Harry Palgrave Raven

[George Rayner]

I need some help with this Officer please.

Harry Palgrave Raven was in Norfolk Territorials then the RFA for WW1.

Born 1875

Died 1952

Can anybody find his Norfolk forms or information regarding his service please?

Can anybody find any details of service in WW1 particularly his wounding in 1917? but anything else is lovely too!

 

He was a Captain in Norfolks, then a Lieutenant in RFA before ending up as a Major which honorary rank he carried into Home Guard in WW2.

 

George

[PRC]

5 minutes ago, George Rayner said:

I need some help with this Officer please.

Harry Palgrave Raven was in Norfolk Territorials then the RFA for WW1.

Born 1875

Died 1952

Can anybody find his Norfolk forms or information regarding his service please?

Can anybody find any details of service in WW1 particularly his wounding in 1917? but anything else is lovely too!

 

He was a Captain in Norfolks, then a Lieutenant in RFA before ending up as a Major which honorary rank he carried into Home Guard in WW2.

 

George

 

Sorry if I'm being a bit slow on the uptake but what papers do you think there will be that aren't in his officers file? I presume that's this one - https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C726441

(although that shows him as Royal Garrison Artillery and only as Harry Raven). I assume he was with the Territorial Force detachment of the RGA pre-war rather than the Norfolk Regiment.

 

Checking that out led to this thread

I see by the time of the 1911 Census of England and Wales he was living withn his wife and two children in Harleston. In my experience war news related to Harleston tends to turn up in the Diss Newspapers, (the Diss Express is on British Newspaper Archives) or the Bungay Newspapers which I believe are held at the Suffolk County archive as I'm not sure there is anything in Bungay Library.

 

 

On the 1911 Census he and wife Annie Harriet Hester Raven have been married 9 years - a check of the civil marriage quarterly index shows she was a Fairbrother. However doesn't appear to be any subsequent children post the 1911 Census, so no help there from children's birth certificates.

 

 I can't see a Medal Index Card for him, although maybe he didn't apply for his medals.

 

Cheers,

Peter

[Dave66]

His m.i.c. is here on ancestry...https://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin/sse.dll?_phsrc=SjY1&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&indiv=1&dbid=1262&gsfn=Harry palgrave &gsln=Raven&gsfn_x=NP&gsln_x=1&cp=11&qh=epqceA0J2WpPrDRtYPVgXA%3D%3D&new=1&rank=1&uidh=l37&redir=false&gss=angs-d&pcat=39&fh=0&h=4435040&recoff=&ml_rpos=1

 

 

[sadbrewer]

Bit of a church organist in his time...1943 ( British Newspaper Archive) 

 

Edit...pic of his sons wedding from 1948...lots more in the Archive.

Edit 2

From 1917.

Edited 4 September , 2019 by sadbrewer

[Mark1959]

Baptism - born 26th Jan 1875.

There is a transcribed admission record for a Major HP Raven RFA, 53rd Battery, 2nd Brigade RFA. Though cannot see to which medical unit. There 1st to 9th June 1917. Note says "Hospital Ship Warilda" - so presumably how he was evacuated. 15 years service. 19 months in field force. Age 45. This was for chronic otitis media. This can be extremely painful - I know I had it and it has left my hearing not too good; it can burst your ear drums and did mine!

[Dave66]

Educated at Emanuel college Cambridge, bit of info about him here from ancestry...https://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=3997&h=144192&indiv=try&o_vc=Record:OtherRecord&rhSource=3145

screenshot below.

[charlie962]

I presume your enquiry is linked to this Diary ?

[George Rayner]

Thank you all for your responses and positive contributions.

Yes the diary is part of the cause for the need for a biography!

And I haven't been able to view his officer's file at NA! So if anybody already has then that would be great...

Has anybody found reference to him in War Diaries-or could point me at the ones to look through I would be most appreciative

 

George

[George Rayner]

13 hours ago, Mark1959 said:

There is a transcribed admission record for a Major HP Raven RFA, 53rd Battery, 2nd Brigade RFA. Though cannot see to which medical unit. There 1st to 9th June 1917. Note says "Hospital Ship Warilda"

Mark please can you give me a URL for this as I am struggling to find it?

 

Thanks

 

George

[HarryBrook]

The "Norfolk Territorials" in which he was an officer was 1st Norfolk Volunteer Corps, Royal Garrison Artillery into which he was gazetted 2nd Lt. on 23 April 1902 https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/27427/page/2697

 

His service in the Great War began when he was gazetted Lt. into 1st East Anglian Brigade. Royal Field Artillery 26 September 1914.

https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/28926/page/7927

 

[George Rayner]

Thanks Harry

I think I have all his Gazette entries now-may have been easier to go to NA!

 

Struggling with Hospital Ship Warilda as mentioned in post #5 by Mark

 

George

[George Rayner]

15 hours ago, Mark1959 said:

53rd Battery, 2nd Brigade RFA

Is there a diary for this Battery/Brigade please?

 

George

[HarryBrook]

Just in case, and since I have already looked them up, here are his others whilst in the Volunteer Corps, R.G.A.

 

To be Lt. 4 March 1903 https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/27540/page/2236

To be Capt. 1 November 1906 https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/27982/page/34

Resigned his commission 31 March 1908 https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/28191/page/7928

[charlie962]

2 hours ago, George Rayner said:

Is there a diary for this Battery/Brigade please?

Couldn't see one for the battery but Brigade is here at NA

 

Charlie

[Mark1959]

7 hours ago, George Rayner said:

Mark please can you give me a URL for this as I am struggling to find it?

 

Thanks

 

George

https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/records/22756233/major-h-p-raven-royal-field-artillery/

There is a number of transcribed records on FWR that realte to him

1st Norfolk Volunteers 1906, Captain

26/9/14 3rd Norfolk Battery seniority Lt. ( Imperial Service obligations have been undertaken. Late Captain, 1 Norfolk, Royal Garrison Artillery (Volunteer)

Army List 1916 showing as Lt, Temp Capt 1st East Anglian Brigade, A Battery (1st Norfolk)

Enrolled at Emmanuel College, Cambridge 1896

[George Rayner]

Thanks Mark

I find it amazing with all these search engines that different people inputting the same question get a variety of answers! I'm certain I had tried that on FWR but maybe not! I had certainly found other things.

 

Thank you

 

George

[Mark1959]

4 hours ago, George Rayner said:

Thanks Mark

I find it amazing with all these search engines that different people inputting the same question get a variety of answers! I'm certain I had tried that on FWR but maybe not! I had certainly found other things.

 

Thank you

 

George

My slight advantage is I have an understanding of how databases, search engines work. I wrote a very early internet search engine at the start of the 90s. This helps in asking the same questions a number of slightly different ways that produce differing results. Hence what you say happens because people enter slightly different criteria. 

Sometimes there is no info. But any change in search criteria may produce new results. 

[IPT]

Were you Jeeves, Mark? 

[George Rayner]

Well thank you anyway!!

 

George

[Guest]

I don’t know if this is of any interest, but i have a cheque written to Major Raven from my great grandfather, who lived in Hoxne in Suffolk....no idea what it may have been for. 

[George Rayner]

My interest is through his ww2 service within Home Guard as he was instrumental in setting up Hoxne unit.

would be interested in seeing it and hearing who your great grandfather was though. Because he was WW1 involved too

 

george

[Sunbird]

George, how did you get on with Raven? Earlier in this thread my great grandfather's diary / record is shown for the entry where he (Lieut A F Elliott) met Captain H P Raven at Usna Hill in July 1916. Raven is referred to as a school housemaster. Do you know if he may have been a teacher, or housemaster and where that school was. 

 

Chris

Edited 25 November , 2020 by Sunbird