Military Chat

After reading the Military research tips, I am able to apply for 1 out of 3 families service records, who served in WW1 & WW2. As my wifes grand mother, decided to burn her old photos, as she thought nobody would want them! We may struggle to discover my wifes grandfathers service number, what item of paperwork would it be on? I have my aunt primed in Torquay to get her husband to search in the loft. Can anyone advise.

We have found a postage stamp photo of one of my wifes great grandparents in Army uniform/coat with peaked cap with baton in hand. Can you post photos on Genes Reunited forums or suggest/recommend a forum that could comment by viewing this image. With zoom nothing is clear an expert.may give some insyte.

Was your grandfather in WW1 or WW2? If in WW1 the record might be on Ancestry or on the National Archives site and you won't need his service number to find it.

If WW2, then you will need to apply for it. His service number might be on his marriage cert, if he married whilst in the Army or on a child's birth cert if any were born during that time. If any letters he wrote still survive, possibly on those as a return address.

You could try googling Forces forums to see if any would be able to help with the photo.

Service numbers may be on the birth certificates of any children he may have had whilst in the services. However you have to remember that about 70% of WW1 records were destroyed in a fire so are not available.

You can upload photos to your "Keepsafe" on Genes and then give open access to everyone - but you will need someone better than me to give you instructions as to how to do this.

Kath. x

Thank you for the advice to date. My wifes grandfather was married late 1920s, 1st children 1930s, the last our Auntie with us born Aug 16 1946, so a possible source? The WW1 links we have one with full details as we have his Miltary resting place in Belgium with all details for the form. The photo is of a Frederick (great grandfather) could be his brothers Enoch or a Frank Field from West Bromwich so impossible mission? But I will try Ancestry and the National Archives site after we research and do the paper work for 1st two.

Andrew, of you post the details of the WW1 man, I am sure somebody will look on Ancestry for you, if you don't have access. The records there are the same as the ones at the National Archives.

There is a Pension record for an Enoch Field, of Oldbury, Worcestershire who has a son James William born 4/7/1912. Could this be your Enoch? He was in the RAOC.

If someone can assist searching Ancestry/National Archieves. From his death certificate Frederick John Field b 22/6/1891 d 28/10/1950 may have served in WW1. Thank you Potty, good chance the Enoch you have found is a match if he lived with the family group at 15 Wesley St, Oldbury, West Bromwich , he was 24 b1887 but not married in 1911 census. I have photos in 1920/30 of their mum/dad (William & Harriet) and children, but we only know Frederick. If his age matchs up please can you forward me what you have found.

The Enoch I found has YOB 1888, occupation Sawyer; only address on the record is 48 Dudley Rd, Oldbury for his mother as next of kin and also for his wife, but unfortunately their names are given. This looks like the birth of his son, so you should be able to find the marriage from that:

Births Sep 1912 (>99%)
Field James W Floyd W.Bromwich 6b 1564

There are quite a few pages to the record but if you can PM me your email address I will send them to you.

I said above that they can also be seen on the National Archives site but have discovered that they can't - sorry!

Not finding anything for Frederick except for medal cards and there are a lot of those - would be difficult to tell if one of them is for your Frederick without knowing his regiment.

4 generations of Sawyers in the family line, and only one Enoch Field b 1887 using +/- 1 year search so looking even more likely its a match. I will send you my e-mail

I have up loaded the photo of Enoch, Fred or Frank Field to my Keepsafe and set as my Avatar. With the help of Potty we have Enoch's de mob record from WW1, serving 3 years with Royals Buks Reg then 1 plus with Royal Army Ordnance Corps. Anybody know how I could share my Keepsafe image and anything that stands out, I will be trying military forum next.

Hi Andy

Don't use keepsafe myself so can't help with that. Perhaps you could add "keepsafe help" to your title and then somebody else might see it and be able to help.

4 months but time well spent. I have found a match on ancestry in another tree with some of my wife's ancestors family photos. and with the help of Forces War Records. My profile photo is William Field died 21st of May 1917. Rank Sergeant, Battalion Corps of Hussars. 3rd (Kings Own) Hussars. :-)

Andy, did you know that you can download War Diaries for some regiments from the National Archives? If the regiments your relatives were in are there, the diaries will tell you more about what they were doing.