Arthur Henry Balls

A Mate with Trawler Willing Boys (Lowestoft), Arthur died on 2nd of October 1917 at the age of 40. 

Arthur was born at Lowestoft in 1876, a son of Arthur Nathaniel and Emma E. Balls. In 1881 his family lived at 46 Crown Street, Lowestoft. By 1891 they were living at 62 Queens Road and Arthur was an apprentice twine (rope) spinner. In 1901 they were living at 29 Cambridge Road and Arthur worked as a fisherman and this was still their address in 1911 and Arthur still worked as a fisherman. Later his parents lived at 70 Ipswich Road, Lowestoft. 

During the First World War Arthur continued in the fishing industry and he worked as the Mate on the trawler Willing Boys, LT 67.

On 2 October 1917 the Willing Boys was fishing near Smith’s Knoll Spar Buoy, bearing south, east.  About 4.10 a.m. the Skipper of the Gold Seal saw the Willing Boys about half a mile away. He knew it was the Willing Boys because of the trawler's fore topsail and his mizzen topsail which is a peculiar shape.
At 6.30 a.m. there was suddenly a heavy explosion. By this time the Willing Boys was about a mile away from the Golden Seal. The stern had been blown off the Willing Boys, by a mine, and the trawler was sinking by the stern. The trawler disappeared almost at once with the loss of her crew of five. Other trawlers were not able to help because they could not reach the Willing Boys because of the lack of wind.

See: World War One – History of Lowestoft's Fishing Industry (wordpress.com)

Arthur's brother William died in 1916 whilst serving with the Suffolk Regiment and his brother-in-law, James Howlett, was killed in 1916 in the loss of the trawler Datum.