H. K. Ainsworth

Public family trees on Ancestry.co.uk show that Harry Kershaw Ainsworth was born on 2 January 1893 and died on 2 June 1973 in Cheam, Surrey. The National Probate Calendar confirms the date of death and gives his address as 23 Salisbury Avenue, Cheam. He enlisted in the RAF on 7 September 1918 aged 25 years and eight months. He transferred to the RAF Reserve on 17 February 1919. (Source: service record held at the National Archives, viewed on Ancestry.co.uk) A chain of evidence links the above Harry Kershaw Ainsworth with the H. K. Ainsworth who wrote 'Dawn', the play in the Great War Theatre database - apart from the identity of their initials. 'Dawn' was intended to be performed at the YMCA, Tottenham Court Road, London on 18 April 1918. In 1922-1924 H. K. Ainsworth was the leader of the Centymca Concert Party whose name derived from its association with the London Central YMCA. Ainsworth was the Concert Party's accompanist and sang and wrote some of their songs, playlets and monologues. The Buckinghamshire Examiner reported several of their performances (3 February, 7 April and 8 December 1922, 20 April 1923 and 11 April 1924; also the West Middlesex Gazette, 20 October 1923). The YMCA connection links H.K. Ainsworth the author of 'Dawn' with H.K. Ainsworth the leader of the Concert Party. After the original Concert Party disbanded the same H. K. Ainsworth who had been its leader is reported as directing, writing and acting in plays performed by the Old Aygedaeans Dramatic Club which was formed by members of the staff of the Ministry of Health (Buckinghamshire Examiner, 10 April 1925 and 6 May 1927; and The Era 31 October 1928, 6 March 1929 and 16 December 1931). The Ministry of Health provides the final link in the chain by connecting the above H. K. Ainsworth with Harry Kershaw Ainsworth, M.B.E. (Head of Branch Insurance Department, Ministry of Health) who received the O.B.E. in the 1939 Birthday Honours List (the Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer, 8 June 1939). The compiler of one of the public family trees on Ancestry.co.uk has confirmed Harry Kershaw Ainsworth's RAF service and his being awarded the M.B.E. in 1929 and O.B.E. in 1939 for his work at the Ministry of Health. The 1939 Register shows Harry K Ainsworth, born 2 January 1893, unmarried, living at 23 Salisbury Avenue, Cheam with his widower father and an unmarried sister but unfortunately a piece of brown tape across Harry K’s occupation renders this illegible. He is presumably the H. K. Ainsworth who is shown in the British Library Catalogue as having written the words to the song 'A Song of Life' (music by Reginald E. A. Davis, 1918) and to the hymn 'The New Noel' (music by John Foulds, 1924).