Help with service record

[petec]

Hi all,

I'm in the process of creating a display for my sister-in-law of her grandfathers (Philip Sharman) WW1 medals, and want to include his service record 

 

She has supplied me with a copy of his service record which she got from the National Archives, but I'm having trouble deciphering/understanding some of the entries, and am hoping that I might get the answers here.

 

Looking at his record with an untrained eye, I think that it reads:

 

12.4.15  - Halcyon III from Shore Lowestoft          25.4.15 - Halcyon  (Nellie)

26.4.15 - Vivid III Nellie                                          26.12.16 - Vivid -Do-

27.12.16 - Queen -Do-                                           11.1.19 - Queen -Do-

3.12.16 -  ???? Castle

12.1.19 Pembroke                                                  1.4.19 - Pembroke

 

Amongst the questions I have are:

1.  My S-I-Law believes that he served aboard HMS Nellie, but I can't find any vessel listed with that name, and although the word "Nellie"  certainly appears on his movement records, It appears to have been 'dittoed' (-Do-) to several of the entries on his record, and I suspect that it isn't a ships name at all, but means something else.

 

2.  Looking elsewhere in this forum, it would appear that HMS Vivid was a Shore establishment at Devonport, but that Vivid III was an "Accounting ship" only.  If that is the case, then where would Philip Sharman have actually been during the period 26.4.15 to 26.12.16.  Elsewhere on his record, it states that he was "Mobilised Before Training Undergone", so would he in fact have spent this time at "Vivid" under training ?

 

3.  From research, I know that HMS Queen was a battleship which took part in the Dardenelles campaign, but then went to serve as a Flag ship/Depot ship in the Adriatic.  Would therefore the entry for 12.1.16 be the name of a troopship taking him out to join the "Queen".

 

I've attached a scan of the relevant part of the service record, and  help would be very much appreciated.

[horatio2]

He served in the hired North Shields drifter NELLIE (sometimes recorded as NELLY), employed as a net vessel. Admiralty No.1473, She was brought into service 10/4/15 at the Lowestoft base HMS HALCYON. Her first operational base was at Devonport where her parent ship was HMS VIVID from 26/4/15. The actual pay office for NELLIE was VIVID II until 1/10/15 when VIVID III took her on the books. Both  VIVIDs were just sub-sections of the Devonport Pay Office. In late 1916/early 1917 NELLIE was sent out to the Adriatic and was on the books of HMS ADMIRABLE, the Auxiliary Patrol base at Taranto, from 1/1/17. HMS QUEEN took over the base duties on 1/3/17.

The DREEL CASTLE (Falmouth Base) entry for late 1916 may indicate that NELLIE was there for a short period before sailing out to the Adriatic.

It is pretty clear (notwithstanding the slight discrepancies in dates) that this deck hand served in NELLIE from when she was first hired in April 1915 until January 1919 when he was drafted to HMS PEMBROKE (Chatham barracks) for demobilisation in the following April.

I cannot see an "entry for 12.1.16". He was serving in NELLIE based on VIVID on that date.

Edited 3 October , 2018 by horatio2

[petec]

Well...…….what can I say ?  That's fantastic, and clears up all sorts of questions.  Many thanks.

[horatio2]

It appears that NELLIE was a relatively late transfer from UK out to the Adriatic. She was one of a group of three drifters that were sent out together. The other two were HM Drifter URSULA II, another North Shields drifter (Admiralty No.1477) and the Yarmouth drifter SIXTEEN (Admiralty No.1485). All were hired in April 1915 and moved together to VIVID and out to QUEEN.

[petec]

Many thanks, and much appreciated 

 

Can I ask where I can find this sort of information.  You've either got a brilliant memory (which I'm sure you have anyway ), or you have a source for this kind of information.

[BillyH]

To put it simply, he's a GWF gem Pete.  

 

BillyH.