Granddaughter of fallen Shettleston WWII hero soldier discovers where he is buried - thanks to Glasgow Times

With such a common name, and just a few details about the man, who was one of the 5th Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders to liberate the village of Schijndel during WWII, Dirk Paagman thought it unlikely he would hear from anyone who could tell him more.

He got in touch with Times Past, and we ran the story in the hope it might reach someone who was connected to the brave 24-year-old, who was killed during the battle in 1944.

Meanwhile, Helen Hamilton was looking into a story from her Shettleston family’s past, in a bid to find out more about her grandfather, who died during the war.

“All we knew was that he had been a soldier, and he had died in Holland in 1944 when he was just 24 years old,” says Helen. “I’ve been trying to find out more about him since my mum died – and then I spotted the story that appeared in the Glasgow Times….”

She smiles: “I couldn’t believe it – all the dates seemed to match. Now I’ve spoken to Dirk and we have confirmed it – the man buried in the churchyard of the Sint-Martinus church in Sint-Oedenrode is definitely my grandpa.”

It was a “bittersweet” moment, explains Helen, who now lives in Kilwinning in Ayrshire.

“My mum would have been so pleased to discover this,” she says, sadly. “She died 15 years ago, when she was just 62. Her father was killed in action when she was two, and after her mother – my gran – remarried, there were no photos or family records of him. So this is really amazing – I can’t believe I have finally found him.”

John Anderson lived on Shettleston Road, the son of a coalman. He married Margaret Lyons McLellan in September 1939, and they had three children, William, Helen (Helen’s mum) and Emily.

“Apparently, on the day of their wedding, my gran didn’t tell her parents what she was doing. She was getting ready and her sister said: ‘You look a bit dolled up for work.”

Helen laughs: “But my gran just said she’d felt like getting a bit dressed up that morning, left the house and went and got married….”

Helen and her family have never known the exact details of what happened to her grandfather in Holland.

“We were told he had been blown up by a tank, that he had lost his legs and died, but we had no idea where or why,” she explains.

Dirk says: “I am so pleased and grateful to be able to meet the family of John Anderson, one of the liberators of my home-town of Schijndel. I was so excited to hear Helen had got in touch after reading the story in the Glasgow Times.

“The soldiers were ordered to attack the village on October 23, 1944, but they came under intense machine gun and mortar fire from the Germans. Three Cameron Highlanders died of their injuries on the same day - John Anderson, Leonard Massey and John Edward Parry. They are buried together, next to each other. Lest we forget.”

READ MORE: Who was John Anderson, Glasgow hero of Schijndel liberation in World War Two?

While Helen, who runs a community café in her home town of Kilwinning in Ayrshire, has no photos of her grandfather, she remembers one small memento her gran had, which now “makes much more sense”, she smiles.

“She had a little wooden clog, she kept it close to her all the time,” says Helen. “I remember her holding it – and us kids being told never to play with it in case we damaged or lost it. I realise now it must have been sent to her by my grandpa.”

Every year, on October 23, Dirk puts a flower on the lost soldiers' graves and lights a candle. This year, Helen hopes to be able to accompany him.

“I will definitely visit my grandpa’s grave, hopefully this year if I can,” she says. “October 23 was my gran’s birthday – her husband died on her birthday, all those miles away, which is so sad. They were all absolute heroes, those men in Schijndel and I feel very proud my grandfather was one of them.”