6 Digit Labour Corps number

[mickey selcon]

Hi

I am trying to track the service of a  George John Wood who, from family history is believed to have served possibly with the Somerset Light Infantry,where he was wounded and then with the Labour Corps where he was allocated the number 189355. I haven't been able to find his service record, ( I believe that all Labour Corps records were destroyed in the fire at the repository in 1940?), but have recovered his medal cards. They show that he qualified for the BWM and AVM, indicating he deployed overseas after 01/01/1916, but they  only show him as having served in the Labour Corps. I understand from other posts in this forum that the medals would have been stamped with the unit that the man was serving in when he first deployed, indicating that he would only have served with the LC.

From his service number, is  anybody able to help give an indication as to when he might have enlisted/been transferred into the LC, or whether he might have served in the SLI prior to this? 

Thank you and best regards

Mike

[RussT]

LC number was allotted between June and September 1917.

Russ

[mickey selcon]

Thank you Russ, this gives me a great starting point.

 

Best regards

 

Mike

[TullochArd]

6 hours ago, mickey selcon said:

......... or whether he might have served in the SLI prior to this?

You're spot on in your assumptions Mike.  In the absence of a service record you're left working from a single source (the Medal Roll and it's "daughter" Medal Index Card) which shows one number, issued from the date as mentioned by Russ, and strongly indicates Labour Corps and nothing else.  

In most cases family lore has a golden thread of fact woven into the general fabric of the tale.  In your case family lore mentions he was was in the SLI and that may be the case. Throwing in a good dose of conjecture here's a scenario to support this:    

In my area individuals were (generally) attested into the East Lancashire Regiment.  At the point of attestation they were allocated an East Lancashire Regiment number and returned home to await call up for basic training/embarkation leave/deployment.  In 1917 France, at IBD Etaples, a significant percentage of these soldiers were regularly being sent to other regiments, King's (Liverpool Regiment) being the main one, and therefore allocated a new number. That new KLR number is the only number that appears on their Medal Roll/MIC and the old pre-deployment UK ELR number was lost unless they were killed or wounded. All this is despite them entering theatre as East Lancashire Regiment numbered soldiers.

Based on this it's a "maybe" that your relative could have been attested SLI and transferred over to the Labour Corps, due to prior skills or a medical grading, at some point well prior to deployment overseas.  

Regarding being wounded. I couldn't see a Weekly Casualty List entry for 189355 and there is no Pension Card.  Family lore often gets mixed up with units but details like wounding are more likely accurate.  He may have been wounded but it may not have been a Blighty one and was treated locally.  

Edited 18 July , 2023 by TullochArd

[RussT]

7 hours ago, mickey selcon said:

I believe that all Labour Corps records were destroyed in the fire at the repository in 1940?

Not all Labour Corps records were destroyed - although the majority were as per all other Corps/Regiments.

The Service Record for Joseph George East with the near LC number of 189351 has partly survived. He originally joined the 6th Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment (number 3216) in November 1914 and it seems he was also later with the Devonshire Regiment (number 40228). Unfortunately, the page(s) indicating his earlier service and when he transferred to the Labour Corps are missing. Nevertheless, his Medal Roll tells us that he, like Wood, did not serve overseas with those earlier Regiments (at least not in an active unit) as the LC Medal Roll only records his LC number.

It's noteworthy from the Medal Roll that some of the men on it with near numbers are recorded as serving with an earlier Corps/Regiment e.g. 189352 Arthur Underhill was formerly 26972 Worcestershire Regiment. This indicates that the Medal Roll compilers, at least for this block of LC numbers, were perhaps being diligent as to those who had, and those who had not, served overseas with a former unit.

It would be interesting to know what evidence you have that Wood was previously wounded with the SLI.

You could look for further LC Service Records by widening the number range in the hope you might be able to pin down better the date when his LC number was allotted. The date range I quoted earlier (June to September 1917) was for the LC number range 170141 to 357600 (Ref. No Labour No Battle, Starling & Lee) so Wood's number of 189355 was probably allotted nearer to June 1917 than to September 1917 on the assumption the numbers were being allotted approximately at the same rate throughout that relatively short period.

Regards

Russ

 

[mickey selcon]

Thank you all so much for the replies. It has really helped to focus what I need to do. The family stories are a bit vague, but at least we've now got a good starting point.

 

Best regards

 

Mike

[kenf48]

On 18/07/2023 at 11:54, mickey selcon said:

From his service number, is  anybody able to help give an indication as to when he might have enlisted/been transferred into the LC,

Basic genealogical information may help before pursuing military history, i.e. age marital status occupation etc.

There are many Labour Corps records  surviving in the 1893** series which have survived.  Many of these will be in the "Pension Records" on Ancestry, Find My Past makes no distinction as to 'burned records or pension records, simply service records.

I found two men with previous service in the Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry, as noted above the county where he was resident, even his religion may offer a clue.

That said these men in the number series include some who were previously wounded but the majority were men who were conscripted in 1916, or volunteered in 1915 but who were medically unfit for active service and therefore remained at "Home" either in the Territorial Battalions, or the Reserve Battalions.  Many of the line regiments had 'Works' Battalions.  On the formation of the Labour Corps in April 1917 http://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/regiments-and-corps/the-labour-corps-of-1917-1918/ these men were posted to the 3rd (Reserve) Labour Battalion in April/May 1917 and as the Corps was organised inducted into the LC, renumbered and posted on to various Employment Companies in June.

A number of men in the 1893** series, though by no means all,  went to 745 Area Employment Company and the BEF on or around 28July 1917 (though without a service record we can't say Pte. Wood was posted to that Company). 

It appears the Company suffered an outbreak of "Rose Measles".  There is a medical record for a 189307 Batten 745 A.E.Coy  and another soldier who were admitted to hospital on 13 August, after just 6 days in the field.

We can't be certain as to Pte Wood's original enlistment date but we know from the Medal Roll he remained on 'Home Service' until posted on active service overseas with the Labour Corps.  There were, at its peak 80,000 men serving in the Home Army, most in Medical Categories B or C and posted to labour or garrison duties in the UK, including Ireland.  Both the Somerset and Ox and Bucks L.I. raised Home Service or Garrison Battalions.