Barney hines Posted 14 March , 2011 Share Posted 14 March , 2011 Looking into my families involvement in the Great war, i came across the sad story of Pte George Henry Wilson of the Lincolnshire regiment.He enlisted in 1914 and went to France with the B.E.F,to do'his bit',along with so many others.As the war progressed,my great Grandmother noticed a huge change in George who would get blind drunk,and was often found in the gutter crying and shaking ,she took to hiding his boots in a vain attempt to stop him leaving the house,but to no avail,as he would be found wandering at any time of the day or night.Never shrugging his duty, he would return to the Western front,time and again. When the Armistice was declared in November 1918, George decided to stay in the Army,and spent the ensuing years in India,where he became proficient as a marksman,according to my Great Grandmother, the post war Army life suited George, along with the climate,he was happy,and sent a lot of correspondence to her .However, the horrors of 4 years of war,(George was never wounded physically), had taken its toll, the 'Neuresthenia',that had plagued his War,finally consumed him and in 1923, in Lucknow in India, George shot himself in the head,and is buried there.I often wonder how many men went home after the war mentally destroyed,who quietly relived their war every night while they were asleep, with my wildest imagination, i wouldn't even come close to their experiences.Sadly Georges medals went out of the family in the early 80's, consisting of a 4 bar Q.S.A, Mons star trio,and a 1923 shooting proficiency medal, with a green ribbon,if anyone has any idea,as to their whereabouts, i would be most grateful,it would be a fitting tribute,to reunite them with his letters, and bible, many thanks for reading Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingo794 Posted 15 March , 2011 Share Posted 15 March , 2011 Hi I had a look through my bits and bobs for George Henry Wilson and found his battalion was the 2nd Lincs., No.8830 later No.63828 entry to theatre of war 05/11/1914. His MIC, below: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingo794 Posted 15 March , 2011 Share Posted 15 March , 2011 The Medal Roll entry, below: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingo794 Posted 15 March , 2011 Share Posted 15 March , 2011 G.H. Wilson was attached to 'C' Company in Bermuda during 1913 and likely to have started out with that company in 1914. I have had a look through my collection of WW1 Lincolnshire medals and can find none to this man, though many of the men listed as his mates in 'C' company do appear in my collection. A quick look on Ancestry didn't show any results for a service/pension record, though I did just skim the details. Dick Whitworth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingo794 Posted 15 March , 2011 Share Posted 15 March , 2011 Just a quick look at the records of No.8824 Lance Sergeant George Frederick Walker, one of George Henry Wilsons' 'C'Coy. mates, he would have joined at some time in late 1909. No.8824 joined 09/12/1909 according to the service record. Where was he born? have you any other details about him.......he may have a Boer War record floating around in Ancestry. DW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney hines Posted 15 March , 2011 Author Share Posted 15 March , 2011 Hi Dick,firstly thank you very much for the information you kindly supplied,here is some additional info,he lived at 14 Belton street ,Stamford, Lincs and was a member of the old Stamford volunteers,before joining the regular army in 1908,he served in Gibraltar, Aden as well as Bermuda When war broke out, he was serving in Canada and went over to France with the first draft of Canadian soldiers . He died , i believe, on November 13, 1923,looking at the insciption in his bible, it states 4793145,Wilson.G.H 'D Company'.I remember seeing the medals ,as a boy,and the q.s.a was either a 4 or 5 bar,Transvaal,orange free state and relief of ladysmith,can't remember the others.The place of birth was Stamford,again i can be 100%.I will upload a pic of George for you, together with his grave in India.If you find anything out please email,or the whereabouts of the group,would be fantastic,many thanks once again,kind regards Barney Just a quick look at the records of No.8824 Lance Sergeant George Frederick Walker, one of George Henry Wilsons' 'C'Coy. mates, he would have joined at some time in late 1909. No.8824 joined 09/12/1909 according to the service record. Where was he born? have you any other details about him.......he may have a Boer War record floating around in Ancestry. DW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingo794 Posted 16 March , 2011 Share Posted 16 March , 2011 Alright Barney I will keep my eyes skinned for the group......I have managed to find a couple of family sets of medals in the past, both Lincolnshire Regt to boot. What you say is about right from what I find. The number 4793145 is a post-war type and the 63828 is, from what I can see on the Medal Rolls, a Garrison number. Many men who were pre-war regulars like GHW, early WW1 volunteers to Kitcheners call and some later army entrants went to Garrison units in the UK and abroad i.e. in India, if they were getting on a bit, were wounded and returning to service not fully fit. It was common for men to move from company to company as and when needed, the list I have is an Old Comrades/Serving soldier Roll for 1913, I also have the one for 1908. He does not appear on that list, however. I would be interested to see a photo of GHW as i have many old photos in my collection, you never know he may show up among them. Fingers crossed for you on your quest!!!! Cheers, Dick W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney hines Posted 16 March , 2011 Author Share Posted 16 March , 2011 Thanks for the email,Dick,will post pics this week , including the pic of his grave,with interesting inscription,if you find any info on the medal group,as to its whereabouts please get in touch,thanks once again for your kind help, regards Barney, Alright Barney I will keep my eyes skinned for the group......I have managed to find a couple of family sets of medals in the past, both Lincolnshire Regt to boot. What you say is about right from what I find. The number 4793145 is a post-war type and the 63828 is, from what I can see on the Medal Rolls, a Garrison number. Many men who were pre-war regulars like GHW, early WW1 volunteers to Kitcheners call and some later army entrants went to Garrison units in the UK and abroad i.e. in India, if they were getting on a bit, were wounded and returning to service not fully fit. It was common for men to move from company to company as and when needed, the list I have is an Old Comrades/Serving soldier Roll for 1913, I also have the one for 1908. He does not appear on that list, however. I would be interested to see a photo of GHW as i have many old photos in my collection, you never know he may show up among them. Fingers crossed for you on your quest!!!! Cheers, Dick W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingo794 Posted 16 March , 2011 Share Posted 16 March , 2011 Thanks for the email,Dick,will post pics this week , including the pic of his grave,with interesting inscription,if you find any info on the medal group,as to its whereabouts please get in touch,thanks once again for your kind help, regards Barney, Wilco. DW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim_davies Posted 26 March , 2011 Share Posted 26 March , 2011 George appears both in the 1918 Absent Voter List for Stamford and the December 1914 list of Stamford area men serving. Both lists give the address of 4 Belton St. Listed at the same address in the December 1914 list is a "Harry Wilson" of 4th Lincs. The 63828 number is part of the range of service numbers allocated to Lincolnshire Regt men who opted to remain serving as a way to the solve the confusion of the different number ranges, later replaced with the 7 digit number. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stebie9173 Posted 27 March , 2011 Share Posted 27 March , 2011 Also, don't forget that men who served on after the war did not have their records released into the public domain, and so the Ministry of Defence should still hold his records. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney hines Posted 27 March , 2011 Author Share Posted 27 March , 2011 Thankd for the info Jim, regards George appears both in the 1918 Absent Voter List for Stamford and the December 1914 list of Stamford area men serving. Both lists give the address of 4 Belton St. Listed at the same address in the December 1914 list is a "Harry Wilson" of 4th Lincs. The 63828 number is part of the range of service numbers allocated to Lincolnshire Regt men who opted to remain serving as a way to the solve the confusion of the different number ranges, later replaced with the 7 digit number. Jim Many thanks for the additional info Steve Also, don't forget that men who served on after the war did not have their records released into the public domain, and so the Ministry of Defence should still hold his records. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney hines Posted 27 March , 2011 Author Share Posted 27 March , 2011 Hi Dick, sincere apologies for the delay in emailing pics of G.H Wilson, and his grave Will sort it this week, regards Barney Wilco. DW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingo794 Posted 28 March , 2013 Share Posted 28 March , 2013 OK Barney....Thanks. DW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now