Leonard Goodall was born in Batley, Yorkshire, England, on the 16th September 1907, the eldest son of Willie and Beatrice Goodall (née Lockwood). The family resided at 93. Halifax Road, Staincliffe, Batley. His father was a rag grinder by occupation.
He had a brother, Jack, who was born in the United States of America in 1914.
On the 12th August 1911, Willie, Beatrice, and Leonard arrived in New York City, having sailed from Liverpool on the
Carmania. Accompanying them on the voyage were Mrs. Florence Lockwood, and her children, Clifford and Lily. Florence was married to his mother’s uncle, Dick Lockwood, who had immigrated with his family to Kearny, New Jersey, in 1906. Florence Lockwood had been to England to visit relatives in the summer of 1911, and the Goodall family had decided to join them there.
The Goodall family had hoped they would find work and prosper in Kearny; however, work was not as plentiful as they had hoped, and William Goodall was forced to take a job as a labourer.
Leonard’s brother, Jack, was born in Kearny in July 1914.
In early 1915, his parents decided to return to Yorkshire and consequently booked third class passage for the entire family on what was to become the
Lusitania’s last ever voyage her May sailing from New York to Liverpool.
Having arrived at the Cunard berth at Pier 54 in New York port in time to board the liner for this, on the morning of 1st May 1915, the liner’s sailing was delayed until the afternoon as she had to embark passengers, crew and cargo from the Anchor Lines ship the S.S. Cameronia, which had been requisitioned by the British Admiralty for war service as a troop ship, at the end of April. The
Lusitania finally left port just after mid-day and just six days later, on the afternoon of 7th May, she was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine
U-20. At that point, she was off The Old Head of Kinsale in southern Ireland and only about fourteen hours steaming time away from her home port.
Travelling to England with the Goodall family were Florence Lockwood and her two children, and also Edith Robshaw, a niece of Florence Lockwood.
All eight in the party perished as a result of this action and only the body of Lily Lockwood was ever recovered and identified afterwards, therefore only she out of the eight has a known grave.
Leonard Goodall was aged only seven years when he died.
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, England Select Births and Christenings 1538 – 1975, 1911 Census of England & Wales, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, Cunard Records, Bradford Daily Post, Yorkshire Observer, Leeds Mercury, PRO BT 100/345, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.