service records and absent voters list

[Constantlypuzzled]

Hi,

 

I am trying to trace army records for someone by the name of Frank Howbrigg (maybe Frank Melford Howbrigg) and not having much luck. 

 

The story is that he wanted to enlist in the army but his family were against it so he joined up any way but used a different name. His surname was Howbrigg but changed at some point after his marriage in 1906 to Melford Howbrigg. I haven't been able to find army records for him but he is on the absent voters list where it says he was 5162 Pte A.P.C. (army pay corps?). Can anybody help please?  

1920 absent voters list Frank Howbrigg.pdf

[Derek Black]

Hi Puzzled,

 

Army Pay Corps would be correct.

 

If you've had a good search on Ancestry or FindMyPast for his records and they're not there, then they likely didn't survive the fire in WW2 that destroyed most WW1 service records.

 

Derek.

[Dai Bach y Sowldiwr]

As he is 'Frank Howbrigg' on the AVL, then I would imagine that his service record and Medal Index Card would be in the same name.

That a MIC doesn't appear on Ancestry doesn't automatically mean one doesn't exist.

The possibilities are:

1) There might not be a card because he didn't serve in a theatre of war, or at least not under that name.

2) A card exists but under another name.

3) A card exists but is mistranscribed/misindexed by Ancestry.

3) A card did once exist, but has been lost or destroyed.

 

Option 1) though is still the likeliest.

I noticed on the AVL, that in his electoral division alone, there were 3 men in the APC. I don't think I've seen such a high concentration in any other AVL I've seen. 

Was there an APC unit based locally I wonder?

[Ron Clifton]

What was his "home" address according to the AVL? If it was where one of the Army's Record Offices was based, or a home Command HQ, that might explain why there are a few APC men on the same list.

 

Alternatively, he might have been posted abroad but not in a theatre of operations - Malta, Gibraltar or Bermuda, for example.

 

Ron

[ss002d6252]

I can't see a card via Find My Past so it's looking more likely that there isn't a MIC for him.

 

52 minutes ago, Ron Clifton said:

What was his "home" address according to the AVL? If it was where one of the Army's Record Offices was based, or a home Command HQ, that might explain why there are a few APC men on the same list.

 

Alternatively, he might have been posted abroad but not in a theatre of operations - Malta, Gibraltar or Bermuda, for example.

 

Ron

It is his home address, 30 Sandon Street. Nottingham did have a large Army Pay Office which probably explains the number of APC men in the area.

 

Craig

Edited 13 August , 2018 by ss002d6252

[Constantlypuzzled]

Thanks all for your help and advice. 

 

Regards

 

Jeanette H

[Constantlypuzzled]

Actually, there is something else. The number 5162 - is that his service number? 

[Ron Clifton]

Yes, it would be his number within the Army Pay Corps. In those days, each regiment or corps used their own series of numbers.

 

Ron

[Constantlypuzzled]

Thanks again

[Retlaw]

On 12/08/2018 at 23:32, Constantlypuzzled said:

Hi,

 

I am trying to trace army records for someone by the name of Frank Howbrigg (maybe Frank Melford Howbrigg) and not having much luck. 

 

The story is that he wanted to enlist in the army but his family were against it so he joined up any way but used a different name. His surname was Howbrigg but changed at some point after his marriage in 1906 to Melford Howbrigg. I haven't been able to find army records for him but he is on the absent voters list where it says he was 5162 Pte A.P.C. (army pay corps?). Can anybody help please?  

1920 absent voters list Frank Howbrigg.pdf

I don't hold much faith in the AVL-18, I indexed the whole borough in my patch, and comparing those entries with mens medal cards & service  records, our AVL is  running at 17% errors, there are also many errors in the indexing of medal cards in the National Archives, Ancestry is full of errors, I've won a few battles with them.

My patch has over 12500 Men, Women & boys in WW1, and i've been at it for a good few years.

Edited 13 August , 2018 by Retlaw

[Constantlypuzzled]

Thanks.

I'm thinking that they're either destroyed by fire or under a different name. His name change at some point from Howbrigg to Melford Howbrigg but  I cant find anything under either. I'll just need to do more digging and see what I can come up with. 

 

 He was a skilled tradesman before war began and in 1929 he is described as chief accountant so possibly he's stayed in/near Nottingham learn to be an accountant and never left UK. There was a steady increase in the size of his family for somebody who was a distance from home  although I'm also told he was gassed during the war. Its a conundrum I might never answer but, hopefully, as more records are digitized they might throw up something.

 

I gave up with Ancestry! 

 

Cheers

 

Jeanette 

[Retlaw]

14 hours ago, Constantlypuzzled said:

Thanks.

I'm thinking that they're either destroyed by fire or under a different name. His name change at some point from Howbrigg to Melford Howbrigg but  I cant find anything under either. I'll just need to do more digging and see what I can come up with. 

 

 He was a skilled tradesman before war began and in 1929 he is described as chief accountant so possibly he's stayed in/near Nottingham learn to be an accountant and never left UK. There was a steady increase in the size of his family for somebody who was a distance from home  although I'm also told he was gassed during the war. Its a conundrum I might never answer but, hopefully, as more records are digitized they might throw up something.

 

I gave up with Ancestry! 

 

Cheers

 

Jeanette 

Jeanette, have you tried searching just using Sevice number & regiment, I often get better results this way, than using surnames, most of the errors on web sites are in name spelling, and number errors are usualy last two numbers being transposed, have you tried soldiers effects,

[Constantlypuzzled]

Sorry, I'm a complete novice where it comes to the military? The regiment is Army Pay Corp or was there one of those for each regiment? 

Edited 14 August , 2018 by Constantlypuzzled

[ss002d6252]

9 minutes ago, Constantlypuzzled said:

Sorry, I'm a complete novice where it comes to the military? The regiment is Army Pay Corp or was there one of those for each regiment? 

During the war there were various record offices which each supported a group of army regiments (or similar). In many cases a pay office was located alongside the record office to sort out the pay issues for the same units. The Army Pay Corps were the army unit tasked with running the pay offices (along with a lot of civilian clerks). Within each pay office the responsibilities would be divided in to various sub-units to deal with different tasks.

 

Craig

Edited 14 August , 2018 by ss002d6252

[Constantlypuzzled]

There lies my problem. It's an assumption he was based in the Nottingham APC, but a fairly safe bet as mentioned in a previous post. The recollection of a relative is that Frank lived in Cairo, Egypt, "because he was gassed in the war". The AVL gives a service number but not a regiment. I've tried as suggested with the service number in various combinations and with different spellings of the surname but had no joy. Nothing either in the soldiers effects. If, say, he was gassed and shipped back to the UK, is it likely he would be transferred to the APC when he was able? 

 

Thanks for all the help

[Retlaw]

2 hours ago, Constantlypuzzled said:

There lies my problem. It's an assumption he was based in the Nottingham APC, but a fairly safe bet as mentioned in a previous post. The recollection of a relative is that Frank lived in Cairo, Egypt, "because he was gassed in the war". The AVL gives a service number but not a regiment. I've tried as suggested with the service number in various combinations and with different spellings of the surname but had no joy. Nothing either in the soldiers effects. If, say, he was gassed and shipped back to the UK, is it likely he would be transferred to the APC when he was able? 

 

Thanks for all the help

Jeanette. I've tried every combination of the surname your after in the medal rolls, and zero, also tried Melford, 12 of those, but surname again zero, If he was gassed have you tried local newspapers, ours was good at reporting casualties, & loads of mens photo's, I got over 2000 pics from our local chip wrappers.

[Constantlypuzzled]

LOL, I'll give that a go as well. Thanks 

[chaz]

 Now, strangely also the other two absent voters, Claude Dilks and Charles Caldwell Stirland  do not appear under army pay corps either!  Neither do their. Service numbers... Unless it's me on nights😜

 

Double checking, George Brewster was with the R.E, also John Chaplin was with the MGC.

only been looking at the MIC  so could be elsewhere as might not be entitled but some pay corps were, just me , but as all from the same area might they have all conspired to do a disappearing act?

Edited 15 August , 2018 by chaz

[Constantlypuzzled]

I’ll check that out. Thank you. 

[Constantlypuzzled]

Evening, 

 

More information tracked down, 

 

I have a copy of a letter dated Dec 1914 from the superintendent of the local workhouse to the public offices claiming allowance for his wife and eldest child (the younger one isn't mentioned) from the pay of a man serving in HM Forces. I assume this is the separation allowance and/or the compulsory deduction from a soldiers pay if going abroad? 

In 1916, his occupation was military clerk.

He is on the 1918 and 1919 voters list where his name is preceded by "a" which I assume means absent. He appears on the 1920 absent voters list as being in the APC. 

 

The following information is later than the Great War years but might be relevant to what he as doing during it. 

 

His daughter was born 1921 in the military family hospital in Abbassia, Egypt. 

Google eventually led me via the national archives to the RASC museum where I found two articles in the journal, which refer to him having gone to Abassia supply depot shortly after the end of WW1 on the disbandment of the Corps of Military Accountants and having been there for many years. I also found a 1935 photo of the depot staff in which he is noted as the accountant for the depot and is a civilian.. 

 

I know he was in Egypt in 1921 (possibly much earlier), long before the Corp of Military Accountants was disbanded in 1925 after which he went to the RASC (rather than return to the RAPC?). 

 

Is it likely he was a civilian, initially with the APC in Egypt before being transferred to the Military Accountants and if so, does that mean I'm barking up the wrong tree and sholdnt be looking for military records at all. 

 

Cheers,

 

Jeanette 

Frank 1918 VL.pdf

Frank 1919 VL.pdf

RASC journal 1946.pdf

[Guest]

www.howbrigg.co.uk - look under "f", doesn't answer your query but will give some insight on the use of Melford.