Researching a soldier at the CWGC

[Phil Wood]

Is it possible to view a soldier's record at the CWGC? I have a few where it would be nice to know where they were originally buried or when the correspondence with the bereaved family took place.

[John_Hartley]

No. CWGC does not offer research facilities.

If a body was reinterred, then the Commission probably has the original location. A letter to them may get a response but it's always going to be a "favour", so I wouldnt necessarily hold my breath.

[CGM]

I'm not sure exactly what the reference to 'now available online' means in practice, but this comes from the CWGC website:

Our records are as extensive as our cemeteries and form a vital part of the work we do...............By 1947 the Records Department had recorded 370,000 graves and 250,000 names commemorated on memorials. We now have a total of some 3.5 million documents in our records and archive.

We receive thousands of requests for information and we use the records regularly. Recently we have undertaken the enormous task of digitising the archive so that fragile original burial documents do not need to be handled daily. The records are also used to maintain the Register. All that we know about an individual is now available online.

See HERE.

CGM

[spof]

I went to a presentation by CWGC in April last year where they announced the digitisation project. Until recently, researching a soldier in reply to a request was all done by paperwork - usually the original 90 year old paper at that! - and was slow and complex and needed to inspect several different files. This was then going to go into a single computer system so the researcher can access it all at the same time. (Has anyone noticed if responses to queries seem faster in the last year or so?)

It was also mentioned that there were plans to put it all online to the public next year in time for the Centenary. This will probably raise 5 times as many questions as it answers and there are parts of hte burial returns I'm not sure won't cause distress such as the state of the body when found as a made up example - torso only with no limbs - which I don't feel should be public. I haven't heard any more since then but presume it is still on schedule for next year.

[Phil Wood]

All that we know about an individual is now available online.

Regi

Online on their intranet perhaps - but not to us.

I guess it might be made available at about the same time as all those war diaries that TNA have ready to go - just in time to be too late for us trying to research memorials before the centenary.

[John_Hartley]

My apologies - clearly I was wrong to say they do not offer research facilities.

[Sepoy]

I have recently been researching a RFC Observer who was killed in action during March, 1917. When I carried out some basic research some years ago, the chap was commemorated on the Arras Memorial, but a more recent search showed he was buried in the Cabaret Rouge Cemetery.

Puzzled by this I sent an email to the CWGC and they were good enough to respond with details of where the body was originally buried and how it was transferred and buried in an unknown grave. The burial was ascertained following an investigation held during 1992 and a named grave stone erected and his name erased from the Arras Memorial.

This has raised a number of other question, such as why was this investigated in 1992, but with 11th November just around the corner I thought I would wait for a quieter time of year. Again details provided may have "censored" due to the Observer's aircraft being shot down in flames.

See here for the story

The CWGC answered my query without any question and within a few weeks.

Quite simply, send the CWGC an email inquiry - they can only say no.

Sepoy

[David_Underdown]

It is also possible to visit their archives (by appointment). Details and catalogue at http://www.cwgc.org/about-us/what-we-do/records/our-archive.aspx

[Sepoy]

It is also possible to visit their archives (by appointment). Details and catalogue at http://www.cwgc.org/about-us/what-we-do/records/our-archive.aspx

Interesting - I was not aware you could visit their archives......

I can feel a trip to Maidenhead coming on.

Sepoy

[Drew-1918]

Thanks Phil for raising this question, and for all who contributed, as it was very helpful to me in finding out about a relative of mine. I didn't realise that you could get information from the CWGC, and as a result of this thread I emailed them and found out a lot of very helpful information about my great uncle. In my case, I emailed on the 25th October after reading this thread, and heard back today, which seems very fast.

Just to confirm some of what Sepoy said- the CWGC told me about;

The previous place of burial (with map reference), the means of identification (in this case a temporary cross marking the grave), and the reburial date. They also said that they "...do not record cause of death for casualties we commemorate...".

I should add that they also said;

"Please note that our First World War archival documents will be available to view through our website around May 2014."

Thanks again,

Chris

Edited 30 October , 2013 by Drew1918

[Phil Wood]

"Please note that our First World War archival documents will be available to view through our website around May 2014."

Splendid news - though, being close to Maidenhead, I may try a visit before then.