Wilfred Lowe

[jbw541]

Hi Loweman2,

You should have an easier time getting hold of your relatives Navy Service Papers, you can download them from the National Archives. Why was he awarded the DSM?

All the best. Joe.

[loweman2]

Hi Loweman2,

You should have an easier time getting hold of your relatives Navy Service Papers, you can download them from the National Archives. Why was he awarded the DSM?

All the best. Joe.

hi Joe, im not sure why he got it, and to honest im not sure how to find the answer, I think I will start a new thread his name is William Arthur kensit no 201510 and he served on the ship "crescent" which would appear from what I have found out that so did captain HRH the duke of York around the same time as he served on the ship !!

[loweman2]

here is the reply from the archivist at the Sherwood Foresters, obviously not what I was hoping for, I am at a bit of a loss, I have tried looking at the archives for the RFC but nothing has come up from that, perhaps I am not looking in the right areas, everything needs you to pay for downloads and many of them once I have downloaded the files are not him, I have found something about a mechanic in the RFC, I will dig further and let you know as this RFC route now seems like the more likely way of finding something out

Thank you for your enquiry regarding the service of your grandfather Wilfred Lowe who served with the Sherwood Foresters and Royal Flying Corps.

Unfortunately we do not hold the personal records of officers and soldiers who have served with us. These are held either by the National Archives at Kew in the case of soldiers who served before 1920, or the Army Records Centre Glasgow for soldiers who served after 1920. However, we do have a large (although incomplete) database of officers and soldiers, made up from information taken from hundreds of documents, mainly contained within the regimental archives and information provided by family members.

I have checked our records but cannot find any information on Wilfred Lowe's service with the Sherwood Foresters during the First World War, although clearly in the photograph you sent of him, he is wearing the Sherwood Foresters cap badge. Like you, I have checked the Medal Index Cards and tried to search for his service papers at The National Archives. If he was born in 1897, he would have been 18 in 1915. Legally young men were not allowed to enlist before the age of 18, although of course may did join up underage. Perhaps he only briefly wore the Sherwood Foresters cap badge before going on to join the Royal Flying Corps, since his RFC uniform shows him wearing a wound stripe on his left arm? Usually soldiers transferred from infantry or cavalry to the Royal Flying Corps, which was of course a very new unit, rather than vice versa.

I am at a loss as to what to suggest to you, as you have clearly tried all available resources in terms of archive material. Are there any other family members you could contact who might be able to provide you with more information on Wilfred?

yours sincerely

Angela Tarnowski

Mrs Angela Tarnowski
Assistant Curator & Archivist
Museum of the Mercian Regiment (Worcestershire & Sherwood Foresters Collection)
RHQ Mercian Regiment
Foresters House
Chilwell
Nottingham
NG9 5HA

[loweman2]

^{I have joined find my past.co.uk and tracked down via the RAF muster list of 1918 six W Lowes, all of them appear to have jobs that may fit in with him being injured (hence the wound stripe), with the army numbers it was easy to do a search for a soldier on Ancestry but with these RFC / RAF numbers they do not appear to show up anything.}

^{would somebody with greater knowledge of where to look have a look for me and see if any of the Ws actually stand for Wilfred}

^{Wilfred was born 30/5/1897}

^{regiment number}

^{81698 KBS BP labourer joined 17/5/17}

^{28577 motor cyclist private 1 joined 16/5/1916}

^{55326 labourer A Mech 3 private 2 joined jan 1917}

^{406476 cook A Mech 3 private 2 joined 27/10/14 (could this be him as it is the start of the war)}

^{124470 storeman A Mech 3 joined 12/2/18}

^{131574 draughtsman A Mech 3 joined 16/2/18}

[rolt968]

Probably the best next step is to look at their RAF other ranks' records.

These still exist. Unfortunately they are not online or digitised. The originals are available and relatively easy to find at TNA Kew. Since they are original documents you will need a reader's ticket.

I hope this some help.

Roger.

[MaxD]

loweman2

 

It is some time since this thread and you may not have noticed the new thread here which appears to relate to WILFRED Lowe.  You might like to look at the thread?

 

https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/276105-uniform/?tab=comments#comment-2813703

 

Note that the RFC was the army so if your man served in another unit beforehand he was still in the army when he transferred to the RFC  (if that is what he did).

Max