460 Agriculture Corps

[Guest Hill 60]

Does anyone know anything about 460 Agriculture Corps of the Labour Corps, please?

I have just received the service details of one Trooper McKerrow, who served in the Ayrshire Yeomanry and the Household Battalion, from the Household Cavalry Museum (wrote to them on the 20/06 and got a reply on the 25/06 ).

After getting a gsw in the left shoulder he was transferred to the Labour Corps and posted to the 460 AC. He was a ploughman before the war, so I suppose that is why he ended up in an agricultural role.

Many thanks, in advance, for any help.

[Guest Ian Bowbrick]

Lee,

Ivor will probably have details about the Coy. However it does not necessarily follow that his pre-war job led to him being in an Agric Coy.

These Agric Coys were inhabited by men of the lowest medical grade that allowed you to do military service. It could be that your man's injuries were a bit more serious that would appear.

Ian

[Paul Reed]

My Great Uncle ended up in one of these in 1918, after his fourth wound (gas at Bourlon Wood); he had been a farm-hand before he joined the regular army in 1912, and he spent the last few months of the war on a potato farm behind the lines... before he joined up for anothe period of regular engagement with the Essex Regiment once the war was over!

[Ivor Lee]

Lee

The only information on 460 Agricultural Company is that its HQ was at Ayr.

These Companies did not keep War Diaries and, if there were any records kept they have been destroyed or lost!

In general the men in the Company worked on farms in the area.

The HQ was purely an administrative location. Men lived and worked on farms (or in many cases lived at home) and rarely, if ever, were at Company HQ.

As Ian said, men in these Companies were usually of the lowest medical category although I have come across men of a slightly higher category with specialist agricultural skills (like ploughmen) who were sent to agricultural companies (possibly because of their skills).

[Myrtle]

Ploughing !

Now this is one of my interests

It seems that a special Agricultural Officer was appointed to deal with this issue. I have read accounts of how important the ploughmen were to the farms of that time as it was a skilled job. I have read an account of a soldier telling his parents to wire the Commanding Officer at the Agricultrural Department at his Regiments barracks "as soon as the post office is open on Monday morning," stating his number and name and asking them to spare him to come home as they needed him to replace the ploughman who had been called up.

"There was about 80 chaps gone from here today and they all have wired or have letters from their masters and they have gone back to trheir own places. "

This soldier was transferred before his application could be considered.

The dilemma of food versus fight appears to have been a difficult one to overcome therefore an injured skilled ploughman would have stood a very good chance of being sent to the Agricultural Company. I bet he was pleased he'd become a ploughman.

[Guest Hill 60]

The only information on 460 Agricultural Company is that its HQ was at Ayr.

To all who helped, especially Ivor, thank you very much for your help.

For the 460 to have it's HQ at Ayr is quite revealing as that is where 'my man' joined the Army.

The following info was sent to me by the Household Cavalry Museum:

Trade: Ploughman

Age: 20

1952 Trooper W. McKerrow, 1st Bn Household Battalion.

8th July 1916 joined Ayrshire Yeomanry at Ayr.

11th November 1916 transferred to Household Battalion.

13th December 1916 to 6th November 1917 served in F&F.

12th October 1917, Wounded: gun shot wound to left shoulder.

7th November 1917-20th March 1918 recovering from wound.

20th March 1918 transferred to Labour Corps, posted to 460 Agriculture Corps.

No record of man after the 20th March 1918.

It seems he 'went home' after his injury, which I believe he picked up whilst attacking pillboxes and MG posts east of Poelcappelle at Requette Farm. According to a short history written by Squadron Corporal Major C. W. Frearson Esq (1978) the HB were attacking this area and suffered heavy casualties.

A little coincidence here: I bought these medals some years before I met my girlfriend, who is from Kilmarnock in Ayrshire. Her step-father's surname was Carrick, the full title of the Ayrshire Yeomanry is 'Earl of Carrick's Own Ayrshire Yeomanry'. spooky, as until yesterday I wasn't aware of the Ayr connection!