yperman Posted 1 June , 2016 Share Posted 1 June , 2016 I am researching a private soldier who died of wounds and was buried at Vlamertinghe New Hospital cemetary in late July 1917.I will be really grateful if someone could advise me if it is possible to find out any more about his injuries? Many thanks. Yperman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mancpal Posted 1 June , 2016 Share Posted 1 June , 2016 Yperman Have you tried searching for his service record (Ancestry or FMP). If it survived the Blitz you may be lucky and find it contains some medical details though not all surviving records for. Regards Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kildaremark Posted 1 June , 2016 Share Posted 1 June , 2016 Always worth checking the war diary which, in some cases could provide some further details i.e. men injured by artillery attacks, snipers etc etc. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yperman Posted 2 June , 2016 Author Share Posted 2 June , 2016 Simon and Mark thank you for the leads. The war diary suggests that he sufered what were presumably shrapnel wounds from a random German disruptive salvo on the front line trenches by the canal in the build up to 3rd Ypres. His record just states he died of wounds a day or two later. Yperman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TEW Posted 2 June , 2016 Share Posted 2 June , 2016 Is this 'Vlamertinghe New Military Cemetery'? If you give his name, number, regiment and battalion there is always a possibility that there are records which could piece together something of the injury and/or the evacuation process. Vlamertinghe New Military Cemetery was set up adjacent to a Field Ambulance unit, presumably he was removed from the field and unsuccessfully treated there. Quote His record just states he died of wounds a day or two later. Does his record not say something along the lines of Admitted ?? Field Ambulance. Admitted xx Casualty Clearing Station TEW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yperman Posted 2 June , 2016 Author Share Posted 2 June , 2016 TEW the soldier I am interested in is Private Robert Parker Horsfield 202801 1st/4th Loyal North Lancashire Regiment who died on the 21st July 1917 aged 27.The record I was referring to is the War history of the 1st/4th LNLR which states between the 17th and 21st "artillery had been active and our casualties were 6 killed 13 wounded 2 gassed". It goes on that on the 21st they suffered rather heavily from enemy artillery total casualties on that day were 11 killed and 14 wounded of whom two afterwards died. There is a little group of I think 3 LNLR graves in Vlamertinghe New Military cemetery. His service record - which unfortunately I don't have with me - just records his date of enlistment, medals and date of death. From these I concluded he was a hit by this artillery fire and that as he was taken to Vlamertinghe that he was one of the wounded who subsequently died. I am new to researching individuals and wondered if there would be any medical record kept? I suspect it is a very long shot! Yperman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mancpal Posted 2 June , 2016 Share Posted 2 June , 2016 Yperman, I've had a similar problem regarding the wounding of one of my forebears. The consensus of opinion was that the likeliest way to find out for sure would be any medical papers within the man's service record. In my case no medical papers survived and I've yet to encounter another method of answering my questions. I hope I'm wrong as I'd love to know more. Regards Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TEW Posted 2 June , 2016 Share Posted 2 June , 2016 Yperman and Simon, Sometimes you get lucky and find info in various Medical HQ, Field Ambulance, CCS, MAC/MAT or hospital diaries. I won't get your hopes up by suggesting he'll be named but if the evacuation procedure from trench to ADS, MDS or CCS can be worked out you may at least get an idea of how he got from trench to Vlamertinge. Sometimes injuries were separated out so that one Field Ambulance would evacuate abdominal wounds to one place while head injuries may go to another. It may be that he just shows up as a statistic in a list of admissions, but if it can be shown that he would have followed a precise evacuation procedure then it follows that he must be one of the statistics on the list. I'll check things out later for Horsfield. TEW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yperman Posted 3 June , 2016 Author Share Posted 3 June , 2016 Thank you Simon and TEW. Regards Yperman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David_Underdown Posted 3 June , 2016 Share Posted 3 June , 2016 Only a sample of medical records was kept after the war. What survives is in the record series MH 106 at The National Archives. There are various sub series in that as the data was selected in a variety of different ways, eg complete admission and discharge books for specific hospitals of various types, treatment cards relating to specific types of wound or illness, medical records pertaining to specific units and so on. As a result it's rather pot luck if anything survives for a particular individual, and how detailed it will be. Transcriptions of some of the series are available through Forces War Records. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yperman Posted 5 June , 2016 Author Share Posted 5 June , 2016 Thank you David I will give MH 106 a try. Yperman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TEW Posted 5 June , 2016 Share Posted 5 June , 2016 I will be giving the diaries a go once they come back, not forgotten! TEW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TEW Posted 22 June , 2016 Share Posted 22 June , 2016 On 05/06/2016 at 08:24, TEW said: I will be giving the diaries a go once they come back, not forgotten! TEW Yperman, Sorry, knew there was something I said I'd look at. Private Robert Parker Horsfield 202801 1st/4th Loyal North Lancashire Regiment. Was with 164th Infantry Brigade, 55th Division, 19 Corps at the time. According to 1st/4th LNL diary Prowse support Trench (28NW C.28) was heavily shelled that day and they had 11 men killed, 14 wounded (2 since DOW). 55 Division medical units included 3rd West Lancs FA, 2/1st West Lancs FA and 2/1st Wessex FA. I checked the above four diaries and found very little. Not helped by the fact they were at the time re-organizing everything for the upcoming offensive and that on the 21st July the ADMS fell off his horse which obviously takes precedence. Lots of updates on his recovery!! The three field ambulances of the 55th Div. were not based around Vlamertinge at the time. So I looked through the 19 Corps DDMS diary and there are Medical Arrangement dated 24/7/1917 which places the Corps Walking Wounded Dressing Station at Vlamertinge Mill 28NW H.8.a.9.8. This is more or less right on the location for Vlamertinghe New Military cemetery. Vlamertinge Mill was taken over by the 47th Field Ambulance on 27th June 1917 where they opened a unit for local sick and wounded. 19th July 1917. 47th Field Ambulance took over evacuation of wounded from Right Sector Divisional Front. 21st July 1917. Admitted 62 wounded, two died of wounds. Nothing to say when they became they Corps Walking Wounded Dressing Station rather than a unit for local sick and wounded. 15th Div ADMS says (15/7/17) that Vlamertinge Mill will be the CWWDS for the forthcoming operations. It may have already been so. I agree that Horsfield is probably one of the two men that died of wounds and are mention in the two diaries. Map of area. Ignore Black Lines TEW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yperman Posted 23 June , 2016 Author Share Posted 23 June , 2016 TEW, Thank you very much indeed for all your help and trouble. It really is much appreciated. Yperman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TEW Posted 24 June , 2016 Share Posted 24 June , 2016 If you google Vlamertinge Mill the IWM have paintings of it. TEW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yperman Posted 24 June , 2016 Author Share Posted 24 June , 2016 Will do asap: Thank you TEW I really appreciate your help. Yperman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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