BillyH Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 1 hour ago, Gardenerbill said: Something else doesn't quite add up though, the newspaper cutting posted by BillyH suggests he was in the ASC in December 1914, however his service number was allocated in the latter months of 1915, a check on near numbers will confirm this. He actually enlisted with the ASC on 26th August 1913 (from SWB record) - see post # 44 He probably had his original Territorial number replaced at some point before going overseas. Probably later in 1915 as you say. I can't find any service papers for him, we may never know what his original number was? BillyH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai Bach y Sowldiwr Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 3 minutes ago, BillyH said: He actually enlisted with the ASC on 26th August 1913 (from SWB record) - see post # 44 He probably had his original Territorial number replaced at some point before going overseas. Probably later in 1915 as you say. I can't find any service papers for him, we may never know what his original number was? BillyH. Shot in the dark Billy. Is he in the AVL for Birkenhead? It's just possible that he might have given his earlier number, but in any case, it might give his ASC company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyH Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 2 hours ago, Dai Bach y Sowldiwr said: Is he in the AVL for Birkenhead? Good thought DBS, the snag is the AVL is currently locked down in Birkenhead Library. BillyH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai Bach y Sowldiwr Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 7 minutes ago, BillyH said: Good thought DBS, the snag is the AVL is currently locked down in Birkenhead Library. I thought the lockdown had ended on Merseyside last weekend? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyH Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 I am not of that persuasion Dai, we haven't celebrated for 25 years! BillyH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai Bach y Sowldiwr Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 32 minutes ago, BillyH said: I am not of that persuasion Dai, we haven't celebrated for 25 years! BillyH. Oops! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsp1991 Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 Once again, thank you for your help. I do really appreciate the assistance - it's certainly more than I could have expected! It's interesting to hear about the Turkey possibilities. I can remember my grandmother telling my a story about when he was guarding POW - they escaped, and he was tied to a wagon wheel for hours as punishment. It would be fantastic to learn about where he was posted - are all hopes of finding out lost? I still have his helmet, too - I've attached a picture of it. Does this number bear any significance? The helmet has a large dent in the top (unfortunately, I don't know the story behind it). If his original number were to surface, what could it reveal? Apologies, I am very much a novice. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gardenerbill Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 If you have an Ancestry account you can search the medal rolls including the Territorial Force Medal roll, might give his unit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gardenerbill Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 @rsp1991Is there anything on the side of the helmet e.g. a division symbol? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyH Posted 30 June , 2020 Share Posted 30 June , 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, Gardenerbill said: If you have an Ancestry account you can search the medal rolls including the Territorial Force Medal roll, might give his unit. Nothing on the Territorial Force Medal Roll. edit : The wagon wheel punishment is termed 'Field Punishment No.1' - try googling it. BillyH. Edited 30 June , 2020 by BillyH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsp1991 Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 Here is a picture of the symbol on the side of the helmet. Fascinating about the punishment - I didn't think there'd be a proper term for it! Is there a possibility that some records might be under Charles S McDonald, given that Stanley was his middle name? I've also posted an image of a lighter (Medical Corps) and a button. I don't know what significance they hold. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gardenerbill Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 Unfortuately the symbol painted on the helmet doesn't match any of the Salonika division patches, but it looks like the helmet may have been over painted, also I would have expected a tropical issue (Pith) helmet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsp1991 Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 (edited) I've also just found these medical records. Service number is very close (the 2 is missing) and ASC. States that he's a driver. It seems plausible that this is him. This is the transcript... First name(s) S Last name McDonald Age 22 Birth year 1896 Service number T4/21489 Rank Driver Corps Army Service Corps Admission year 1918 Admission date 17 Oct 1918 Hospital No 31 Casualty Clearing Station Description British other ranks. Transferred to AT Transfer year 1918 Transfer date 17 Oct 1918 Country Great Britain Archive The National Archives Piece MH 106/603 Series description War Office: First World War Representative Medical Records of Servicemen Register type Hospital admission and discharge registers Record year range 1918 Sept. 30-Dec. 15 Record set British Armed Forces, First World War Soldiers' Medical Records Category Military, armed forces & conflict Subcategory First World War Collections from Great Britain, UK None Edited 1 July , 2020 by rsp1991 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai Bach y Sowldiwr Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 17 minutes ago, rsp1991 said: Is there a possibility that some records might be under Charles S McDonald, given that Stanley was his middle name? Yes there is. You'll have to consider all such possibilities when furthering your research, including the possibility of Mc and Mac. That red triangle will be a dead giveaway for the insignia experts here, but not me. The first badge is American, the second clearly RAMC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Upton Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 The helmet in that configuration is, at best, late 1930's, and essentially WW2 era... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dai Bach y Sowldiwr Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 That's a good find. Where was the hospital? His entry says "ASC att. 8(6)? Sur. Coy Age 22 Diagnosis NYD (P) [Not yet diagnosed -?Pyrexia] Adjacent entries are for East Surrey Regiment, Buffs and Gloucester Regiments and 779 Coy ASC, plus other batteries of the RGA and RFA that are easily locatable. 779 Coy ASC were in Egypt (22Ammunition Park) and Salonika (98 Auxiliary MT Coy) but without looking at the War Diaries, I can't say when. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsp1991 Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 (edited) 33 minutes ago, Andrew Upton said: The helmet in that configuration is, at best, late 1930's, and essentially WW2 era... Thank you for your help. I'm not sure who it belonged to if it's WW2, no one on that side of the family fought in that era. This just makes the research more difficult Edited 1 July , 2020 by rsp1991 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsp1991 Posted 1 July , 2020 Share Posted 1 July , 2020 57 minutes ago, Dai Bach y Sowldiwr said: That's a good find. Where was the hospital? His entry says "ASC att. 8(6)? Sur. Coy Age 22 Diagnosis NYD (P) [Not yet diagnosed -?Pyrexia] Adjacent entries are for East Surrey Regiment, Buffs and Gloucester Regiments and 779 Coy ASC, plus other batteries of the RGA and RFA that are easily locatable. 779 Coy ASC were in Egypt (22Ammunition Park) and Salonika (98 Auxiliary MT Coy) but without looking at the War Diaries, I can't say when. The hospital isn't stated, but after some Google searches, it seems that No 31 CCS was located in Yanesh (Janes) between August 1916 and October 1918. It's 35 miles north of Salonika. It could be possible that his wounds actually in fact nephritis, from which he was discharged from the army. I'll have to start researching the war diaries to find out more information. At last, I seem to be getting somewhere! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsp1991 Posted 8 July , 2020 Share Posted 8 July , 2020 Hi all, I just want to provide an update on my research. I have since discovered that ASC att. 8(6)? Sur. Coy" (as stated on my GGF's medical file) most likely means he was attached (att.) to the 8th Field Survey Company of the Royal Engineers - attached meaning that he probably served with 8th temporarily (not sure)? The 8th FSC were in Salonika from 1st Jan 1917 to 31st Mar 1919. I've found a war diary for this division on the Royal Engineers Museum website (https://www.re-museum.co.uk), but unfortunately, the download is an unreadable html file. Thank you for help - it's greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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