Help Sought to Identify RAMC Unit and Possible Hospital Location

[DJJones]

I am seeking help to try and identify the unit of the RAMC pictured. My grandfather is pictured. I know he served in Gallipoli/Mudros, Salonika and probably Egypt. I have tried to identify the location of the photograph which from the architectural style looks to be part of a typical British military hospital from the early 20th century. I have compared it to hospitals from around the Mediterranean. The best match for the brick pillars and plaster/stucco of the arches is with the 27th British General Hospital in Abbassia, Egypt but I can’t be sure. I would suspect it was taken in 1918 or very early 1919.

Any help would be great fully received.

[alf mcm]

Can we have your grandfather's name and number? It may help us.

Regards,

Alf McM

[DJJones]

Hi Alf,

His name was William Stanley Jones and number was 49170. I have a copy of his MIC and found some newspaper reports relating to him being wounded (no details) in Salonika in early 1917 and sent to hospital in Malta. Sadly there is no enlistment record. He died before I was born and my family knew little about his service other than he contracted malaria as well as being wounded. The details I had were posted in the online RAMC database (referenced in the GW Forum elsewhere) when I tried to research him earlier. I may be clutching at straws trying to identify the building/hospital with so little detail.

Thanks

David

 

 

[Bob Davies]

I presume the link below, is to what you found @DJJones David?

With your Grandfather standing middle rank, far right of your picture? If that is William Stanley Jones, he looks to be wearing a 'Lance Corporals stripe' on his upper left sleeve.

@FROGSMILE may be interested to view this picture? The officer? seated in the middle is wearing a different type of pith helmet to the other ranks.

http://www.ramc-ww1.com/profile.php?cPath=168_278_502&profile_id=10549&osCsid=67f16106ade5c23055999f9bc3eac2a1

The images on the link are copy righted so I cannot screenshot them to here.

You may not be clutching at straws as there are some fantastic people on here who can pull stuff out of nowhere, it is just a matter of time usually.

I am having a search as I am sure are others.

Regards, Bob.

[DJJones]

Thanks Bob,

You have the correct link and I always understood that he became a lance corporal (although his MIC just lists him as Private. If so it would have been late in the war as a local newspaper refers to him as Private Stanley Jones when on home leave in 1917. He did spend some time on convalescent leave in Ireland in later 1917 but if this was due to malaria or being wounded earlier in the year or late 1916 isn’t made clear.

Again, I don’t know the nature of his being wounded but my Dad recalled seeing scarring on his Father's shoulder which he thought might have been shrapnel or a bullet wound received in Salonika. He knows that he was involved moving wounded by mule. He also remembers seeing a now lost photograph of him on a camel by the pyramids but I know that this was very common for soldiers serving and on leave in Egypt. He certainly went to Alexandria, had something to do with the hospital ships and had to attend on quinine parades in Salonika. He also recounts a story in which he had to transport a capture wounded German (he was specific that he was German and not Bulgarian or Ottoman) officer who was being quite provocative and insulting - he had to resist the temptation to shut him up be knocking him out with a tin of bully beef he had at hand.

My late Grandmother mentioned he served in Gallipoli and the Dardanelles, which seems to reflect the MIC stating he first served in “Balkans (2B)”.

My late Uncle thought that his service (late in the war (post return from Ireland?)) may have taken him to the Suez Canal (Great Bitter Lakes) area.

As always, so much has been lost with time.

Cheers

David

[FROGSMILE]

1 hour ago, Bob Davies said:

The officer? seated in the middle is wearing a different type of pith helmet to the other ranks.

The men are all wearing standard War Office issued ‘Wolseley helmets’ Bob, whereas the central officer has purchased himself a proprietary modern solar topee, a type of pith helmet. 

[Bob Davies]

3 hours ago, FROGSMILE said:

The men are all wearing standard War Office issued ‘Wolseley helmets’ Bob, whereas the central officer has purchased himself a proprietary modern solar topee, a type of pith helmet. 

Thank you FROGSMILE.

I find it interesting that the ORs are wearing Slade Wallace belts. I am thinking that the Slade Wallace belts are a smart alternative to webbing belts 1908 pattern, plus they don't need to carry ammunition pouches and all the rest of the infantryman equipment, as they are there for saving men rather than killing the enemy.

4 hours ago, DJJones said:

As always, so much has been lost with time.

Unfortunately,  in so many cases David.

There are many books out there on line you can use for reference, which is what I am doing at the moment. 

One of my Grandfathers served with the AIF at Gallipoli and his brother in Salonika so I am starting to find my way around these theaters of war.

Over the years I have found that a lot of information is already here on the GWF from other peoples posts, just a matter of using the search bar at the top or the Long Long Trail website, link at the top of page in blue.

I would type in 'Substantive Rank' which may give you more information about why William is 'Private' on his MIC yet wears a 'Lance Corporals' stripe on the picture.

Two books for you here. Best of luck,  Regards, Bob.

https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.210687/page/n7/mode/2up

https://archive.org/details/medicalservicesg04macp/page/n5/mode/2up

[FROGSMILE]

7 minutes ago, Bob Davies said:

I find it interesting that the ORs are wearing Slade Wallace belts. I am thinking that the Slade Wallace belts are a smart alternative to webbing belts 1908 pattern, plus they don't need to carry ammunition pouches and all the rest of the infantryman equipment, as they are there for saving men rather than killing the enemy.

Yes that’s right Bob, the RAMC used them throughout the war on the home establishment and I think in India too, but not in operational theatres. 

Edited 9 April by FROGSMILE

[DJJones]

Many thanks for the links and also information on the hats and belts. I’m not sure if there are any experts on military hospitals who could comment on the admittedly limited architecture on display. The reason I wondered about the 27th British General Hospital is because of the resemblance of the colonnade to the photographs in the two links below:

https://nam.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/7260?keywords=

https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/H00803

I’ve not seen brick pillars in other hospitals from Malta, Egypt or Gibraltar. I also think that the description of the 27th General Hospital at West Mudros in the second link may be incorrect. The 27th was at Lemnos in 1915 but I suspect was probably in temporary tented accommodation. 
 

David