He was 47 years of age and is buried in Noeux-les-Mines Communal Cemetery (I J 11) and commemorated on the Dudley Memorial.