MGC Company Lookup

[murmur2k]

Hi,

I was wondering if someone of great knowledge would be able to work out which MGC company my great grandad (Sjt. Benjamin John White) was in just from his Regimental Service Number (27385) - I know he was definately in France. Thanks to hmsk212 I got this number as well as his medal roll WO 329/ 1740. Here is the link to the previous discussion:

http://1914-1918.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=13172&st=0

Thanks for any help,

Will

[murmur2k]

bUMP... Any ideas anybody??

[HarryBettsMCDCM]

... Any ideas anybody??

A check of the DCM Register to try to find any pattern of Numbers in relation to Companies/Battalions of the MGC,is not that help ful,only two Numbers that are reasonably close to yours [26691 & 26913] belong to the same MGC Battalion the 38th;The next number that appears in that range is 26698 then the Bn Number is 58th,sadly there are no 27*** numbers who won the DCM!;A possible method to see if there is any pattern in relation to numbers & Companies/Battalions of the MGC would be to assimilate all Numbers in that range[say 26000~29000} from Soldiers Died & see if there is a linking pattern by checking them against CWGC Details,with a reference to which Coy;or Battn,they were serving with @ the time of death if it is mentioned,I think I am right in saying that the MGC members were originally drawn from the individual Line Regiment's Machine Gun Sections & formed initially into MGC Companies,later into MGC Battalions,to be deployed through the Division? Regards Roger

See my appendage above to your quote Oh Silly Me,But Im not typing that lot out again!!!Roger

[Guest Ian Bowbrick]

I would suggest that you are looking at 70/71/72/73 Coys MGC. The MG Bns were formed in March 1918 and 27385 is a 1916 MGC number - it is probable that this soldier moved around, particularly if he was wounded with a blighty one. He would have been redeployed from Camiers to a Unit in need of replacements and not necessarily his original Unit.

Phil McCarty is the man with the knowledge on the Forum about this - drop him an e-mail.

Ian

[JulianB]

is there any chance of doing for the MGC what Jock Bruce has done wonderfully for TA battalion numbers

JulianB

[murmur2k]

Thanks for your input - I shall email Phil.

[Guest Ian Bowbrick]

is there any chance of doing for the MGC what Jock Bruce has done wonderfully for TA battalion numbers

JulianB

Julian,

The problem with units such as the MGC, Lab Corps & ASC is that soldiers moved around quite a bit from Coy to Coy. Therefore any list is a bit like a Balance Sheet in accounting terms, ie it is accurate at a particular date.

Secondly without a complete set of service records you get the occassional 'flyer' - for example: MGC

102202 Pte Fleming - 232 Coy

102203 Pte Harding - 232 Coy

102204 Pte Freeman - 224 Coy (Taken POW 21 March 1918)

102205 Pte Olinski - 232 Coy

.

.

.

102211 Pte Scott - 232 Coy

Now Fleming & Harding left 232 Coy and went to Mespot after 3 months.

There are various ACIs dealing with the TF re-numbering such as ACI 2414 for the Infantry and ACI 2243 for the REs. There was no comparable ACI for the numbering of MGC units, which means a different ball game.

One or two individuals have compiled databases on MGC numbering/units. This takes a long time to compile and rightly people are guarded.

Ian

[Simon Furnell]

Hello Julian.

Bit further down the road,i see.

Not sure if this of any help,but my great-grandad's number was 73313.

He trained with the 3/4th Royal Berks(number 6515,i think)during 1916,on a deferment because his wife was pregnant.

He then was transfered,soon after my great aunts birth,to the MGC,and landed in France,on the 1st of January,1917.

Her birthday is in October,and i doubt if they let him hang around for long.

Only,roughly,50,000 numbers behind your great-grandad,which probably shows a 1916 enlistment.

From early 1917,onwards,MGC numbering got a little hectic,to say the least!

No wonder they are such a pain to research.

All the best.

Simon.