Beckenham Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 I’m investigating a family member; with a too common name... Angus Ross Born 11 Jan 1899 in Forfar. He most certainly joined up in Forfar. His address would have been 7 Glamis Road, Forfar. He had no middle name and if he had to choose one it would be Low or Finlay/Findlay. I doubt they would have asked him to enter an ad hoc middle name to differentiate him? When Britain declared war on 4 Aug 1914 he was 15. When the war ended on 11 Nov 1918 he was 19. He survived and went on to join the Edinburgh Police. He must have applied for the medals! I've drawn a blank on pension records. There is a tantalising medal card on Ancestry of a Ross, Angus. Corps Regiment No Rank Gordon Highlanders 42570 Private. Labour Corps 635261 Private. Do these numbers make sense with the photo? I'm thinking the uniform pre 1916, any help with it would be very gratefully received... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4thGordons Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 Wow that is a tough one. The badge looks like it could be Gordons but it looks rather "small" to me - although it may just be the rather extreme angle. Gordons usually wore Glengarries with a diced band but not always. At least one battalion (11th Res.) seems to have worn plain for a lot of the time. The tartan looks like Gordon but I find it notoriously difficult to say for sure on BW pictures, this one is quite clear and it does look like the Gordons pattern with the thin gold stripe rendered dark (but visible in this case) by orthocromatic film. He appears not to have hose flashes present (at least I cannot make them out) which again makes ID harder - Gordons used double, "belled" flashes so that would help if we could see them (but can't!) I can't make enough out of the shoulder title (and chance of a close up of this and the badge) On balance I would say [deep breath] Yes - I think he is a Gordon. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon92 Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 It is possible that the subject is a Gordon as Chris notes. I am inclined, however, to think that this a Cameron Highlander. The tartan looks too busy to be a Government-based tartan on which the Gordon tartan is based. The sett looks to be a better match for the 79th tartan. The cap badge looks right-sized for the Cameron badge. I do believe I see the flashes just barely visible beneath the fold of the hose, and they appear to be the plain unbelled two-point flash. Thus, the preponderance of the evidence indicates a Cameron Highlander in my opinion. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4thGordons Posted 2 April , 2013 Share Posted 2 April , 2013 (edited) Kilt from the original image (top) and two samples of identified Gordons. ORIGINAL POST GORDON 1 GORDON 2 Not sure. I reckon I can see the double line in the plaid in common.... Chris Edit: I have to say though - the more I look at the badge the more I think you might be correct Mike Edited 3 April , 2013 by 4thGordons Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon92 Posted 3 April , 2013 Share Posted 3 April , 2013 Kilt from the original image (top) and two samples of identified Gordons. ORIGINAL POST GORDON 1 GORDON 2 Not sure. I reckon I can see the double line in the plaid in common.... Chris Edit: I have to say though - the more I look at the badge the more I think you might be correct Mike Chris, That is a very impressive imagery analysis. I can see the similarity in the interior of the tartans between the setts on the original photo and your benchmark Gordon kilts. To me, a telltale sign is the narrow horizontal line on the very bottom of the kilt on the original photo. We would expect to see that on the Cameron (79th) tartan but not on the Gordon tartan. See comparison below. Military kilts are "built" from the bottom up, i.e., the pattern on the bottom of the kilt would be identical for all sizes. The one Gordon kilt I own does not have the narrow line at the bottom. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckenham Posted 1 May , 2013 Author Share Posted 1 May , 2013 First apologies for lateness in my response; I had to wait for feedback from Forfar… Various family members are consistent in insisting Angus was in the Gordon Highlanders as vouched for by a mention of him in the Forfar honour roll. I can find no other records of him. Source: Forfar & District in the War. A record of service in the great struggle 1914-1919. Compiled by D. M. Mackie for the Forfar War Memorial Committee. However his Sporran badge I've found is Cameron, so that confirms the uniform... Still his cap badge doesn't match the sporran badge to my eye? I assume his photo was taken on joining up and he’s not wearing a sporran. When would he have been issued it; before France? Is it possible he was transferred to the Gordon’s after he got to France? On what basis would such a transfer have come about. When would he have joined the army? His uniform seems a sad assemblage in comparison to other recruitment photos I’ve seen. Does the uniform tell us anything? If he served 2 ½ years in France would that have been up to the armistice date? The mystery deepens; I don’t know what to make of it all; any clues? Best regards and thanks... JB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sepoy Posted 1 May , 2013 Share Posted 1 May , 2013 Bit of a long shot but could the cap badge be the Gordon's Boy School ??? Sepoy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon92 Posted 1 May , 2013 Share Posted 1 May , 2013 Bit of a long shot but could the cap badge be the Gordon's Boy School ??? Sepoy Current cap badge of Gordon Boys school in Surrey: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckenham Posted 2 May , 2013 Author Share Posted 2 May , 2013 Alas, I doubt very strongly that he ever travelled further south than Dundee till he joined the army. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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