46 CCS Mendinghem Cemetery June/July 1917

[Martin Knowles]

Hi,

 

My family are travelling to Belgium to pay respects on the 100th anniversary of the death of my Great Granddad, 3314976 Percy Hendy 2nd Btn Hampshire Regiment.

 

Over the years I have found out a great deal about the circumstances of his being wounded and subsequent death but not much about the Casualty Clearing Station that he arrived at in a coma, on the night of 30th June/1st July 1917.

 

I know from a letter sent by the Chaplain that it was the 46th CCS.  Does anyone have any admission information from that period that may identify him including his wounds (I believe that it was a fractured skull) or failing that provide me with more information about the 46th CCS at that time including any photos of Mendinghem around June/July 1917?

 

It would be good to share with the wider family who will be travelling for the first time.

 

Thanks in advance, Martin

[GraemeClarke]

Morning

 

The WD is available here but I cannot guarantee what is in it. Not, I suspect, admissions, but possibly numbers.

 

Perhaps someone else will know this,

 

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/917d7d0789624371bdbe92b8ba167bd8

 

Regards,

 

Graeme

[sotonmate]

There are only a handful of Admission and Discharge Registers surviving for CCSs, unfortunately 46 isn't one of them. You could learn from that the extent of his injuries.

The War Diary usually has numbers in and out each day, sometimes lists those who have died, but not very often lists those treated.

I have looked in quite a few Diaries but don't seem to have seen 46CCS yet. I will take a look this week.

[TEW]

Martin,

 

I had a look at 46 CCS diary for June/July 1917 and it is as has been suggested just a list of totals for Officers/ORS, sick/wounded, transferred/discharged and died. No names given.

 

I'll re-check it for any precise locations for the CCS as it only states Proven.

 

Just to add that Percy Hendy's numbers were 3432 and 331476.

TEW

[cbritton]

There are some details about 46CCS in the memoirs of Dr Harvey Cushing, a pioneering American neurosurgeon [Cushings Syndrome is named after him]. He was stationed there in 3rd Ypres, but unfortunately not at the time your relative was killed. See: http://www.ourstory.info/library/2-ww1/Cushing/journal07.html 

[TEW]

The only grid ref I can find for 46 CCS at this time is in the 2nd Army DMS diary and it only gives Sheet 27 F.7.a. This places it to the NW side of Proven. Not a very precise location as the ref shows a 500 x 500 yard square

 

Trench map converter.

 

Remove the 62c and paste in 27.f.7.a it's within the large red square.

 

TEW

[Martin Knowles]

Thank you for all of your responses.  I knew that this was a long shot.

[sotonmate]

Martin

 

There is a thead here which has a McMaster map posted by gmac 101 showing the position of 46 CCS to the NW of Proven.

The topic number for search purposes is 120995.

[Honora]

Dear Martin

 

46th (1st/1st Wessex) Casualty Clearing Station at Proven.  This CCS was nicknamed Mendinghem, other nearby CCSs were Bandaghem and Dozinghem. Typical tommy humour, for ‘Mending ‘em, Bandaging ‘em and Dosing ‘em’. The added ‘hem’ making them sound like Belgian place names. 

Mendinghem seems to have specialised in mustard gas cases and head wounds. The eminent American surgeon Harvey Cushing carried out emergency neuro-surgical procedures at 46th and 64th CCSs during the autumn of 1917.

 

Harvey Cushing's  'From a Surgeon's Diary 1915-1917.'  gives a favour. Also there is a  photograph of the staff of 46 CCS. 

 

One of our local men was buried there:

 

BROWN Arthur Lionel, Private, 26897, 7th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry; died of wounds on 19 September 1917, aged 26. He is buried plot 7, row E grave 23, Mendinghem Military Cemetery, about 17 km north-west of Ypres.

 

If you should happen to find Arthur, and be able to take a photograph.., I would certainly welcome one to add to his record.. 

 

 

Hope you have a good trip 

Honora 

[pioneecorps]

Hope you don't mind me coming in on your post Martin, my great uncle CSM Harry Howells also buried in Mendinghem Cemetery, Proven, he died of wounds (leg amputated) on the 5th of June 1917, which he received on the night 25/26 of May 1917, I have two postcards he sent home from 46 Casualty Clearing Station, the last being the day he died, I stood my his grave side on the 5th of June 2017, and I have to say, it was very emotional.

 

Gerwyn

[Martin Knowles]

Gerwen - thanks for sharing your great uncle's story, I will pay my respects to him when we are there on 1st July.

 

Honora - I will look for Arthur and take a photo for you.

 

Thanks to all of you for showing interest and for your helpful information and responses.

 

Regards, Martin

[JeremyGS]

My gg uncle Ivan Bawtree was a war graves photographer and visited Mendinghem Cemetery a number of times. Only one photo of this cemetery survives in his photo collection, showing the grave marker of 2nd Lt AJD Torry, RFC, but it's enough to give an idea of how the cemetery looked in 1917/18. 

http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205343715

 

[suesalter1]

I was at Mendinghem last October on the 100th anniversary of my great-uncle's death. Very special and emotional experience. There's a great aerial photograph taken during the war in a book called 'The Great War seen from the air - in Flanders Fields 1914 - 1918. Book is rather pricey, but worth it for the photos.

 

Sue.

[pioneecorps]

On 24/06/2017 at 20:23, Martin Knowles said:

Gerwen - thanks for sharing your great uncle's story, I will pay my respects to him when we are there on 1st July.

 

Honora - I will look for Arthur and take a photo for you.

 

Thanks to all of you for showing interest and for your helpful information and responses.

 

Regards, Martin

Hello Martin

Sorry I have come back to you late on this, thank you for allowing me to be part of your post, and in paying your respects to my great uncle Harry Howells on the 1st of July, I did place a cross by his grave and wrote in the visitors book. enjoy your time out there, I'm thinking of doing another trip out there.

 

Kind regards

Gerwyn