Northamptonshire Regiment

[Bethan]

My grandfather Albert Hugh Denton @1898 Bedford was a private in this regiment, the only thing I know about his service is that he was gassed and died as a relatively young man as a result of the damage caused by the mustard gas, how can I find out more about his service and where he was injured?          Best Wishes Bethan

[Jebber]

Bethan,

His Service Records are on Ancestry, there are 19 pages, but many are duplicated, unfortunately I do not have time to go through them all as I need to log off now.

He enlisted in the Bedfordshire Regt. not Northamptonshire.


Jebber

[Bethan]

Thank you so much for that information Jebber, so kind of you to look it up for me, I will have to treat myself too an Ancestry subscription for Christmas, could anyone advise me on the best one to get?or could I get it on the library subscription?

Best Wishes Bethan

[cashew]

For your purposes, if you don't want to use it for an extended period, and you also want to be able to access British WW1 military records, the minimum subscription you will need, is...

1 month Premium Subscription.  £ 12.95

http://www.ancestry.co.uk/cs/offers/subscribe?sub=1

Click on the compare tabs to see what that particular subscription gives you access to.

Be VERY VERY warned,...read the subscription and payment terms very carefully, because in regards to your monthly subscription fee, it isn't a one off fee.

If you don't notify them in the prescribed way and in the prescribed time period that you wish to cancel your monthly subscription, your membership will remain in force, and you will be automatically re-billed for the following monthly period, and that will continue each month until you cancel your subscription.

Also be aware that the ancestry search engine is one of the most awkward, difficult to use, and counter intuitive pieces of junk on the internet, and also, the records on ancestry have been transcribed by volunteer transcribers, and their efforts haven't been properly checked for errors, of which there are many, so take nothing on that site at face value, especially the search results transcriptions, and check the original documents yourself.

Some local libraries and public record offices in the UK do offer access to the ancestry site via a facility called the ancestry library edition, ask them, you might need to take a memory stick to download any records, they may also print them out for you.

I don't know if such access will include access to military records, so obviously, just ask them.

They may also possibly offer access to findmypast which is an excellent and very easy to use site and it's serch engine is very good and is also easy to use, findmypast does have some military records but not much from WW1, most of what you want will only be on ancestry.

http://librarywales.org/your-library/

http://www.mytimemachine.co.uk/archives.htm

[Bethan]

Thank you so much for that info Cashew, I think I will try the library option first, my local library used to have Ancestry I will have to check in the morning, thank you again for your help   Best Wishes Bethan

[cashew]

Better take a look at the births and deaths registrations records whilst you're at it Bethan.

"Born 1898 and died as a relatively young man." ?

  Depends what you mean by young.

He was born in Bedford on 6th March 1898 and he died there in the summer of 1975,...aged 79.!

He was tiny 5 ft 6 inches 32 inch chest 7 stone  a tallish schoolboy really far too thin for the infantry really, and these guys sometimes had to carry 50lbs of weight or more, absurd.

Perhaps that's why he wasn't sent to France for two years.

He enlisted in June 1916 aged 18 and 3 months into the Bedfordshire Regiment 30174 was classed as B2 medically, was a clerk in civilian life.

Landed in Calais July 1918, as a bomber = grenade thrower, was almost immediately hospitalized for several days in Etaples with flu.

Was then transferred to the 13th Battalion East Lancashire Regiment 41281, was discharged early 1919.

13th (Service) Battalion, formed in France on 11th June 1918 as 8th Garrison Guard Battalion became 13th (Garrison) Battalion on 13th July 1918.

Awarded British War and Allied Victory campaign medals.

Military wise

[Bethan]

Has to be the wrong man then Cashew, my grandfather died in Wales around 1950, thanks for looking anyway, I am trying to find out when he came to Wales as he was still in Bedford in 1911, cause there is a possibility that he enlisted in Wales and might have joined the Welsh regiment, thank you so much for the help, also I have just discovered via the 1901 census that he was born 1894     Best wishes Bethan

[cashew]

The details for the Albert Hugh Denton who was born in Bedford in 1898 and who died there in 1975 are a perfect match and there aren't any other possible matches.

There has never been a death for Albert Hugh Denton or Albert H. Denton in Wales.

The only death in Wales in the 1950's for a man with the surname of Denton and a first name of Albert was Albert Denton, no additional forenames, who died in the Pontypridd area of Glamorganshire in the first quarter of 1951 aged 57.

Which puts his date of birth at around early 1894.

There are only two possible birth matches for that death.

One is slightly out because he has an additional birth forename.

One is slightly out because his date of birth seems to be slightly too late.

However, if their deaths were registered by someone who didn't know them very well, then an error could have been made.

I suspect that the first person is the correct one.

The two births were...

Albert Henry Denton born in April/May/June 1894 in the Hartley Wintney area of Hampshire.

Albert Denton born in October/November/December 1894 in the Hunslet area of Yorkshire.

[Bethan]

Sorry to confuse you Cashew, my mother who is 86 gave me the details and sadly some of them were wrong, found his wedding certificate today turns out he only had the name Albert, he was the one who died in Glamorgan in 1951 though, but according to the censuses he was born in Bedford/Northampton, my mother does not have a birth certificate for him,although we do know for definite his father was called Hugh, thank you for all your help   Best Wishes Bethan