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Remembered Today:

Location of No. 2 OCB, May 1917


SamCurt

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While going through one of the Officer Service Records (AM Form 60) for pilot Francis Eric SHORT (1898-1957), it notes that he initially joined No. 6 OCB at Oxford in April 1917, was on the strength of No. 2 OCB in May for just four days, before being recorded once again back at Oxford's SMA where he completed initial training (commissioned into the RFCs General List at the beginning of July 1917).

 

Accepting that this could be purely a paperwork exercise, both the Unit To and Unit From annotations on the document add that No. 2 OCB was at what seems to be "lo'chester" and I'd appreciate any help in identifying, or correcting, this location.

 

AM60.jpg.45351e4b674caa51cedd79402792942b.jpg

 

I have seen it mentioned elsewhere that No. 2 OCB was at Pembroke College, Cambridge.

 

Thanks,
Sam

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OCB is Officer Cadet Battalion

see:

https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/soldiers/a-soldiers-life-1914-1918/training-to-be-a-soldier/officer-training-in-the-british-army-of-1914-1918/

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Thanks for the replies so far.

 

Steve:  While it could be "W'chester," the link provided by nieuport11, which is probably where I got Pembroke College from, records that the OCB at Winchester was 24 (Tank Corps) OCB, Hazeley Down.  Unless No. 2 OCB was also at Winchester for a short while in May 1917, which co-incidentally is a date highlighted in the Long Long Trail list as being when cadet numbers for some OCBs were increased from 400 to 600?

 

Sam

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Hi again Steve,

 

Thanks for the No. 6 OCB link.

 

Unfortunately, as the piece says, "... the college holds no administrative records of [Army Cadets'] time here.  Balliol College has no lists of names or any other systematic records about the individual officer cadets or their activities while staying in the College," their main records obviously relating to actual College students.

 

I also note later it relates that, "... a period of Army training can turn into a whole Oxford degree over several generations of retelling" and this is apparently reflected in Mr. Short's obituary which records that he, "... was educated at Sheffield University and Christ Church, Oxford."  While the first part is probably true, he was a member of Sheffield University's OTC, I've yet to find anything confirming the latter.

 

A link provided on the page:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/balliolarchivist/sets/72157657873444091

 

contains photographs, some named, of army personnel at No. 6 OCB, and may be useful to others.  I note there are some of Aldus Huxley and another of a rugby match between No 4 & No. 6 OCB.

 

A second set, including uniformed pictures and dated from October 1918, is at:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/balliolarchivist/sets/72157626744413357

 

A copy of The Souvenir, A Company, No. 6 OCB, Balliol College, 10 Nov 17 to 26 Feb 18, which includes photos and a nominal list of personnel, is at:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/balliolarchivist/sets/72157625644853526

 

with a second issue, 5 Apr 18 to 23 Oct 18 at:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/balliolarchivist/sets/72157625519202893/

 

Perhaps more interesting, for me at least, is an album from an Australian's time at No. 6 OCB, July-October 1917 (J H Brian Armstrong):

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/balliolarchivist/sets/72157625644812660

 

While having some interesting pictures of mens' time in uniform while there, unfortunately none are named.

 

The whole of Balliol's WWI albums are linked from:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/balliolarchivist/collections/72157625974483978/

 

Altogether a nice resource if you're any good at identifying individuals from a photograph (which I'm not!).

 

Thanks again for the initial link.

 

Sam

Edited by SamCurt
To correct atroshus pre-festivus speling
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  • 3 years later...

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