I have been researching Gunner Henry (Harry) Robertson, 1820024, 9 Coast Regt., Royal Artillery who died aged 32 on 19th July 1943. He was captured in Singapore on 15/2/42 and died as a POW building the Death Railway. I visited his grave in Kanchanaburi last year which was very moving. The only photo I have of him is with two friends: Alan Jenkins and Alf Fields. Do these men mean anything to anyone?
This thread was also running in the War Diary thread. So that it makes more sense to others, this is a copied summary of what has occurred.: Good day, I have been fascinated by this thread (and others!) in my recent search for information on my Great Uncles. I have all the basic information on my Uncle Harry and last year I travelled to Kanchanaburi in Thailand to visit his grave - a very moving visit indeed. He was a PoW who died building the Death Railway. However, I do have a photograph (the only one) of him with two of his friends and I am trying to find out what happened to them. I was told when younger that this photo was taken in Singapore but I cannot find any evidence of his friends being there - only in North Africa and Italy. I therefore need to know if my uncle served in any of these places before going to Singapore. I was going to travel to the Archives at Kew but feel I won't know how to extract the relevant information which now your kind offer seems like a godsend!!!! Would you be able to get the information I need on Uncle Harry? Hi Glaswegian, I have a file showing him as 9 Coast Regiment, sent OVL on 23.03.1943 on Train 9. This date means he was part of "D Force". Wife Mrs L Robertson, c/o Mrs Ferguson, 34 Shieldhall Rd, Glasgow Can you give us the names of his two friends, just in case they show up in the same file? Can you post the photo ? Did they survive and come home, where does the North Africa and Italy info, come from ? Mike Also, can you clarify something? It says on my info he was captured on 15/2/42 and then it says 'Overland' on 23/3/43. What does this mean and what happened to him in that year? His date of death was 19/7/43. He was captured at the surrender of Singapore on 15/2/42, and then remained at Changi Prison, / working within Singapore until 23/3/43. "Overland" or OVL denotes that he then travelled by train to the Burma Railroad, the alternative term is OVS meaning Overseas when they were sent on the Hellships. Alf Fields and Alan Jenkins were not part of 9 Coast Regiment .
Thank you Mike - that was one thing I did not know, that he was in Changi Prison. What would he have done there? Where can I get more info on that prison? I did find an Alf Fields buried in Rangoon Cemetery so I am thinking it may well have been him: FIELDS, Private, ALFRED, 4464530. 1st Bn. West Yorkshire Regiment? ALF FIELDS is listed as a medic with 198 Field Ambulance RAMC. He was also captured at the fall of Singapore and remained in Singapore throughout. First in Roberts Hospital, then to Selarang, and finally Kranji Hospital. NO Alan Jenkins was ever a Far East POW. (as per Cofepow site) The only Alan Jenkins buried in WW11 was in Italy. Maybe he escaped the Japanese advance? I have learned so much just on this thread alone, it has been most enlightening and humbling. Would I take it then that there would be no more information from these diaries then? Also, I just cannot understand the info about Alan Jenkins because of the photo. Sorry for being so slow-witted but do you mean he could have been in Singapore and then he managed to escape? Sorry, so many questions in my head - did you find that information online? And was the Alf Fields I mentioned, buried in Rangoon, the same one you have given details for? I did find the A Jenkins killed in Italy but I guess I just desperately want to find that at least one of them survived
Glaswegian (Linda), No, we are talking about 2 different Alf Fields. One survived in Singapore, and completed a POW Questionaire post war, the other died in Rangoon. Its now a case of trying to identify which one you are seeking information about. The survivor has listed a home address of Macclesfield, and was born in 1919. The Rangoon death, shows a parents address of Houghton-le-Spring, Co. Durham, and he was born in 1912. Does this help to identify which one you are after ?
Sorry I have been posting in the wrong section but again, thank you for all your wisdom and help. From looking at the photograph I would say the age of him (he is the one on the right) makes him more probably the one born in 1912, sadly.
