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Week 5: My ancestor was a soldier

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  • Week 5: My ancestor was a soldier

    With two World Wars last century many of us will have had soldier ancestors.



    This is an opportunity to showcase your soldier ancestor, whether a career soldier, volunteer, conscript or territorial. You might want to offer a short biography and speak about their work eg
    Name
    Birth location/date
    Family background
    If you've found them in a military capacity on the census
    Their regiment
    Any tips on researching this occupation?

    Military Research - Family Tree Forum

    [Next week: Nurse]


  • #2


    This is my husband's grandfather Thomas Charles Harwood c1918 in his "hospital blues" I think in Netley military hospital after being gassed in no man's land.

    We knew nothing of his time as a soldier until very recently when I came across a newspaper report of his wedding on Boxing Day 1918 which reported that he was in the Sherwood Foresters which was a surprise as he had been born in Sussex in 1899.

    A couple of years ago his younger son's widow was downsizing to a retirement flat and gave my brother in law a box full of papers and photos from which I was able to piece together some of his story.

    We already knew that he'd lost both parents by the age of 16, correspondence in the box revealed that Lady Kleinwort had helped him get a job with accountant RD Higgs and there is a letter from Higgs sympathising with him over his time in no man's land but saying it was better to have it on the body[gas] than in the lungs, and hoping he woud be well for the peace. Though it is undated it mentions a colleague's wedding which I found took place in June 1918.

    Thomas had some preparation for war as he had won the inaugural school shooting prize in 1913, and his 1917 diary mentions his cadet uniform. We have a group photo of some very boyish soldiers which features him, which may be a cadet photo.

    Thomas turned 18 in August 1917 so would have been conscripted at this point and his diary is filled with things he needed to do at work, lists his overtime and shopping and has addresses of people at home and soldiers, but nothing very military except this:
    Things I want when on
    leave
    Bills Kiwis mother
    Vests Don’t forget to put
    letter etc in Bag. Tin Box for odds and ends
    Box (Wooden)
    Puttees (tooth brush)
    Flannel (washing)
    watch cleaned & new hands
    Refill for cigarette lighter
    Pictures, Zoo, Hippodrome
    or Pantomime & get Box to food
    Wash Hold all & H wife


    Comment


    • #3

      John Edwin Barnes was one of the first Ancestors that I researched, in real detail and he is someone who will always hold a special place in my heart, due to the fact he was sadly killed in action at Gallipoli in WW1.

      After my Nan died, I was the humbled recipient of his WW1 medals and it was these very medals, that inspired me to trace my family history in my early years of research.

      John Edwin Barnes was born on 17th March 1890 at 49, Benledi Street, Bromley-By-Bow, Poplar, he was the fourth child of eight, born to Henry Barnes and Martha Barnes nee Harvey.

      Within a year, we find John Edwin Barnes counted in the 1891 Census, still living at 49, Benledi Street, with his parents and three older Brothers.

      By the time of the 1901 Census, the family home had moved to 50, Burke Street, West Ham and young John Edwin is still living at home with his parents and six siblings, Henry aged 17, Walter aged 13, Arthur aged 8, Edward aged 6, Martha aged 2 and baby Ethel aged just 5 Months.

      Whether he was inspired by his older Brother Harry Barnes, who joined the East Surrey Regiment, I can’t say for certain, but the next record we find for our young John Edwin Barnes is his Army attestation papers detailing his enlistment to the Essex Militia, Army Number 9431;

      The following information is taken from John Edwin Barnes Army enlisting documentation dated 19th October 1906. He was recruited into the Essex Regiment at the Frances Street Office, Woolwich, London. On the day he enlisted, he was 17 years and 7 months old, his height was 5ft 6 1/2″ and his weight 12st 3lbs. His chest measurement was 35″ and his complexion listed as Sallow. He had brown eyes and auburn hair and his religion is listed as C of E. His occupation is listed as a Carman and he is listed as single.

      He had the following distinguishing marks:

      Scar left side of forehead

      Scar between shoulder blades

      Tattoo I Love F.Bevens front of left forearm

      (I have no idea who F. Bevens was, but she obviously made an impact!)

      His address on enlisting is: 66, Hansworth Street, Canning Town, London.

      His next of kin are listed as follows:

      Father Harry, 66, Hansworth St. Canning Town Essex

      Elder Bros Harry, Pte East Surrey Regt, Walter Jnr, Bros Arthur and Edward Sisters Martha & Ethel, all with father.

      He enlists into the 3rd Militia Battalion Essex Regiment, Number 9431, on 19th October 1906 and shortly after receives the Army Recruiting Office seal of approval on 22nd October 1906. Exactly one month later, on 19th November 1906, he attested for Regular Service with the 3rd Battalion, Essex Regiment.

      After completing basic training at the Warley Depot, at the end of 1907, he was posted to 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment, with the Army Number 8987. He was posted from the 2ndBattalion to the 1st Battalion and is stationed at Quetta, Baluhistan, India on the 5thJanuary 1911 and is counted in the 1911 Census in India.

      He is stationed here in “C” Company and later in 1913 “C” Company was merged to form part of the new “Y” Company when the Battalion moved to a four Company structure in 1913.

      It’s during this period in Ireland and specifically Dublin, that John Edwin Barnes meets and marries his sweetheart, Elizabeth (Lizzie) Daniels.

      They were married on 27th October 1909 at The Registrar’s Office in The City of Dublin and John Edwin Barnes was living at 6, Madeline Terrace, Golden Bridge, Dublin at the time and Lizzie’s address was 3, Woodroffe Cottages, Island Bridge. His occupation was listed as Private, Essex Regiment.

      Between John Edwin Barnes enlistment and before he was sent to India, the Essex Regiment were stationed at The Island Bridge Army Barracks, in Dublin, the exact dates I can’t be sure. During this period there is also evidence of a Court Martial for a John E Barnes, of the 2nd Battalion, at The Curragh Army Barracks, Ireland. The date of the trial was 5th December 1910 and the Court Martial took place on 20th December 1910, the outcome of the trial was a Court Martial for desertion and he was sentenced to 112 days. I would like to think that he was deserting for good reasons, to go and meet his Wife, Lizzie, who would have been pregnant at the time with their only child Martha Annie Barnes. I will never know for certain the reason for his desertion, but the sentimental part of me would like it to be for this reason.

      John Edwin Barnes and Lizzie Barnes only had the one child, Martha Annie Barnes (My Nan), who was born 21st April 1911, at The Stevens Hospital Dublin.

      Sadly John Edwin Barnes died at Gallipoli on this ill-fated campaign, on the very first day of battle, 25th April 1915. Whether he was able to see his only child, Martha Annie Barnes or not, between his service in India, with the Essex Regiment and the outbreak of WW1, I am unable to say for sure.

      I have a whole raft of information including all the details of the fated beach landings and also all the regimental war diaries, far too much to include here.


      I will attach a photo of his Medals which I had framed to commemorate an ancestor that I have felt closer to than any other.
      You do not have permission to view this gallery.
      This gallery has 1 photos.
      My Family History Blog Site:

      https://chiddicksfamilytree.com

      Comment


      • #4
        William Priestley 1798-29 Mar 1866 Lived in Barton in Fabis a small village in Nottinghamshire. He was my 3 x G Grandfather.

        Born in 1798 in Barton to Mary Priestley a single mother, he was baptised on 7 Nov 1798 in Attenborough, just over the River Trent from where they lived and a ferry ran across the river.

        Mary dies in 1799 and I presume his Grandparents took him in.

        On the 1851 census he was down as a Chelsea Pensioner and 1861 as a pensioner and labourer. This set me thinking. Not long after I was contacted by a distant cousin who had looked into his military life and sent me a lot of information. He enlisted on 5 July 1813 and served for 5 years and 304 days.
        He was a driver at Waterloo. Discharged 25 Apr 1818 due to impaired vision with a pension of 6d a week.

        I was lucky enough to go to The National Archives after this info was given to me and have all the original papers.

        He married Mary Stocks in 1819 and had 4 children.

        Not very good a storytelling so sorry it is all just facts.
        Lin

        Searching Lowe, Everitt, Hurt and Dunns in Nottingham

        Comment


        • #5
          Have a few more to add, will do it soon.

          Thanks for this thread Jill, it's making me look again at some ancestors.
          Lin

          Searching Lowe, Everitt, Hurt and Dunns in Nottingham

          Comment


          • #6
            I also wrote a blog about a set of cousins on my tree who all went off to war but sadly they all never returned.


            At the start of the Great War the population of Byford in Herefordshire, including children, was 148 and Mansell Gamage 116, giving a total of 264 inhabitants. 51 young men enlisted from the two vi…



            My Family History Blog Site:

            https://chiddicksfamilytree.com

            Comment


            • #7
              Another 3 x G Grandfather. James Bullman born 1810 to William and Mary Bullman and bap 30 June 1810 at Crostwight Norfolk.

              He enlisted into the 14th Norfolk Foot Soldiers and was a labourer when joining. He joined up for 6 years and 241 days. He extended that for 88 days. He served 2 years in West Indies and was in Antigua when discharged. I'm glad I have looked him up as found some record of him being in Chelsea Hospital.
              He was suffering from Bilious attacks and dysentry and rheumatism. He was given 6d pension for 2 years. Also his records say he was 5ft 11.5 ins, which is quite tall for then

              He returned to Norfolk to Hackford with Reepham and Married Mary Ann Dunnell on 1 Jan 1840. They had 5 children and he dies on 30 Jan 1868 in Hackford and my 2 x G Grandmother registered the death, He died of Rheumatic Gout. Sounds very painful.
              Lin

              Searching Lowe, Everitt, Hurt and Dunns in Nottingham

              Comment


              • #8
                Soldier - as in Army, or any branch?

                My father enlisted, but served in Texas during WWII.

                My grandafther was in the Signal Corps, apparently lied about his age to get into a reserve Corps prior to WWI, and was called up initially to serve in Texas, then activated to serve in France, stringing telephone wire for troop communications. My father said that his father also went to Germany after the war ended, and served another few months there. That seems to be substantiated with the timing of his return, but US WWI records mostly went up in smoke.

                My g'g'grandfather served in the Royal Engineers - Malta, Naas, Ireland, Bermuda.

                Supposedly one of my direct ancestors served in the US Civil War, but it's really so questionable. He would have been 60+ at his time of service, and it didn't appear in his obit. Perhaps it was just some local office?

                And ancestors who are Revolutionary War Patriots, and one Loyalist.
                Last edited by PhotoFamily; 22-01-22, 16:14.

                Comment


                • #9
                  William Brown my 2x grt grandad was born in 1841 in Kirkby in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire to Frameworknitter Parents, he enlisted with the 59th Foot regiment sometime in 1860 though he was also in the militia but I have never found what/where or when. He transferred to the Grenadier guards in 1863, where he went to London and met his future wife Ann and married in the royal chapel at the Tower of London. William was pensioned out from the guards due to ill health in 1870. He returned home to Kirkby in Ashfield where he died in 1872 aged 31 years of vascular disease of the heart, leaving a wife and three children.
                  Last edited by Darksecretz; 22-01-22, 19:07.
                  Julie
                  They're coming to take me away haha hee hee..........

                  .......I find dead people

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Henry Lydall was born in 1831 in a little village called Whitwick in Leicestershire. He emigrated to Connecticut USA 1855 where he can be found in the 1860 US census.
                    The 12 April 1861 saw the start of the civil war, which Henry signed up for Company F, Connecticut 14th Infantry Regiment on 23 Aug 1862.
                    He fought in many of the battles and attained rank of Sergeant he was one of the lucky ones that survived, and he lived until 1907, where he left seven children and numerous grandchildren. I'm so proud to have him as a x2 grand uncle.
                    Julie
                    They're coming to take me away haha hee hee..........

                    .......I find dead people

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I was unaware of the Central Association Volunteer Training Corps in WW1 until recently. I was searching for my great grandfather William James Crisp in West Wittering on Find My Past's newspapers when I came across his name on a list of people attending a meeting on 28 Nov 1914 with a view to forming a local branch.

                      The aim was to encourage recruitment for the Regular and Territorials, to teach drill and musketry to men otherwise disqualified for military service due to age or other reasons, and to co-ordinate other organisations with the same objectives.

                      WJ Crisp was 59 so too old for other military service, he was active in village as a parish councillor and school board member, he joined that night and so did his sons, carpenters Lawrence and my grandad Bert until they were conscripted in 1916 and 1917 respectively. WJ is noted as the senior private in Jan 1918 when the Wittering VTS merged with the 9th Battalion Sussex Volunteer Regiment.

                      Then the penny that had been rolling round my head for the last 30 years dropped. The photo of the portly old gent in uniform in the box of photos inherited from great uncle Lawrence was WJC himself. Close scrutiny and comparison with his engagement photo from 1875 with his pennyfarthing bicycle and another from his engagement in 1879 and with his firstborn son, father and grandfather showed similarity around the eyes.


                      Comment


                      • #12
                        John Everitt, my G Grandad's brother.

                        Born in 1879 to William and Sarah Ann Everitt in Nottingham. His mother dies in 1897 and he enlisted in the 2ned Batt Grenadier Guards on 10 Oct 1899. 1901 he is at Windsor barracks and 4 Oct 1901 he is on the SS Galeka and 19 Dec 1902 at Chelsea barracks.
                        He was transferred to the reserves on 9 Nov 1906. Served at some point in Boar War.

                        Married Emma Newton at Nottingham Registry Office 19 Oct 1907 and had 6 Children. He re-enlisted on 19 Jul 1915 in the Sherwood Foresters and served some of his time at Belton House as a cook. He was 36 when he enlisted during the war. He volunteered to serve an extra year and was demobbed on1st March 1920. Got a pension of 8s 8d for himself and 4s 8d for wife and children

                        He was hospitalised for a broken bone in his foot not received while in action.
                        Lin

                        Searching Lowe, Everitt, Hurt and Dunns in Nottingham

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          I have quite a few soldiers in my tree but military research is something that I struggle with because for some reason it doesn't hold my attention like some of the other areas so I have basic information on these people but not much else.

                          Albert Edward GOODALL b 1889 Lambeth, Surrey. In 1905 aged just 16 he went to Church Lads Brigade camp at The Redoubt Fort in Eastbourne. Young boys playing at or learning to be soldiers. We have many postcards that he sent home to his mother saying what a fine time they were having. Little did anyone know that only a decade later he would be in the Queen's Royal West Surrey Regiment and was killed at Passchendale, France aged 27.

                          1904 Bert Goodall f.jpg 033 Bert sm.jpg


                          George Leonard WOODWARD b1898 Harmondsworth, Middx. Was in the Gloucestershire Regiment from 1914 - 1918. After the war he became a Railway Policeman. He is the subject of my current story chapter but I am struggling with researching more detail about what he actually did in the war. He was a very quiet and reserved man, slightly grumpy in his later life when I knew him as my grandpa.

                          Albert Henry GOODALL b 1916 Tooting, London. Served in WWII in the Royal Signals and took part in a Home Defense film about how to deal with Incendiary Devices. There is a copy at the Imperial War Museum and we have a video and digital copy of it.


                          Others that I have yet to research further are..

                          James EMERSON bc 1806 Fermanagh, NI. Was listed in 1861 census as Sergt of Militia and Chelsea Pensioner in Northampton.

                          Henry CARPENTER bc 1828 Rudge, Wilts. Described as a soldier in 1858 when his daughter was married then went on to become a prison officer in Clerkenwell

                          Percy EJ CAESAR b 1898 Pimlico, London. Was a private in the London Regiment during WWI and we know that he spent time in Egypt and became very ill with dysentry. He also injured his knee playing cricket whilst on active service and the injury eventually led to his discharge and plagued him for the rest of his life.

                          Thomas Francis SKITTERAL b1894 East Dulwich, London. Was a gunner in the Royal Garrison Artillery from 1914 - 1920
                          Main research interests.. CAESAR (Surrey and London), GOODALL (London), SKITTERALL, WOODWARD (Middlesex and London), BARBER (Canterbury, Kent), DRAYSON (Canterbury, Kent), CRISP (Kent) and CHEESEMAN (Kent).

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            My grandfather Henry Ellison Dodds 12 October 1896 t0 12 Jan 1942

                            Henry first joined the Royal Garrison Artillery on 12 Decembr 1915, but did not start his active service until 12 April 1917. I suspect the reason for the long delay was that he was a munitions worker prior to joining and that I would think would be a reserved occupation?

                            He qualified as a skilled fitter on 14 October 1917 and was confirmed in his appointment as a fitter on 3rd May 2018. He sent deployed with 260s Battery RGA on the 15th June 1918. On his discharge in 1919 his attestion for work described him as a fitter who was a very good and hard working artificer (I stil lhave the original piece of paper)

                            I haven't as yet been able to work out where he was assigned to; or confirm/deny if he was in any way involved with tanks (family legend said that both my grandfathers had something to do with tanks!)
                            Barbara

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              My 2x great grandfather was baptised in 1781 in Newton St. Loe, Somerset. According to his discharge papers, he joined the Ninth (East Norfolk) Regiment of Foot as a private on 5 April 1809, and saw action in the battles at Busaco, Salamanca, Vittoria, San Sebastien and the Nive in the Peninsular War.

                              Giles’ regiment was sent to Canada in 1812 (the war of 1812) and arrived back too late to take part in the Battle of Waterloo. The 1st Battalion participated in the 'Army of Occupation' of France while the 2nd Battalion was disbanded in 1815. Giles was discharged at Compeigne, France, on 24 April 1816, due to being, "unfit for further service abroad”, as a consequence of “asthma and being nearly worn out”. His discharge papers describe him as a labourer, about 40 years of age, 5' 8" in height, with light brown hair, green eyes and a fair complexion. He received a pension for his army service per Chelsea Pensioner records. Documents online indicate that he was discharged from the hospital in 1821.

                              Giles returned to Somerset and married Sarah Pue, a widow in 1824. They had a son, George, before Sarah was buried in 1833. On Christmas Day 1839, he married Mary Bevan (neé Snoswell), a widow about 15 years his junior. They had two children, one being my great grandmother, Martha. Giles died in 1851.

                              I wrote about Giles and the battle of Salamanca in FTF Magazine in 2008: https://ftfmagazine.lewcock.net/ftfm...salamanca-1812

                              Jenny

                              Comment


                              • #16
                                My maternal grandfather George Samuel Parnham 20 Dec 1895 to 15 August 1954

                                I have very little knowledge of my Grandfather's time in the army during WW1. I have his medal card which tells me he was in the Tank Corps and his army number.
                                I haven't managed to find his army record. The reason may be that there is another George Samuel Parnham born in 1898 (also from Nottingham) who stated he was born in 1895 on enlistment.
                                Barbara

                                Comment


                                • #17
                                  Prior to my grandfather I have no known relatives who in anyway were in the armed forces. I have full details of him and his service as I lived with him for the first 21 years of my life with my sister, mother and grandmother.
                                  Briefly he joined the RA in 1885, served until 1910, went back to his homeland (Jersey) until called up in 1914 and served throughout WW1, went back to Jersey and migrated to Australia in 1925.
                                  I will follow up at a later date with a much more detailed post of his life and service life.
                                  Whoever said Seek and Ye shall find was not a genealogist.

                                  David

                                  Comment


                                  • #18
                                    Alice-Frank-wedding.jpgMy paternal grandfather Francis James Lewcock had just turned 17 years old when WW1 began and was one of the early volunteers to join up.

                                    These are extracts from the article I originally wrote for the FTF magazine, Dear Sir. Officer service records are available on TNA but may be quite thin as they have been weeded over the years, as is the case with his.

                                    When Frank left school he went to work as a clerk for the London and Provincial Bank, which was later to become part of Barclays Bank.

                                    At the age of 17 years and three months, in November 1914, he enlisted as a private in the London Scottish (Reserve Battalion) of the 14th London Regiment; interestingly his Medical Inspection Report gives his ‘Apparent age’ as 19 years and three months.

                                    He was transferred for Officer Training to the Inns of Court Officers Training Corps in May 1915. He was discharged from there, on appointment to a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery with the 1st Northumbrian Brigade, in the following October. He was still only 18 years old.

                                    He was promoted to Lieutenant in June 1916 when he was sent to the front. When the war was over, he joined the Disposal Board of the Ministry of Munitions in Cologne. He was disembodied [sic] in May 1920 but continued to work for the Ministry as a civilian for a short time.

                                    While in Cologne, he met his wife, Alice Bradley, who was working for the Ministry of Munitions as a secretary, and they were married late in 1920. I have only recently "acquired" a copy of their wedding photo which is also the only one I have of him in uniform.

                                    In his army records there is correspondence from 1936 about him offering to re-enlist in the Territorial Army suggesting that he could still do it, “even at thirty nine years old”. During the war he was part of the Home Guard, manning an anti aircraft battery in Hyde Park.
                                    Caroline
                                    Caroline's Family History Pages
                                    Meddle not in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

                                    Comment


                                    • #19
                                      My Grandmother's older brother, Hymers Robson, joined the Coldstream Guards in 1904 at the age of 19. He was discharged in 1905 as unlikely to become a good soldier but was re-instated in 190. By the 1911 Census he had gained the rank of Lance Corporal and was stationed at Farnborough.

                                      His full army records are not on line however I have found that he was listed as belonging to the 1st Battalion of the Codlstream Guards on his discharge in 1927. I would need a military historian to tell me if he had been in that battalion throughout WW1 so I can't see where he saw service. The 1st battalion was nearly wiped out at one stage of the war

                                      It is a little ironic that as a career soldier Hymers survived the first world war whereas his younger brother, John William Robson, was killed in action on 21st March 1918 at Bauperme, France. He was a corporal in the 2nd Battalion, Durham Light Infantry. and is commemorated on the Arras Memorial
                                      Barbara

                                      Comment


                                      • #20


                                        Do you see those spurs on my grandad Bert's boots? He's the one sitting down. The spurs were on the shelf in the alcove in his sitting room all through my childhood until my widowed granny moved in with one of my aunts in the 1980s, they are now in the care of my uncle.

                                        Bert was Herbert Edward Crisp born in West Wittering, Sussex in 1898, the youngest child in the family, and he was apprenticed as a carpenter to his brother Lawrence. Sixteen year old Bert with his father and brother joined the Volunteer Training Corps in Nov 1914, and he joined the Royal Field Artillery as soon as he was old enough, though his Army records do not survive I have a postcard from Leagrave where he was training to his mother asking her to send something, and a photo of him sitting on the limber of a gun carriage, and some embroidered postcards he sent home.

                                        He kept his wartime experiences to himself, we know he served abroad, and had pneumonia at some point. He never went to Remembrance Day parades or services as he found it too upsetting. He talked to me once about the war when I was 13 and staying at granny and grandads, telling me about how they used to dose the mules with medicine by wedging their mouths open with a metal device then blew a pill down a tube into their throats.
                                        Last edited by Jill on the A272; 25-01-22, 06:15.

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