London Scottish & Tyneside Scottish

[Graham Stewart]

Nick,

There were no pipes remaining as such, only remnants and as to what happend to the inscribed piece, I couldn't say and as far as I'm aware it isn't in the museum.

When I was researching for the book "Tyneside Scottish" in the early 90's, I visited the family of 23/546 CQMS Robert Muter and among his bits and pieces was a silver inscribed ring from one the chanters of a set of pipes, but it wasn't the Grieves one. It's that long ago now I can't even remember who the sponsor was on this ring and all of my old notes are buried in the attic.

There isn't a lot of Tyneside Scottish artifacts in the museum, because in 1938 the old T.S. Committee put everything into about ten packing cases and sent it off to London for the new War Museum.

The story that followed was that they had all been destroyed in the blitz, but it later transpired that it hadn't. Infact it was never unpacked and Rose Coombes admitted to an investigating journalist some years later that these packing cases had been lost.

So out there somewhere, probably in some disused tube station, or an underground chamber in Whitehall, or some other facility that was used for storing Englands treasures in the last war are ten packing cases full of T.S. items.

Graham.

[Nick Thornicroft]

Graham

Thanks for that. Shame about the artefacts, but at least we can keep the memory alive in other ways.

Nick

[the gunners dream]

Graham,

What a fascinating story! I just hope they weren't chucked out. I have heard horror stories about some of the London museums, especially Hendon.

Interesting piece about Rose Coombes, did you ever meet the great lady?

Steve

[Graham Stewart]

Nick & Steve,

Never ever met Rose Coombes as I was still only a kid when all of this interest in the Great War began. Still I live in hope that one day the T.S. items might be found, as I believe it included the complete Nominal Rolls of all the Battalions on their formation.

What John and I did find on our travels was T.S. Committee Book One, Part II Orders Books for the 1st Battalion and 34th Div Memorial Book and in my own possession 12 Section,XI Platoon,'C' Coy Roll Book. The original owner actually had listed all the other Sections in the Platoon, which was a bonus. It was found in a book shop of all places.

Graham.

[Hedley Malloch]

There are the remants of some of the pipes used on 1 July 1916 by the Tyneside Scottish (or it could be Irish) on display at Bamburgh Castle. They were presented to Lord Armstrong (of Vickers-Armstrong fame) of Cragside, the Castle's owner, at some function after the War.

Or there were when I last looked about 20 years ago.