Hi Jos
Have you tried the Border Regiment/Cumbria Military Museum in the Castle in Carlisle? They hold a vast amount of material, including a lot for the Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry.. Also, do you have any Army numbers for any of the Beltons as it make searching that much easier and less time consuming.
I will be there tomorrow as a volunteer so I will take up Belton's case. If you want to contact them direct, the number is 01228 532774.
I have just been told that someone else is researching a Belton. Will PM you with the name.
Hello 'Clearly' & Geoff,
Thanks for the information.
In connection with your questions, 'Clearly':
1. Yes, I have contacted the Regimental Museum. I am also a member of the 'Friends' of the Regimental Museum and contribute to the regimental archives.
2. I do not know the regiment or service number of the two elder Belton brothers. At that time I seem to remember each regiment had its own numbering sequence. There could be soldiers in different regiments with exactly the same service number.
3. The 7-digit unique service number, which remained with the soldier even if he moved between regiments, came in much later - after WW1
[Hopefully, if I can obtain sufficient biographical information about Patrick and John (Jnr) I can discover if they really were in the Boer War and were killed].
Neither Patrick nor John Belton are listed on the Border Regiment Boer War memorial in the Regimental Chapel at Carlisle Cathedral (photograph attached). However, some of the other Cleator Moor fellows who died in that war were already in South Africa working in the mining industry when the war broke out. This could have been the case with John and Patrick Belton, who both seemed to have worked as miners while in West Cumberland.