Gilbert Clark Brough: kia 28 August 1918. An unusual succession of units?

[rolt968]

I think that Gilbert Clark Brough enlisted (was conscripted) in summer 1916 in Aberfeldy. He was killed serving with 1/5 Border Regiment on 28 August 1918. He served in the following (according to his BWM and Victory Medal Roll entry - ancestry):

6 Black Watch

2/7 Black Watch

RAMC

3 Border Regiment

1/5 Border Regiment.

I have found out very little else. He made a soldier's will on 5 May 1918 by which time he was in 1/5 Border Regiment. According to a local newspaper he was "at home" (Glenisla?) in the spring of 1918. It was reported in the Whitehaven Advertiser of 10 August 1918 that he had been wounded serving in the Border Regiment. 6 Black Watch would have been the "local" regiment if he enlisted in Aberfeldy (also although Glenisla is in Angus, Alyth, the nearest town is in Perthshire. Apart from the reports of his death, I have found no other reports of his being wounded in either newspapers or casualty lists. (I do suspect that OCR may be letting me down.)

I wonder if he was "combed out" of the RAMC?

Perhaps he arrived in 1/5 Border Regiment among drafts to replace March 1918 Casualties?

Otherwise I have very few ideas about his changes of units. Can anyone make any suggestions, please?

RM

Edited 25 March by rolt968

[TEW]

"The Scotsman" could potentially have more on his casualty status.

Paid access required I think.

Otherwise I'm not seeing a casualty for him.

TEW

[corisande]

1 hour ago, rolt968 said:

According to a local newspaper he was "at home" (Glenisla?)

Scottish Nat War Memorials has him born there

Name	Gilbert Brough
Rank	Pte
Birth Place	Glen Isla Forfarshire
Death Date	28 Aug 1918
Death Place	France and Flanders
Cause of Death	Killed in Action
Service Number	267352
War	WW1
Military Unit	Black Watch Royal Highlanders, Latterly 39490 5th Bn the Border Regt
Regiment	The Black Watch (Royal Highlanders)

 

[corisande]

Maybe the cutting you have ?

[alf mcm]

1 hour ago, TEW said:

"The Scotsman" could potentially have more on his casualty status.

Paid access required I think.

Otherwise I'm not seeing a casualty for him.

TEW

Access to  'The Scotsman' is free if are a member of the National Library of Scotland. Membership is free, but you must have a Scottish address.

Regards,

Alf McM

[rolt968]

Thank you all.

The entry in the Kirriemuir Free Press is indeed the one detailed newspaper report of his death which I have. The two entries in the Whitehaven Advertiser (Advertizer?) can be found by using his surname and Border Regiment serial number. They are clearly direct quotes from the casualty lists, yet have not turned up anywhere else.

The Scotsman (at least some of it) and the Casualty Lists are both available at the Newspaper Archive in my case via FindmyPast. There may be something in the Brechin Advertiser (although I would have thought that was stretching its catchment area a bit) but the wartime editions are not online.

I strongly suspect that the OCR has not picked up something somewhere and/or there is/ wasa transcription error at some stage.

I am curious about a number of things, notably about a medal roll entry which include two UK based battalions (2/7 Black Watch and 3 Border Regiment.

I will have to do some work looking for neighbouring serial numbers.

RM

 

[TEW]

I am curious about a number of things, notably about a medal roll entry which include two UK based battalions (2/7 Black Watch and 3 Border Regiment.

It's possible that he was in these battalions in a infantry base depot in France before being transferred to another battalion.

That would suggest he had returned to the UK and was posted to those battalions and shipped back to France still on their books.

It's not unusual to see the scenario reversed IE. to see in a service file someone serving EG. 2 weeks in an IBD under a battalion not mentioned on the medal roll.

Also, there's no guarantee that the sequence shown on the medal roll is in correct order.

TEW 

[rolt968]

7 hours ago, TEW said:

I am curious about a number of things, notably about a medal roll entry which include two UK based battalions (2/7 Black Watch and 3 Border Regiment.

It's possible that he was in these battalions in a infantry base depot in France before being transferred to another battalion.

That would suggest he had returned to the UK and was posted to those battalions and shipped back to France still on their books.

It's not unusual to see the scenario reversed IE. to see in a service file someone serving EG. 2 weeks in an IBD under a battalion not mentioned on the medal roll.

Also, there's no guarantee that the sequence shown on the medal roll is in correct order.

TEW 

There is another complication. 267352 is not in the six digit sequence allocated to 7 Black Watch. It's in the sequence allocated to 6 Black Watch. Presumably he was renumbered while he was still in 6 Black Watch (1/6 or 2/6, we don't know), then transferred to 2/7 Black Watch after the time when men were renumbered when they changed battalions. (Or of course it should be 2/6 on the Medal Roll.)

The men on neighbouring pages seem to have come from other regiments to 3 Border Regiment than a Border Regiment Battalion overseas. However the Border Regiment serial numbers are not in sequence. It is tempting to wonder if they were all sent to France and then allocated to Border Regiment battalions - hence 3 Border Regiment appearing on the Medal Roll.

I agree that he must have come back to the UK at least once more than the once (Spring 1918 ish) which we know about. I wonder if the visit home in 1918 followed his wounding which was reported in the 10 August 1918 Whitehaven Advertiser.

RM