James Martin blvd 55426 Royal Berkshire Regiment

[rachelmartin]

Hi there, I am new to the forum. I am trying to track down my husband's grandfather. He was in the Royal Berkshire Regiment 3rd Battalion posted in Dublin in 1919 having served in WW1 prior. He left the army some time after 1919 and remained in Dublin until his death in 1934.

Name: James Martin

I think his service number was #55426  (based on a pension record in Ancestry, but not 100% sure it's him)

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

[kenf48]

@rachelmartin Welcome to the GWF

I have split your query off into a separate thread.

A quick look shows no medal entitlement therefore no overseas service

His service record does not appear to have survived.  55420 Fisher was compulsorily transferred to 3rd Battalion in Dublin on 29 March 1919. At that time Dublin was a 'Home' posting. Pte Fisher had previously served in the 2/1 North Somerset Yeomanry.  His record is very 'burnt'.

Similarly 55427 Ball had previously served in the RFA (Medal Roll)

We always recommend if new to researching soldiers of the Great War you take a look at the Long Long Trail website, link top left.

[kenf48]

Pte. 55418 Berry was also in the 2/1 North Somerset Yeomanry and was posted to the 3rd Royal Berkshire Regiment on the 5th April 1919. 

as was Pte 55417 Thurston

https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/regiments-and-corps/the-british-yeomanry-regiments-of-1914-1918/north-somerset-yeomanry/

Pte 55426  J. Martin (?)

Pte 55439 Neal was posted to the 3rd Battalion  from the Labour Corps (653 ( H.S.Home Service)Employment Company on the 7th June 1919

Pte 55442 was in 542 (HS) Employment Company and volunteers for a further year with the 'Army of Occupation' his transfer date is unclear.

Pte 55457 Coffey has previously served in the Labour Corps and was posted on 7th June 1919.

The reason given for the compulsory transfers was 'exigencies of the service' which is a catch all phrase used by the Army.  It appears a number went on to serve in the 2nd Battalion until discharged. These transfers were post- Armistice therefore no medal entitlement.

The 3rd Battalion was a Reserve Battalion who were stationed in Dublin https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/regiments-and-corps/the-british-infantry-regiments-of-1914-1918/princess-charlotte-of-waless-royal-berkshire-regiment/

Essentially, Pte Martin was posted to the 3rd Battalion of the Royal Berkshire Regiment in Dublin post-Armistice on or around 5th April 1919.  He had previous service elsewhere and if you are referring to the WFA/FOLD 3 Pension Records earlier numbers are usually on the cards.  He does not appear on the Medal Rolls of the Royal Berkshire Regiment which means either he had no foreign service or he was transferred to another regiment before the Rolls were compiled.

As always basic biographical information can help to piece together his military career. How old? Married? Where did he live etc?

[Matlock1418]

10 hours ago, rachelmartin said:

James Martin

I think his service number was #55426  (based on a pension record in Ancestry, but not 100% sure it's him)

Welcome to GWF.

There is a pension index card for a disability [unspecified] claim at WFA/Fold3 [also a pension ledger page - very limited completion and does not add]

PIC shows he was discharged 5.4.20 from the Royal Berkshire Regiment and from 29.4.20 to 5.7.21 was awarded a pension of 8/- pw [under the 1919 Royal Warrant = 20% degree of disability rate for a pension class V soldier / Pte] The PIC also shows him recorded as formerly Labour Corps - no LC number.

The reverse shows an address which looks like: 28 Chambrassal St, Dublin.

The claim was recorded as DEAD 13.3.24 [on/by claim was dead, and not necessarily the man]

M

[Brian J Owen]

Good afternoon all, the only J. Martin I could fine reference the Royal Berkshire Regiment was 43516 Pte J Martin, medal index card below, and nothing pension records for him, this J. Martin was awarded the pair, hope this helps

Kind regards,

Brian

[rachelmartin]

Thank you all for this information, this is really encouraging! I can provide a bit more information if this helps:

We believe he was wounded in WW1 in respect of his eyesight being damaged from gas

He was born in 1891 we believe. He married Lily Baker in Dublin at the Church of Ireland parish church of St. Kevin on 24/07/1919

He died on 30/09/1934 in a workhouse of TB. His occupation at that time was a tailor (my father-in-law remembered threading his needles for him due to his damaged eyesight.)

[Matlock1418]

On 11/04/2024 at 22:24, rachelmartin said:

He was in the Royal Berkshire Regiment 3rd Battalion posted in Dublin in 1919 having served in WW1 prior. He left the army some time after 1919 and remained in Dublin until his death in 1934.

Name: James Martin

Returning to this - Where did this RBR information come from?

What was his date of birth?  How determined 1891?

Where did he hail from originally, before service?

Have you tried 1918 & 1919 Absent Voters' Lists?

1 hour ago, rachelmartin said:

We believe he was wounded in WW1 in respect of his eyesight being damaged from gas

I think we have to exercise caution here and/or expand our enquiry scope.

Eye damage from gas rather suggests overseas service in a theatre of war [which we have not nailed down]

and long-term eye damage from gas would be likely to lead to a disability pension claim [which we have not found either]

On the otherhand simple biologically-poor eyesight could perhaps lead to a possible Labour Corps posting - but if eyes were that poor why then to the RBR ??

If moving away from RBR it's then tricky as both his James forename and Martin surname are quite 'ambiguous' and lead to many pension hits [2000+] - adding Dublin to the search reduces numbers considerably and these can be reduced alphabetically and to disability claims with Dublin addresses and then pair these with O/S service - however so far as I have noted so far none of these indicate a claim for eye damage. Edit: one claim for defective vison - but a yob of 1868

Do you have a specific address(es) for James in Dublin?

???

M

Edited 13 April by Matlock1418
edit

[kenf48]

1 hour ago, rachelmartin said:

His occupation at that time was a tailor (my father-in-law remembered threading his needles for him due to his damaged eyesight.)

An observation I don't dismiss family lore but an occupational health risk for tailors was deteriorating eyesight due to close stitching and inadequate lighting, no doubt conditions had improved by the time he came into the trade but it was still prevalent during the Great War period. Sid Tyrrell  who was also a tailor, writing in his autobiography 'A Countryman's Tale' said that during the voluntary period of enlistment he was turned away twice for poor eyesight.  On the introduction of conscription in 1916 he again attended a medical and was classified as B1 which was fit for garrison duty at home or abroad (he was later posted to Gibraltar in the RGA).

This suggests, in the absence of a South West connection he was one of the Home Service Labour Corps men posted to the Berkshire Regiment post - Armistice. 

 

[rachelmartin]

Quote

9 hours ago, Matlock1418 said:

Returning to this - Where did this RBR information come from?

What was his date of birth?  How determined 1891?

Where did he hail from originally, before service?

Have you tried 1918 & 1919 Absent Voters' Lists?

I think we have to exercise caution here and/or expand our enquiry scope.

Eye damage from gas rather suggests overseas service in a theatre of war [which we have not nailed down]

and long-term eye damage from gas would be likely to lead to a disability pension claim [which we have not found either]

On the otherhand simple biologically-poor eyesight could perhaps lead to a possible Labour Corps posting - but if eyes were that poor why then to the RBR ??

If moving away from RBR it's then tricky as both his James forename and Martin surname are quite 'ambiguous' and lead to many pension hits [2000+] - adding Dublin to the search reduces numbers considerably and these can be reduced alphabetically and to disability claims with Dublin addresses and then pair these with O/S service - however so far as I have noted so far none of these indicate a claim for eye damage. Edit: one claim for defective vison - but a yob of 1868

Do you have a specific address(es) for James in Dublin?

???

M

 

So it is listed on his marriage entry that his occupation was Private, 3rd Batallion, Royal Berkshire Regiment. Below is a screenshot of the marriage registration.

His exact date of birth is not confirmed, we don't have that information. His death entry states he was 43 when he died in 1934. 

We don't know exactly where he was from. This is one of the goals we are trying to achieve in finding this out, but we are fairly sure he was English, not Irish.

I've checked the absent voters lists (thanks for the tip) but this gave nothing that rings any bells. The information they contain is so scant that he may be in there but just anywhere in Berkshire

I do have a specific address for him in Dublin, when he was first married he lived at 7a Windsor Terrace, Portabello, Dublin. He also lived at 30 Lower Mount Street, Dublin and then 25 Grattan Street, Dublin.

[Matlock1418]

On 12/04/2024 at 09:35, Matlock1418 said:

a disability [unspecified] claim at WFA/Fold3 [also a pension ledger page - very limited completion and does not add]

Revisiting this PLP ... the reverse identifies that in 1920 he was still being awarded 8/- pw at 20% disability and on 25/8/20 was awarded a further 3/6 pw for Wife and one Child - does this timing and child match the known genealogy?

M

[rachelmartin]

Hi, yes it does. He had a son, also named James born on 07/10/1919. 

[kenf48]

On 13/04/2024 at 20:16, rachelmartin said:

The information they contain is so scant that he may be in there but just anywhere in Berkshire

His only apparent connection to Berkshire is that he was posted to the 3rd Royal Berkshire Regiment post-Armistice.  As previously stated his poor eyesight probably meant he did not serve in a theatre of war but at some point was posted to a Home Service Employment Company of the Labour Corps and from there sent to Ireland which in the Great War was a 'home Posting' therefore no medals.  

In 1919 the 3rd Berkshire Regiment was in all probability on garrison duty in Dublin and James, along with those of his comrades from the Labour corps, whose records survive volunteered to serve for a further year, thus receiving a bounty which (speculatively) enabled him the means to marry.

I can only find one James Martin born 1890 (1891 +/- 2yrs) whose father was named Robert, an engineer labourer in the Census Records on FMP.

Mother was Mary and in 1901 James was a mill worker in the Jute mills in Dundee.  I don't have access to Scotland's People to see if we can get a better connection. This information is from the 1901 Scotland Census.

It appears your James, or his wife at least, was a Protestant as they were married according to the Church of Ireland, or Anglican rite.

[rachelmartin]

Thank you so much for this information, this gives me something to work with. We do believe his father was called Robert and he was indeed protestant. Judging by the date of his eldest son, James's birth in Dublin, it seems his wife Lily was already expecting when they married. 

I really appreciate all the help!