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Remembered Today:

Help identifying rank and battalion


Caroline Kay

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Hello, any info on this soldier would be appreciated I was given this rather than it go in a skip. I have very little clue about militaries except he is possibly an officer and the Great War also I know the photographer was in Bridlington. 

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It’s  Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales Own) Yorkshire Regiment and his rank is Captain. Well done for rescuing him. 

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Thank you Michelle, I don’t know what to do with him tbf as it’s a such a large frame and although I live in a Victorian  house it’s small!  he might have to go in my loft, such a shame I have no personal info.  
I appreciate your help with the regiment 

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Yes it looks like it. 

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What a fantastic photo.  As per usual Michelle has nailed it, and yes, the T below the collar badge indicates that the officer concerned was a member of the Territorial Force.

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Edited by FROGSMILE
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Caroline, if you can take the photograph carefully out of the frame, you might be lucky to find some details written on the back.

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16 minutes ago, Caroline Kay said:

Sadly there is no info on the back of the photo. 
 

He’s a typical TF Captain early in the war, in appearance.  No medal ribbons and relatively mature (but not unexpectedly so) for his rank.  Such men were often e.g. local branch bank managers, and various other types of middle management.  He was in effect a civilian doing his bit for society and his country rather than a professional soldier.

Edited by FROGSMILE
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His jacket is unusually Ill fitting for his rank. Maybe one he’s had since he was a teenage 2/Lt!

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That’s really interesting info. It’s such a huge picture not sure what to do with it. All I know is it was going in the skip after being found when renovating a big old house in a village called Walkington East Yorkshire.

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The only thing I do know is the photographer was from Bridlington. He was called Brigham. Maybe he was from Bridlington as Walkington is much nearer to Hull or Beverley for a photo shoot. 

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Here is a candidate

 

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Captain Thomas Sowerby Rowlandson 4th Yorks

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The fellow you’re looking for would have a visible cleft chin I think.

Edited by FROGSMILE
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24 minutes ago, FROGSMILE said:

The fellow your looking for would have a visible cleft chin I think.

Yes I agree and thanks for the correct terminology cleft chin I couldn’t think of it and could only think of the incorrect terminology bum 🤣

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17 minutes ago, Caroline Kay said:

Yes I agree and thanks for the correct terminology cleft chin I couldn’t think of it and could only think of the incorrect terminology bum 🤣

😂👍

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As Michelle says  he is a captain in the Yorkshire Regiment (a territorial)

Which indicates when the photo was taken he was serving with either the 1/4 Battalion Yorkshire Regiment or the 1/5 Battalion of the Yorkshire Regiment

again depending when the photo was taken, if he was still serving after war was declared he could have served during the war years in one of the training reserve battalions of the 1/4 Battalion the 2/4 Bn or the 3/4 Bn

or one of the training reserve battalions of the 1/5 Battalion  the 2/5 Bn or the 3/5 Bn

Its possible due to his age he may not have served in a theatre of war (home service only) but his age would not have precluded him from doing so

The Yorkshire Regiment, WW1 Remembrance 

Edward Nicholl the webmaster of the above has a large collection of soldiers of the Yorkshire Regiment on his website you may be able to match your photo up with one of his, failing that I am sure he would be happy to include a photo of the captain you have, on his website, which at some stage may result in a positive identification

If you are really interested in identifying the captain in the photo I would have thought that the captain in question was a relative of one of the previous owners or occupiers of the property where it was found, tracing the previous owners /occupiers and their family   may produce some leads to assist in the identification  of the captain

Then there is the local newspaper who may like to run a story on the photo you have saved from destruction

Ray

 

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21 hours ago, Caroline Kay said:

big old house in a village called Walkington East Yorkshire

I would start by looking at directories and census for this house.

I see there was a postwar Captain Stephenson of Walkington House who had a Green Howards connection?

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From “Walkington in the 1920s”:-
The Hall was nicely secluded from public view. Before our time it had been the property of the ‘Major’- John Daniel Ferguson–Fawsitt, but it was Fawsitt property and after the ‘Major’s death, it passed to a Miss Fawsitt who, on her marriage, had combined her name with that of her husband hence Chater-Fawsitt.”

I’ve been unable to find an officer of that name or just Fawsitt. There is a 2/Lt H T Fawcett, 5 Yorks in Sept 1914, Captain by Sept 1915.

Edited by PhilB
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26 minutes ago, PhilB said:

‘Major’- John Daniel Ferguson–Fawsitt,

He was worth looking at but He is unlikely to be our man 

John Daniel Ferguson–Fawsitt, born 1816 died 1903 aged 86

Here

 

 

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This is so interesting also the house you are talking about is a beautiful grand house still standing and interestingly the village pub is called the Ferguson and fawcett which is the spelling similar to in  Phil’s post 

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14 hours ago, RaySearching said:

He was worth looking at but He is unlikely to be our man 

John Daniel Ferguson–Fawsitt, born 1816 died 1903 aged 86

Here

 

 

No, but he may well have had progeny of the same surname who would be likely to serve in one of the Yorkshire Regiments?

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