Transport Workers Battalions Bedfordshires

[Chris_Baker]

Does anyone out there have any details on the 13th (Transport Workers) Bn, the Bedfordshire Regiment?

A chap I'm researching was posted into it after recovering from a hand wound he sustained at Cambrai. It is not entirely clear when he was posted to it but it was certainly after April 1918.

He was a labourer before the war, became a platelayer while with the Beds, and worked on railways as a career after the war.

Any knowledge of movements, what they did, dates etc would be most gratefully received.

As a sad postscript, this fellow's wife died at the age of 28 in late October 1918, of Spanish 'Flu. She left two very young children.

[Ivor Lee]

Chris

I have had great difficulty locating information on the Transport Workers Battalions.

I do have locations for 13th Beds for August to October 1917 but nothing for 1918. Let me know if you want these details.

The difficulty with these Battalions is that they were not employed at one or even two locations. Men were sent where they were needed so, for example, in October 1917 the 13th Beds had men operating in some 17 locations at some time during the month. These included docks like Newhaven and Folkestone, canals at Tring and Southall and unspecified work at places like Brentford and Northolt. They even had men employed in Agriculture! In a nutshell as long as they were required for 5 days or more men could be sent to suitable employment.

In some ways Transport Workers is a bit of a misnomer as they were available for work in the ports, on the railways and canals, and at the iron and steel works in connection with the handling of overseas supplies of ore.

I will be trying to find out more on my next visit to the PRO (hopefully in July) and will let you know if I find data on 1918.

[charlesmessenger]

Chris

Ivor is right in saying that informatin on the Transport Workers bns is hard to come by. The general stipulation was that if they were employed in civil labour the men were paid at civilian rates, although they had to pay for their own billets. While they were taught basic drill, they operated very much on trades union lines, with many of the NC0s being union officials. Like the two Dock battalions of the King's Liverpool Regt, they were formed as a means of ensuring that essential labour was maintained in the event of strikes in the docks and the transport system.

For Ivor - you might find WO162/6 a useful starting point at the PRO.

Charles M

[Ivor Lee]

Charles

Thanks for the reference - one for my next visit.

By the way I forgot to mention in my last posting there is some useful stuff on Transport Workers Battalions in the NATS files.

[Raster Scanning]

Both the 12th and 13th were based at Croydon. The 13th was formed with "overspill" from the 12th. The 13th was raised in March 1917 and disbanded in September 1919.

They were issued with infantry uniforms but no weapons.

That is all I have.

Cheers.