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Remembered Today:

Bit of a long shot


russtobin

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I'm trying to resolve details concerning my wife's Great Uncle Charles Joseph Heaton(269869).

 

He shares a CWGC grave with his brother Percy Goodwin Heaton(14025) EYR.

 

CWGC states he served as a Gunner with the RFA but I can find no record anywhere to substantiate this.

 

Any help or guidance greatly appreciated.

 

Regards

 

Russ

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269869 is Alfred Townsend RFA according to the MIC on Ancestry.

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Just to clarify:

Percy Heaton is commemorated by CWGC.

Charles Joseph Heaton died in 1922 and is not commemorated, but is buried in the same grave.

The RFA number for Charles according to CWGC is as you posted, 269869, but I can't  see a MIC for him.

 

3 minutes ago, Jrmh said:

269869 is Alfred Townsend RFA according to the MIC on Ancestry.

Intriguing.

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Thanks for the replies so far.

 

CWGC headstone features EYR and RFA badges. Courtesy of CWGC.

 

Service number for C J Heaton has been damaged so it might read differently to 269869.

PGCJHeadstone.JPG

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4 minutes ago, Dai Bach y Sowldiwr said:

Service records survive for Percy, and this names 'Joseph' as his brother, but gives no other information.

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I have the records for Percy thanks. The family was blighted with tragedy. Three sons died within a few years of each other and while still relatively young. A duaghter died at a very young age and a daughter in law died young.

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Charles is named as 'Joseph' as  Percy's brother.

Perhaps his MIC is issued under that name or initial.

Renumbering maybe???

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3 minutes ago, Jrmh said:

You have probably seen this for Percy too?

 

https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/story/115042

 

 

yes thanks.

3 minutes ago, Dai Bach y Sowldiwr said:

Charles is named as 'Joseph' as  Percy's brother.

Perhaps his MIC is issued under that name or initial.

Renumbering maybe???

Army service number search tool suggests 269869 relates to Royal Army Service Corps (Block 1)

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No MICs for a Heaton 2698* on searching ancestry.

 

[number looks to be 269800 more than 269869.]

 

Did Gunner C.J. Heaton leave UK shores?

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Juat gone round and round in circles on the Staffordshire County website, (the two are buried at Milton, Staffordshire which I assume is their hometown), looking for the 1918 or 1919 Absent Voters List.

 

The Long, Long Trail webpage says they are on line, but the relevant page of the Staffordshire County Council website no longer goes anywhere.

https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/soldiers/how-to-research-a-soldier/finding-soldiers-through-the-1918-absent-voters-lists/

 

The "Whats in our catalogue" part of their Archive Services website has this:

"1918-1948. These electoral registers were compiled and kept by the Clerk to Staffordshire County Council, and properly they form part of the County Council Collection. The registers are bound volumes.

There are usually two or more volumes per year for the years immediately following the two World Wars. After WWI, there is a spring and autumn listing. There are no "absent voters lists" but there are codings indicating military and naval personnel in the main lists. After WWII there may be separate volumes for military lists, or for business premises.

Registers for Stoke on Trent are held at Stoke on Trent City Archives. They have been digitised for the years 1918-1939.

There are no registers at Staffordshire Record Office for some West Midlands constituencies for this period, except for the Brierley Hill constituency. Some are known not to have survived, possibly due to paper salvage during WWII. covering Wolverhampton and Dudley. There are also no known copies of the registers for Newcastle-under-Lyme for this period except for one volume for 1933."

http://www.archives.staffordshire.gov.uk/CalmView/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=AL02%2f4&pos=33

 

Perhaps someone with a bit more perseverance than me can have better luck - may be a case of contacting them. Elsewhere on the site they state they are currently working with FindMyPast to digitise parts of their collection but it's not clear if that includes electoral registers.

 

I couldn't see a soldiers will or Civil Probate for this man. May be worth checking out the lists on Ancestry for those who remained in the Army after 1920, as it looks like CWGC are being paid to maintain the headstone.

 

Good luck,

Peter

 

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I wouldn't be surprised if he was A.S.C. attached to the R.F.A. as Horse Transport or something (?). Serving on home shores only.

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Has anyone with access tried 269809 ?  Just asking.

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47 minutes ago, bif said:

Has anyone with access tried 269809 ?  Just asking.

 

First name(s)    Joseph
Last name    Casey
Year    1914-20
Service number    269809
Rank    Gunner
Regiment    Royal Field Artillery
Service record    Soldier Number: 269809, Rank: Gunner, Corps: Royal Field Artillery

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269800 is a William Stephen Hemmings, Driver, for the RFA. 

 

ancestry.co.uk

Capture.JPG

 

You can go through this Medal Roll and see the numbers, 269800, 269809, 269869 etc and none match C J Heaton.

Edited by wandererpaul
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Thank you very much for all of the replies so far.

 

I can't really add any other detail that might help. C J Heaton died at home following a two year battle with TB.

 

The family were local business people and his brother Thomas was a long serving sailor with the Royal Navy. I can only assume that for some reason the Heaton family insisted on C J being honoured along with his brother Percy.

Edited by russtobin
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When you look through the ASC Medal Rolls for BW & V, 269800, 269809 & 269869 aren't listed within the rolls.

 

ancestry.co.uk

Capture 1.JPG

Edited by wandererpaul
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I don't think that the second image is particularly convincing of being '00'

I can just as easily see the tails of both  6 & 9.

And I can't see CWGC (if they are responsible for Charles' details) engraving '00' on the stone when they have him as '69' in the information attached to Percy's details.

But presumably, family would have supplied the details including the number back in 1922?

 

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6 minutes ago, Dai Bach y Sowldiwr said:

I don't think that the second image is particularly convincing of being '00'

I can just as easily see the tails of both  6 & 9.

And I can't see CWGC (if they are responsible for Charles' details) engraving '00' on the stone when they have him as '69' in the information attached to Percy's details.

But presumably, family would have supplied the details including the number back in 1922?

 

 

The RFA Medal Rolls show the names for; 269800 (Hemmings), 269809 (Casey) and 269869 (Townsend). Unless C J Heaton served under an alias? We may never know re his RFA details.

 

The ASC Medal Rolls show no names for any of the possible numbers; 269800, 269809 and 269869. The possibilty, as mentioned above and by the Long Long Trail re the numbering system, is that he was, possibly, an ASC Driver (?) attached to the RFA as a Gunner but served only on UK Shores. So no medal record.

 

It may never be possible to find out who he served with unless someone contacts the CWGC and ask what details they have re this grave marker/headstone.

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1 hour ago, wandererpaul said:

I wouldn't be surprised if he was A.S.C. attached to the R.F.A. as Horse Transport or something (?). Serving on home shores only.

Yes that could be a solution.

Local newspaper obituary maybe worth looking for?

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The CWGC just has the info as on the headstone, 269869 Gunner C. J. Heaton Royal Field Artillery.

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