Thomas Peter Raymond Hulley was born in the September quarter of 1921 and his birth was registered in Hawarden. (Hawarden Flintshire -Volume Number: 11b, Page Number: 385).  He was the son of Thomas & Emma Hulley (nee WILLIAMS) who married in St. John’s Church, Buckley on the 28^th of March 1921.   Thomas Hulley, 23 was a bachelor and Ironworker, address – Buckley, and whose father was John Hulley (Deceased) and a Collier.    Thomas’s bride, Emma Williams, was a spinster aged 30 and a Cook, whose address was Wood House, Pentrobin, her father George Williams, Labourer, was also deceased.   They married after banns and their witnesses were C. Williams & Eliza Williams.

Thomas Senior’s father, John, had, I believe, died in 1902 (Hawarden,Flintshire (Mold) HAW/29/82) and his mother Isabella (nee Milroy) had remarried on the 25^th of February 1905 in St Mathews Church, Buckley.   Her new bridegroom and step-father to Thomas Senior was Peter Jones,36, a widower and Collier from Bistre, whose father was Edward Jones (deceased) and a Sawyer.    Isabella was now 36 and a widow, living in Buckley, her father James Milroy was a Labourer.   Isabella was originally from Birkenhead, Cheshire.

Thomas Peter Raymond Hulley’s parents are seen on the 1921 census, which was taken on the 19^th of June 1921, and we see the young Thomas & Emma Hulley living with his mother and stepfather Peter & Isabella Jones.   They were all living at Arch, Burntwood, Buckley.   Head of the household was Peter Jones, aged 54 years and 6 months old, born in Buckley, he was a Labourer for Joseph Turner, Chemical Works, at Queensferry.   Isabella Jones was now 54 years old and had been born in Birkenhead, Cheshire.   Their daughter Isabella Jones was 15 years and 2 months old and had been born in Buckley, she was a Domestic Servant.    Thomas Hulley, Step-son to Peter Jones was now 22 years and 3 months old and a Furnace Labourer, but was ‘Out of Work.’   Daughter-in-Law Emma Hulley was 30 years and 10 months old and had been born in the Warren, Flintshire.

I have no idea what Thomas Peter Raymond Hulley’s early life was like nor his teenage years, but on the 29^th of September 1939, when the National Register was taken, he was not with his family, living at 14 Woodlands, Dobshill Cross Roads, Hawarden, so I suspect he was already in the Royal Air Force Reserve.

The National Register gives us information about each household, giving dates of birth etc., and Thomas Senior, had been born on the23rd of March 1899 and was a Steel Furnaceman, (Heavy Worker), his wife Emma had been born on the 22^nd of July 1890 and as most women on this register who were not in a job were doing “Unpaid Domestic Duties,” while their daughter Muriel Hulley had been born on the 14^th of June 1926 and was “At School.”   There were 2 redacted or closed records in this household, but I do not know who they were.    Muriel Hulley, Thomas’s sister was, I believe to marry William Rogers in St. John’s Church, Pentrobin in 1948 (Flintshire (Mold)              C107/01/E181).

I do not know which R.A.F. Station he was posted to or where he was returning to, but these websites tell us a little of his Regiment:-

Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation

RAF Regiment Squadrons 2700 – 2850

2749 Squadron – http://www.rafweb.org/Organsation/Regiment2.htm

Formed as No 749 Squadron at Grantham on 19 December 1941, having been unnumbered from the previous April.   On 1 February 1942 all ground defence squadrons were absorbed into the RAF Regiment and these Squadrons had 2000 added to their numbers.    Moving to Wick in 1942 and Scampton in 1943, it converted to the Light Anti Aircraft role in May.  The squadron joined 2nd Tactical Air Force in August 1944 becoming a Rifle squadron in September 1944, it moved to the continent in April 1945 serving at Detmold and Gutersloh before moving to Wahn, where it disbanded in September 1946.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_RAF_Regiment_squadrons

This is a List of RAF Regiment squadrons. The Royal Air Force Regiment is the ground fighting force of the Royal Air Force and is charged mainly with protecting military airfields, among other duties.

First formed in 1942 to protect the airfields against enemy attack, the Regiment’s motto is Per Ardua – Through Adversity. They are also known as Rock Apes.

Stationed at R.A.F. Banff  – RAF Banff is a former Royal Air Force station located 4.3 miles (6.9 km) west of Banff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland and 14.28 miles (22.98 km) northeast of Keith, Moray.

and

R.A.F.  Bircham Newton – Royal Air Force Bircham Newton or more simply RAF Bircham Newton is a former Royal Air Force station located 2.1 miles (3.4 km) south east of Docking, Norfolk and 13.4 miles (21.6 km) north east of King’s Lynn, Norfolk, England.

It appears form the newspaper reports that Thomas had been home for a while and was returning to camp, and it sounds that he was hitching a lift back, which was something my late husband did when he was doing National Service, and accepted a lift form a lorry driver, which was involved in an accident.

Thanks to this website below and the Forum, many thanks to them, it seems that Thomas was very badly injured.

According to this website (Forum) we now know where Thomas’s accident was : –

http://www.rafcommands.com/forum/showthread.php?8055-430322-Unaccounted-airmen-22-3-1943&p=46622#post46622

The letterwriter said: 2nd April 2010 19:03 Henk

LAC Thomas Peter Raymond Hulley 1411108 : Year:- 1943 Ref. 051/13, Golspie, Sutherland, Scotland

Best wishes

Douglas

LAC Thomas P.R. HULLEY – 1411108 – the Statutory Deaths Register on the Scotland’s People* website records that he died at 5.00 p.m. at the Lawson Memorial Hospital, Golspie, due to a fractured pelvis and ruptured bladder, the result of a road accident.

*https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/record-results?search_type=People&surname=hulley&forename=thomas&forename_so=exact&from_year=1943&to_year=1943&surname_so=exact&record_type=stat_deaths

Chester Chronicle 27^th March 1943 Raymond HULLEY (22) RAF   Dobs Hill, Funeral 27^th March,  1943 RAF.

AIRMAN’S DEATH FOLLOWS ACCIDENT – The death occurred on Monday of A./C.  Raymond HULLEY, R.A.F., 22-year-old son of Mr. & Mrs. Thomas HULLEY, the Woodlands Council Houses, Dobshill.   He was home on leave two weeks ago, and when returning met with an accident.   The funeral took place at St. John’s Churchyard, Pentrobin on Friday.

Chester Chronicle 3^rd April 1943

FUNERAL OF L.A.C. RAYMOND HULLEY.

Sympathy has been expressed with Mr. & Mrs. Thomas HULLEY, 14, The Woodlands, Dobshill, in the death of their eldest son, L.A.C. Raymond HULLEY, R.A.F. Regiment, which occurred on Monday following an accident.   It is understood that the motor lorry in which he was travelling collided with a bridge and he received internal injuries.   L.A.C. HULLEY was single, and in civilian life a joiner.   He would have been 22 in June.

The funeral took place at St. John’s Church, Pentrobin, on Friday, the Rev. D. SAUNDERS-REES (Rector of Hawarden) and the Rev. J. JACQUES, Officiating.  (List of mourners further down the page)

Thomas Peter Raymond’s name was put forward to be added to the WW2 War Memorial to be remembered in perpetuity by his family as he was so well loved and missed by them all.