My name is Keith Bates, I was born in 1957 in Ball Green, Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire.  This  journey is for my immediate family Jill, David and my Granddaughter Halle to give them a history of  their family from my line, which essentially follows integral paths through the family names of  Pointon, Bates, and in addition for David and Halle, Dixon and Taylor, the latter of which is  still to be researched. 

The Pointon history of the family so far go back to the 1500's and are  pretty central to Norton in the Moors, this village is mentioned in the Doomsday Book as "Nortone"  and a number of names appear on the land their. John Poynton is currently the earliest recorded Born  1550. The name Poynton is an Anglo Saxon  town in Cheshire, England, on the easternmost fringe of the Cheshire Plain and only 21 miles from  Brown Edge in Staffordshire.  The first mention of the manor of Poynton is in 1289. Coal was mined  in Poynton from the 16th century, and the collieries, under the ownership of the Lords Vernon from  1832 until their closure in 1935, were the largest in Cheshire. 

The Bates named for this family has been traced thus far back to the 12C and there was a name change from Bate to Bates in the 17C and traced to Cornwall and the original name of Batt, this name originated in Sweden (including Batt, Snakenborg, Sture & Magnus) and was one of a number of noble houses that developed the family, a number of Medieval Knights are identified therein notably Sir. Erland Pedersson Bååt Knight  ---Bååt was an important Swedish noble family, originally from Småland in south-eastern Sweden.

The family is especially known for its long association with Viipuri/Vyborg Castle in Finland (at present in Russia), the bulwark of the then Swedish realm, at the border against Novgorod/Russia. The late-medieval commanders and fief-holders of Viipuri, who were (almost always) descended from or married to the Bååt Family, in practice functioned as Margraves (though not having this as their formal title), having feudal privileges and keeping all the crown's incomes from the fief to use for the defence of the realm's eastern border

The Dixon line comes from County Durham, the family  moving to work in the coalfields of Stoke on Trent in the 1950's. The Bates line is an interesting  surname and has three distinct possible origins going back to the times of medieval origins.  Currently I am researching military links in the family and thus far and would welcome any  information on other family members military service:

Family Military Service & Medals 

68426 & 5040377 Pte William Pointon 1 North Staffordshire Regiment Stafford’s – India General Service Medal. The army issue bibles  in my mothers effects Winifred Pointon (1904-1977). William from his army bibles was in the 1 North Staffordshire Regiment, Machine Gun Platoon was first stationed in Keane Barracks, Curragh Camp Ireland the regiment was posted to Ireland in 1919 during the first war of Irish independence (1919-1922). The 1st Battalion briefly served as occupation troops in Turkey before arriving in India in 1923 where he was stationed in Gough Barracks, Trimulgerry, Secunderabad, Deccan, India whilst there the regiment were stationed for garrison duties.  William received the India General Service medal

47411 & 11929 Pte Walter Pointon 1 & 2 Stafford’s
 Allied Victory Medal, 1914 Star, 1914-15 Star, and the British War Medal 1914-1918 WW1.

216536 Gunner Alfred Simmons, Royal Field Artillery (Royal Horse Artillery) WW1, pulled cannon on  horseback at the Somme etc. Allied Victory Medal, 1914 Star, 1914-15 Star and the British War  Medal 1914-1918.

241087 LCpl William Pointon 1 Stafford’s
 Military Medal (Gallantry Medal) Gazette Issue 30172 Page 6835 (top). M.M. His Majesty the King has been graciously  pleased to award the Military Medal for bravery in the field.  This Gallantry Medal was  established during the First World War on the 25th March 1916 and introduced in the London Gazette  issue 29535, (back dated to 1914) to personnel of the British Army Allied Victory Medal, 1914 Star, 1914-15 Star and the British War Medal 1914-1918

4260 Pte William Stubbs Pointon 1 Stafford’s & The Norfolk Regiment Died 02/10/1918 Killed in Action WW1, Buried St Sever Cemetery, Rouen, France.  WW1 ended on the  11/11/1918.  Allied Victory Medal, 1914 Star, 1914-15 Star and the British War Medal 1914-1918

6755 & 41064Benjamin Bates 1882, North Staffordshire Regiment, brother to Edward Bates (1905-1967) son of Thomas and Hannah. The North Staffordshire Regiment was formed 1881, it was deployed to Natal in South Africa in 1887 and remained there until 1890, when it moved to Mauritius.  By the end of the century, it had also served in Malta, Egypt, Sudan and India.  The medal to the left of the photograph is the India Medal and was approved for various campaigns in India, action was seen along the North West Frontier between the Punjab and Afghanistan, probably in the Khyber and Bolan Pass (I recall my mother talking about the Khyber Pass), the medal covered the period from 1895-1902.  The medal to the right appears to be the Central African Medal. The medal was awarded for service from 1891-1894 and from 1894 to 1898 for service in British Central Africa.  The main causes were to suppress slave trading or to punish raids on neighbouring tribes. The British Central African Protectorate (proclaimed in 1899), British interest arose in the area after visits by David Livingstone from 1858 onwards.  During this period it was not unusual to join the army as young as 14-16. The photo was taken in Hanley circa 1902-1904 by W H Nagington 18 Hope Street, Hanley. After returning home Benjamin only appears on the 1911 census.  He discharged under Kings Regs to the reserve service which ended under regulation 392 xxi from the Staffordshire Regiment which was the norm, only to be recalled in times of national emergency.  He was re-enlisted on the 11/12/1915 and was with the West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales Own) as a result of WW1.  His death was reported on the 24/10/1918 less than a few weeks before the end of the war on the 11/11/1918.  Benjamin was a Prisoner of War in German hands reported in the War Office Daily List No.5389 on the 13/10/1917.  Many servicemen died as a result of wounds or disease whilst a POW. His remains are in a military war graves cemetery in Cologne, he was also entitled to the Victory Medal and the War Medal.  RIP.4097 & 40888 Pte Thomas Bates Seaforth/Argyle & Sutherland Highlanders Allied Victory Medal, 1914  Star, 1914-15 Star and the British War Medal 1914-1918 (Brother to Edward Bates 1903)

18646 Corporal James Bates 2nd Btn, Kings Own Scottish Border Regiment. James served with the 2nd KOSB with the British Expeditionary Force in 1914 at the crucial early battles of Le Cateau and on the Aisne. In 1915 they fought at Hill 60 in the Ypres salient and were then transferred to the Somme sector. There in July 1916 they fought in an area between Morval and High Wood. In September they continued on the Somme and in April 1917 were moved to Vimy Ridge. Later that year they took part in Third Ypres. A brief sojourn on the Italian front in November was followed by a return to the trenches and in the summer of 1918 the battalion fought on the Lys. The Battalions were amalgamated in the spring of 1916 and went on to fight on the Somme at Martinpuich, at Arras in the great push of 1917, at Pilckem and again at Arras during the great German Spring Offensive of 1918, and on the Marne (with the French and Americans), ending the war in Belgium.  James was discharged on 24 October 1918 he was issued with the Silver War Badge this was only issued to those discharged honourably because of wounds received, he also received the 1914-1915 Star, The Victory Medal and the War medals.

 29334  Private William Bates, 1 Btn North Staffordshire Regiment, the son of Thomas and Hannah Bates, brother of Edward Bates was involved in the Battle of Ypre (Pilckem Ridge and Langemark,  After several weeks of changeable weather, heavy rain fell during the afternoon of 31 July. In the XIX Corps area in the centre and on the right of XVIII Corps, three reserve brigades advanced from the black line to the main objective (green line) and pressed on towards the red line, the furthest that exploitation on local initiative was allowed for in the plan. The weather changed and rain began to fall, cutting off the advanced British troops from view, just as German regiments from specialist counter-attack Eingreif divisions advanced over Passchendaele Ridge. To avoid being rolled up, the reserve brigades retreated through the green line to the black line, which the British artillery-observers could still see; the German infantry were prevented from advancing further by massed artillery and small-arms fire. A substantial amount of ground had been captured by the British and French, except on the Gheluvelt Plateau on the right flank, where only the blue line (first objective) and part of the black line (second objective) were captured. A large number of casualties were inflicted on the German defenders during the attack and 5,626 prisoners were taken; the German Eingreif divisions recaptured some ground from the Ypres–Roulers railway northwards to St Julien, forcing the British back to the black line, William was killed in action at the Battle of Ypres on the 31/07/1917 his name commemorated on Panel 55 of the Ypres (MENIN GATE) Memorial.  RIP

Number n/k Pte Albert Thomas 221 Vehicle Battalion RAOC
 Italy Star WW2, Africa Star WW2, France/Germany Star WW2, Victory Medal WW2, British War Medal WW2

Service number withheld Aircraft Weapons Technician Keith Bates Royal Air Force  Service number withheld Cpl Keith Bates Royal Military Police, 111, 174, 175, 177, 247, 158 Provost  Companies, 1st & 2nd Regiment Royal Military Police. GSM, ACSM & Bars, Northern Ireland, British  Army of the Rhine, Cold War.  Bachelor of Laws With Honours.