Enlistment "in the field"

[John_Hartley]

I've come across someone who has a place of enlistment on SDGW showing as "In the Field - France".

Not seen this this before. Is it likely to be an error or were there circumstances where someone actually did enlist overseas. Could the chap have been working as a civilian in France when war was declared or something like that?

John

[Tom Morgan]

John - there are about 90 soldiers recorded as having enlisted "in the field" in "Soldiers Died....." The supplementary notes show that the majority of them were in RE Tunnelling Companies. I think they have been those experienced men who were rushed out to France/Belgium with few military formalities.

Tom

[michaeldr]

John,

Have a look at Bob's thread from last Nov

to be seen here

Some info there may be of help

Regards

Michael D.R.

[John_Hartley]

Michael/Tom

Thanks for this. I had looked up the earlier thread but was hoping something more definate might have been posted.

In due course, this guy will come to the top of the list of a long term project and I'll see what story he has. Interesting though, as Stockport (and North Cheshire) are hardly great centres of mining. Although, presumably, diggers for sewage tunnels would be similar experts.

John

[J Sewell]

I see this thread started in 2004 and may be 'dead'. Today is the anniversary of the death of my great Uncle Sapper Frederick Morley at Carency on 9 July 1916 serving with 176 Tunnelling Company RE. He went to France with the 2nd Battallion Green Howards in March 1915 having been with the Regiment at Hartlepool when it was bombarded in December 1914. His wedding certificate in Sept 1915 shows him to be in 176 Tunnelling Company so some time between March 1915 and Sep 1915 he was transferred to the REs. Prior to the war he had worked at Winston Colliery in Co Durham. Information from the RE Museum shows him as being 'recruited in the field'. I suspect that he was another Norton-Griffiths 'capture' from insitu infantry battallions.

Although his death certificate shows him to have died at Carency from an enemy mine explosion whilst working in a British gallery he is buried in HERSIN COMMUNAL CEMETERY EXTENSION.

Other details about his death, how and where precisely, elude me but at least today I shall remember this newly married 22yr old who gave his life for his beliefs and country.

J Sewell

[John_Hartley]

There are no dead threads - only those that are resting. It's good to wake them up and remember someone else as well

George Lowe finally came into the frame of my research project.

I was able to establish that his original unit was the 1/6th Cheshires (Stockport's territorial unit) and that his service number was possibly pre-war (or, if not, then he enlisted just after war was declared). There then appears to be a transfer to the RE before he returned to the Chehsires. My conclusion was that the "in the field" must be an error within Soldiers Died in the Great War.

This is George's story: Clickety click

John