Unknown Nursing Sister

[southafricawargraves]

Hi gang,

Been travelling the world for the last two years photographing war graves for Canada, Australia, New Zealand, UK and South Africa, see my site here www.plansinsand.com, anyway while I snap pix I try and get some interesting unknowns headstones. Here's one from Mikra British Cemetery in Greece and following is the only nursing sister on Doiran Memorial.

Asked Terry this earlier today but does logic not dictate that this is same person? Logic yes, but we need proof and as Terry mentioned there are many that never got included in the list.

[southafricawargraves]

Mixed them around here is the headstone

[Terry Denham]

Logic says that this could be the same person but proof is needed. (one for Jim Strawbridge to play with).

It is not stated on the headstone what nationality the casualty is and therefore may not be British - could be other Commonwealth or even totally unknown nationality.

This may seem pedantic but it is the way the discussion will go. A nursing expert may be able to put sufficient proof together to sort this one quite easily.

The Balkan and Middle East areas have a reasonable number of duplications between memorial names and actual named graves - I have been involved in sorting out four in the past three months alone. This could fall into the same category.

[Terry Denham]

Jim has identified ten females who could be lying in this Unknown grave and so it is not as logical as first thought.

I'll let Jim post the details.

[Jim Strawbridge]

There seems to be ten possibilities for the recumbent of the grave based on missing nurses' bodies. As one would expect they are "drownings" with the bodies lost at sea although Griffin may have died at sea and was despatched over the side.

Off the MARQUETTE

BROWN, Marian Sinclair

CLARK, Isabel

FOX, Catherine Anne

GORMAN, Mary

HILDYARD, Nona Mildred

ISDELL, Helena Kathleen

JAMIESON, Mabel Elizabeth

RAE, Mary Helen

RATTRAY, Lorna Aylmer

(ROGERS, Margaret - properly buried)

Off the "unknown"

GRIFFIN, Lilian

(commemorated on the Doiran Memorial, Greece)

The most likely candidate for the grave with the unknown body is that of Helena Isdell. The reason that I say that is because of an extract that I found off the internet a couple of years ago and which I copy below. I would suggest that she was identified from her physical description and colouring (perhaps by the surviving nurses) but that this was sufficiently uncertain to warrant it as being marked "unknown". But there must have been some indication to narrow Helena Isdell out from the others. A DNA test with surviving relatives would prove it one way or the other but I guess no one will be interested to bother to arrange it. By the way the author has got it wrong as nurses were issued with identification discs but I expect that they were an irritation to wear and mostly carried rather than worn.

"A total of 560 were saved by the destroyers, while two boats with 75 on board made it to the western shore, landing near the village of Palamoni. A party of 14 from this group, led by Lt. Col. D.J.McGavin (OC, NZ No.1 S.H.), set off to look for help at a nearby railway station, but on returning to the beach found that the Tirailleur had taken the remaining 61 survivors off the beach and returned them to Salonika. Lt. Col. McGavins group did not get back to Salonika for a further 4 days on the 27 October. The bodies of two nurses, Margaret Rogers (identified by her name on the back of her wristwatch) and another nurse believed to be Helena Isdell and the bodies of four men were found by a Royal Navy minesweeper in a lifeboat washed up on the Greek coast near Zagora (fairly close to where Lt. Col. McGavins group landed). These were the only bodies recovered of the ten lost nurses, which are now interred at the Mikra British Cemetery at Kalamaria. Authors Note: Nurses in those days were not given military ranks, so presumably did not carry identification discs".

[Sue Light]

although Griffin may have died at sea and was despatched over the side. 

Lilian Griffin was buried at sea - but I suppose it's vaguely possible that she was washed ashore after that and buried twice.

"We greatly regret to record the death of Miss Lilian Griffin, on the hospital ship Llandovery Castle, on the 5th inst. Miss Griffin had been attached to the Third Western General Hospital at Cardiff from the beginning of the War; and was drafted out to service in Malta at the beginning of July, and thence to Salonika. She succumbed to bomb shock and was buried at sea."

British Journal of Nursing, 30th September 1916, page 280

Sue

[southafricawargraves]

Well that sorts that out. At least Jim has a new photo for his collection.

R.