A LITTLE-KNOWN First World War accident led to the death of teenage Silsden mariner Willie Atkinson.

In 1917 Ordinary Seaman Atkinson was a 19-year-old gunner on collier transport SS Hockwold when it was carrying coal from Cardiff to Dover.

Passing the Lizard, at the tip of the Cornish coast, the Hockwold collided with the SS Intent and Willie, along with nine fellow crew members, drowned in the surging Atlantic waters.

William had been born in 1897 and grew up in Silsden with three siblings.

He joined the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve in 1916, and following basic training at Chatham he trained as a gunner.

The Times newspaper of September 7, 1917 reported that after the fateful collision, 10 crew members from cargo steamer Hockwold were rescued by the Intent.

The Times said the captain and nine of the men were reported missing and speculated they might be picked up and landed elsewhere. But this was not to be.

Little consolation for Willie’s widowed mother Margaret Ann, but the owners of the Intent – found guilty of improper navigation – were ordered to pay £21,876 damages, £15 for every registered ton.

Willie’s brother Tom Atkinson served as a private in the Welsh Guards.