Maybe the 42 people who read it had no idea? In my experience people reply to help IF they can, sometimes I read a post and answer, other times I have nothing useful to add so I move along.
I do have very limited experience of these records (but my experience is limited to two records, one of which was for someone else's tree so I no longer have the info) but I have been busy so this is the first time I have had a chance to browse new messages and I rarely have anything informative to say on this board anyway.
So, hopefully the following will help a little
I have a Japanese POW record via FindMyPast. My fella's name was reasonably uncommon so it was easy to find.
I have the following:
1 a listing entry (transcription, not an image) dated 1942 NA ref Wo 392/25
That gives me his name the year (in which he was taken prisoner), service no and rank.
2 a listing entry (transcription, not an image) dated 1944 NA ref WO 361/734 Casualties at sea
Gives name service no and rank and name of the ship on which the pows were being moved to another camp - which was then handily torpedoed and sunk by the British (you couldn't make it up!)
Jpanese kept hold of my man and he still ended up in the next camp.
3 A listing entry (transcript) of Japanese Index cards of Allied POWS and Internees dated 1942 ref WO 345/37
That gives name , birth year, nationality, residence (home town) rank, POW Camp Name
4 Images of the index card (?front and reverse)
1st side Headings in both Japanese and English
Camp - Japanese only
No. - Japanese only (from memory, but I have had it a good while) the characters are the Camp No ref
Name - POWs name typed in English
Nationality - Japanese characters and handwritten in English
Rank - Japanese characters and handwritten in English
Place of capture -Japanese characters and handwritten in English
Father's name - Typed in English
Place of origin - Full home address, typed in English
Destination of Report - Father's name and full address, typed in English
Date of Birth - stated and typed in English
Unit - Service no., Battalion, Regiment and division, typed in English
Date of capture Japanese characters and figures relating to Japanese way of counting years/dates plus typed in English day/ month in words/ year, date form
Mother's name - typed in English
Occupation Japanese characters and typed in English
Remarks - none on this man's record
Side 2
Heading in both Japanese and English
Other Informations
All in Japanese characters - I did manage to get a partial transcription from a Japanese - English translation service and I was told it was a list of transfers to various different camps
with a final note dated Sept 1945 that they couldn't decipher apart from the name of a Major in the US Army
NB this is what I got for the man I was looking for. I have no idea if its typical of these records or what, if anything, you will find for the person you are looking for.
Boo
