John Mill & A E Swait (?) & Thomas Grove

[Gwil]

His full name was Thomas Edmund Grove, born in Wandsworth, London in 1876.  Died in Whitstable in 1922.  I've never seen or heard anything about him being awarded any medals - and as my father & grandfather were both only children I don't think they could be elsewhere in the family - particularly as 1914-18 is an area of special interest to my father & seems to be the only bit of the family history he knows anything about!

Family information is that he was "conscripted into the Labour Corps", but as you say he may have been somewhere else first.  He was very unlucky to be caught, as he was right at the upper age limit when they got him.

He died of TB  - on his death certificate it gives the date on which this was originally certified, and it was (I believe) right at the end of 1917.  I don't have that information to hand at present.  Family information says that he was in hospital with "pneumonia", & discharged himself against doctors advice, as his wife & son were in danger of being evicted & he wanted to go & sort that out.  This was apparently why he got no war pension.  My assumption was that this was when the diagnosis was made & that he was actually invalided out.  It's certainly possible that he wasn't actually discharged until after the end of hostilities.

We have two embroidered postcards that he sent his son (my grandfather) - one of these seems to have the RAF "Wings" on it, which is where that information came from.

Now I have a name for Mr Swait I'll be able to do some digging around various other sites, so thank you for that.  If I can get the photo into a suitable format I'll try & post it as well.

All this is much appreciated.

Lady N

He is on Find My Past RAF records. 275741 on 23 7 1918. Born 14 11 1874. Died 22 5 1922at Whitstable TB Lungs. Wife = Alice Grove, The bungalow, Herne Bay Road, Whitstable

[MaxD]

Would you go with Thomas Edmund Grove born 1874 born Wandsworth wife Alice (married 1909) died May 1922 Whitstable?

If so there is an RAF record for him joined July 1918, served till Jan 19, no record of army service (but no unusual.

MaxD

Snap Gwil  =posted simultaneously

[MaxD]

The service dates overlap that of AE Swait RAF who died Oct 18 and is buried in Hendon Cemetery.

MaxD

[MaxD]

Got John Mill of Dundee in the RAF also joined 11 July 1918.  Swait also joined Jul 1918.  Looks like you have a pic of them in training or in some earlier army life - the photo eagerly awaited, cap badge would do at a pinch!

MaxD

[MaxD]

The story about Salisbury Plain is true!  After very short training at what was then called the Reserve Depot, he went to No1 School of Navigation and Bomb Dropping (SNBD)at Stonehenge, which, by coincidence, is less than 2 miles from where I sit.

Swait also went to the same training school but Mill went to No2 SNBD so the photo, if in the RAF, was in early Jul 1918.

MaxD

[ladynicotine]

This is amazing! Thank you so much to everyone here. The RAF record on FindMyPast is definitely the right guy. I'll try and get the photo up this afternoon - modified to include photo.  The gentlemen are, left to right, John Mill, Thomas Grove & Arthur Swait.

[MaxD]

The cap badge is that of the RAF so this is, almost without doubt, a July 1918 photo while in training.
 Pity we can't find his record but he may well have served in UK in the Labour Corps if the family story is right and hence no medal card.  He was at the upper end of age for conscription.

MaxD

[ladynicotine]

With many thanks to everyone for their help.  Having passed the information on to my father, he would also like to express his thanks.

Lady N.