Hi all, (blast, I hit the wrong button and this thread got created before I finished typing) Since Fold3 was available for free this weekend I decided to put my great-grandfather's name and see what came up. I know that a lot of records was lost during WW2 so maybe this is all I'll ever find? Some specific questions: - my father pointed out that his grandfather lived until 1967, but the pension card says "DEAD" and the date next to it appears to be 1927. Were there any limited-term pensions given? - the pension form has a "regimental no" field. I'm guessing this is just the service number of the soldier? - rather inexplicable - the metadata of the website shows Bedfordshire Yeomanry for the pension card. No idea what to make of this, any ideas? This does not match what my father remembers nor does it square with Reginald having been in the Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) Unless of course there was another Reginald Camfield in the cavalry who died in 1927. But the pension card does say RGA on it.
Chris……all of this info is also available on Ancestry (which makes sense, as Fold3 is owned by Ancestry)…….and I’m not quite sure of your question. The info is definitely for Reginald Camfield, Royal Garrison Artillery. Another record on Ancestry confirms the same man, and he is with the Royal Garrison Artillery (Hampshire RGA TF) And YES, a “regimental number” is the same as a “service number” And Fold3 only showed you the “partial” records…….here are the “surviving” parts of this records
Thanks Temujin! Why on earth Fold3 didn't have all that, I don't know, but that is massively helpful.
UK, British Army World War I Medal Rolls Index Cards, 1914-1920 Name: Reginald Camfield Regiment or Corps: Royal Garrison Artillery Regimental Number: 353618 You dont need Fold3 access to see those files TD UK, British Army World War I Service Records, 1914-1920 Name: Reginald Camfield Gender: Male Military Date: 1915 Relationship to Soldier: Self (Head) Regimental Number: 353618 Number of Images: 11 (as included above in post #2) Form Title: Attestation There are in the region of 10 family trees that include on Ancestry Birth 10 May 1884 Southampton, Hampshire, England Residence 1939 Hampshire, England Death 1967 Hampshire, England Father Frederick Camfield (1857-1927) Mother Alice Martin (1860-1920) Spouse Edith M Penny (1884-1968)
And, here are the Regimental Numbers assigned to RGA……you can see the Number Block that Reginald was assigned to, which was the Hampshire (Southampton) Fortress RGA
It’s so that “both” site’s can offer you different information that isn’t necessarily repeated (although Fold3 is owned by Ancestry……they want you to have subscriptions to BOTH….so they make money of course) Fold3 holds a LOT of documentation, especially US, like all of Operation Neptune info, and individual US ship logs etc etc etc……so if your looking for photos, or naval logs etc, FOLD3 is a great resource…….for individual soldiers research, not so much…..unless their US
England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007 Name: Reginald Camfield Death Age: 83 Birth Date: abt 1884 Registration Date: Jul 1967 [Aug 1967] [Sep 1967] Registration Quarter: Jul-Aug-Sep Registration District: New Forest Inferred County: Hampshire Volume: 6b Page: 367 If you need more just ask TD
I was pretty sure he was from Southampton and was in cabinetry, so that all tracks. But I'm baffled by why "Tank Corps" is mentioned on one of these pages:
If he actually transferred to the RTC would they have any separate record of him (which might confirm it)?
Don’t know Chris, issue is most of these forms are badly damaged, so. You can’t read all the info….so individual words or phrase have no context???
PS does anyone have access to FindMyPast? I was wondering if Reginald Camfield shows in the RTC enlistment records. Royal Tank Corps enlistment records, 1919-1934 | findmypast.co.uk
The Royal Tank Corps is only mentioned in his records as in August 1918 he is posted to the Joint Royal Artillery & Tank Corps Command Depot at Catterick, and I see this is where he was demobbed from in January 1919 as a Gunner R.G.A. This depot was actually at Hipswell & in January 1918 when it was designated a command depot 4300 places were reserved for Royal Artillery personnel, 1000 for Army Service Corps and 500 for the Tank Corps. More information about the function of such units is here: RA & Tank Corps Command Depot
If you have any queries in respect of the pension cards it might be better if you posted on Great War Forum as there is a great deal of expertise there especially as one member was part of the Western Front Association team that was responsible for preserving them for posterity. The “Dead” stamp query has been asked and answered there several times previously. Steve
for info re destroyed records Records destroyed When war broke out in August 1914, the British army numbered just over 730,000 men. Unlike the other major European states, where conscription allowed huge numbers of men to be rapidly brought under arms, Britain relied on a small, professional defence force. But the scale of the conflict between the Allies and the Central Powers demanded massive increases in Britain's military manpower resources. By the end of the war in 1918, more than seven million men and women had seen service in the British army. Unfortunately, more than half of their service records were destroyed in September 1940, when a German bombing raid struck the War Office repository in Arnside Street, London. However, an estimated 2.8 million service records survived the bombing or were reconstructed from the records of the Ministry of Pensions. This means that there is a roughly 40% chance of finding the service record of a soldier who was discharged at some time between 1914 and 1920. The 'Burnt Documents' The service records that survived the Arnside Street fire in September 1940 - the so-called 'Burnt Documents' - are located in the series WO 363. Due to fire and water damage, they are too delicate to be handled and are consequently only available to the public on microfilm. Microfilming the 'Burnt Documents' has been a huge project, for which The National Archives has received valuable financial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The microfilm catalogues, which are mostly arranged alphabetically by surname, cover soldiers who completed their service between 1914 and 1920. They might have been killed in action, discharged on medical grounds without a pension, or demobilised at the end of the war. The 'Unburnt Documents' and other material The service records in the series WO 364 - the 'Unburnt Documents' - were recovered by the War Office from the Ministry of Pensions and other government departments after the Second World War. They mainly concern men who were discharged (with pensions) from the army because of sickness or wounds received in battle between 1914 and 1920. Aside from the usual military forms, most of the individual files in WO 364 thus also contain detailed medical records. See Thomas Aageson. The individual service records at The National Archives vary in size from a single sheet to dozens of pages. Common items to be found in them include: attestation papers (giving basic information about name, address, date of birth and next of kin); medical records; discharge papers; and Army Form B 103 (Casualty Form - Active Service), which provides information about an individual's military career. WO 363 does not contain service records of soldiers from the Dominions or the empire. However, some records for soldiers of the British West Indies Regiment and the West India Regiment may be found in WO 364 (for soldiers discharged to pension). Aside from the main sources in WO 363 and WO 364, The National Archives also holds other material that may provide information about ancestors who fought in the British army during the First World War. The Ministry of Pensions files in PIN 26, similar in content to those preserved in WO 364, contain a small number of further pension records for those discharged on medical grounds during the war. Although they rarely mention ordinary soldiers by name, official war diaries (WO 95 and WO 154) contain daily records for the units in which they served. Further basic information can also be found in the lists of campaign and gallantry medals - see Medals awarded during the First World War. The National Archives | Exhibitions & Learning online | First World War | Service records
1939 England and Wales Register Name: Reginald Camfield Gender: Male Marital Status: Married Birth Date: 10 May 1884 Residence Year: 1939 Address: Meaks End Residence Place: Southampton, Hampshire, England Occupation: Master Furniture Deale & Mak?? Line Number: 19 Schedule Number: 320 Sub Schedule Number: 1 Enumeration District: ECCW Borough: Southampton Registration district: 99-1 Inferred Spouse: Edith M Camfield Household Members Age Reginald Camfield 55 Edith M Camfield 55 Diana M Camfield 20 See also post 4 TD
