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General => Armed Forces => Topic started by: liscoole on Saturday 26 June 10 15:49 BST (UK)
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Hi
I am researching my husbands family tree and we have traced back to his great great grandfather James Wilkinson who served in the 2nd Battalion of the Dorset Regiment.
We found him on the 1901 census of Ireland living in the Military barracks at Charles Fort, Kinsale, Co Cork. The details on the return suggest that he was born in 1870/71 in England and was a collier before joining up.
We also know that the 2nd Battalion Dorset Regiment was stationed in Belfast around 1893-1895, which is when and where he met his wife and they married in Belfast in 1895. They had one son James Henry b 1895 and one daughter Adeline, who was born in Malta in 1897/8. This all ties in very neatly with the movements of the 2nd Battalion of the Dorset Regiment.
However, by 1911 James had died. I am trying to find out where he came from and when and where he died.
I managed to find his marriage record which states his residence as Victoria Barracks, no age given- parents James and Ann Wilkinson. It doesnt mention that he came from England.
I wonder if anyone could help me find out more about him and his regiment? Could anyone join the Dorset Regiment or only people from that area? I would be very grateful for any help.
Many thanks
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If your man died whilst he was still a serving soldier then I'm afraid that his service papers will have been destroyed. If, on the other hand, he had left the army before he died then his papers might still survive and will be held at the National Archives at Kew. This is the link to find out more:
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/rdleaflet.asp?sLeafletURL=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/leaflets/ri2005.htm&lBack=-1
Just because he was in the Dorset Regiment does not mean that he was from Dorset; regiments recruited from all over the UK in the Victorian period.
jds1949
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Thank you so much for your reply, I will check out the national archives.
Thanks again
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Hi
I did a search of the 1881 census and came up with the following hit:
Wolstanton - Knutton
James Wilkinson, 50, Ironstone Miner - Staffordshire, Kidsgrove
Ann Wilkinson, 48 - Cheshire, Scholars Green (?)
James Wilkinson, 14, Coal Miner - Staffordshire, Silverdale
There were other members of the same family on the census.
On the Malta Family History site there is the following baptism entry:
WILKINSON, Adelaide J.A. 1897 39th/54th Regiment
The 39/54th Regt were the Dorset Regiment.
Martin
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Thank you so much Martin!
That could well be him! And you are spot on with the birth info for Adeline (though they have recorded her name wrongly).
Thank you once again for this information, I will see where I can go from here.
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Hi liscoole
I too have a relation who served in the 2nd Battalion Dorset Regiment; from 1883 to 1902. I had assumed that he would have still been in South Africa at the time of the 1901 census but maybe he was in Kinsale.
I had a look at the Irish 1901 Census but I can't find the fort on the list of roads etc. Can you tell me how you 'drilled down' to the military barracks?
I know Kinsale and the fort well so it is even more frustrating having spent many great holidays there.
David
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Can you post the link to the 1901 Irish census for james snr? I have found his wife and two children. It says husband is on Form H but I cannot find it. I have found it - http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/reels/nai000539351/
I have the 1st Battalion of the Dorsetshire Regiment in India, and the 2nd Bn in South Africa.
Ken
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Ken
I'm probably being a little dense tonight but can you tell me how you found the correct page; I need to look up a different name and as they don't seem to be alphabetical I can't just go backward and forward.
I wonder if just some of the battalion returned to Ireland from South Africa?
Thanks
David
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Hi David
Sorry I cannot find it again. If you search for James Wilkinson (aged 3) you get to the general area. The chances of him being in Ireland are very slim. The battalions were overseas for the 1901 census. The Depot was in Dorcester. According to the 1902 Army List they only had a detail in Buttevant which is also in Co Cork. So it likely to be the same one that was in Kinsale a year earlier.
So your man is much more likely to be in India, SA or Dorcester in 1901. If you wait a few days/weeks FindMyPast will be publishing 1900-1913 papers. If you cannot find him you will have to see if he was in the battalion in South Africa by researching the medal rolls in Kew. If not he was probably in India.
Ken
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Hi Ken
Thanks for info. It was only by chance I came across this forum and topic; up till then I had assumed 'my man' was in South Africa in 1901 (he definately served in the Boer War). It's not a major issue as he is a rather distant relative and I was compiling the story of his family name in the UK for some of his Californian relatives.
Regards
David