Solly Harris
Stewart Ernest (Solly) Harris was born in Penarth in 1893. He was the son of Hyman and Esther Harris and in 1911 was living at 85 Glebe Street with his parents, brother Morris and cousins Rachel and Lionel Cohen. His parents ran a pawn broking business and he assisted them. His father, now aged 56 had been blind since the age of 34. Solly served in the 8th Battalion, the South Staffordshire Regiment and died in August 1915 aged 22. From ‘Penarth Daily News’ dated 24th April 2015 ‘A plaque commemorating the donation of the old Penarth Pier Pavilion clock has apparently disappeared – or been misplaced – amidst the extensive building operations in the throes of renovation work in the pavilion. The plaque (and the clock itself) had been presented to the old Penarth Urban District Council by local benefactor Mrs Hyman Harris as a memorial to her late husband and to her son Stewart who was killed in the First World War. It was also a public acknowledgement by Mrs Harris of what she described as the many kindnesses she and her family had been shown since first coming to Penarth.’
In 1909 , as a 16-year-old Boy Scout, Stewart (Solly) Harris had been awarded the Scouts’ Medal of Merit by Lord Baden-Powell for his courageous action in saving the life of a child who was about to fall under the hooves of a horse during a parade in Queen St, Cardiff. In 1915 Stewart joined the 8th Battalion, the South Staffordshire Regiment and was killed in action in the Battle of Ypres on August 26th 1915.