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General => Armed Forces => Topic started by: wilcoxon on Thursday 27 December 18 13:57 GMT (UK)
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Can anyone help me with any of this mans pension or service details. I have his birth, all census records except 1861 and his death. His was a civil marriage so not much on his wife Ann Griffiths, but from both their obits it seems she also went to the Crimea. I can`t find any list of soldiers wives. Thanks
Ephraim Blythe Birth Place: Hoole, Chester
Pension Admission or Examination Date:
3 Jul 1866
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The Worldwide army lists complied from the 1861 census has a 1800 Corporal Ephraim Blythe of the Coast Brigade Royal Artillery listed in the National Archives document WO 10/2820, bare transcription on FindMyPast. Unfortunately, the document covers all these (and maybe more) coast artillery units:
Devonport: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 4 Folkestone: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 2 Ireland: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 7,8 Leith Fort: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 5 London, Tower of: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 6 Manchester: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 1 Portsmouth: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 3 Purfleet: Brigade: Coast, Battery: 7 and we can't tell which one he was in. The original 1861 census for those places may find him and wife (if married). There is only one Ephraim Blythe marriage on FreeBMD between 1851 and 1871, Liverpool Q3 1852 to Sarah Graham or Ann Griffiths.
Discharge papers (3 July 1866) for that man are on FindMyPast.
A 2734 Gunner or Driver (they are all listed together under one heading!) Ephrain Blythe appears in the Crimea medal roll in 7 (Captain Field's) Company 5 Battalion Royal Artillery - found on FindMyPast. Sadly, in those days, wives were paid no official attention by the army so no lists would be found (there aren't any today either). The regimental number is different though from the coast gunner. However, the discharge papers would suggest he was the same man as he was serving with the Coast Artillery when discharged and had been in the Crimea. He had previously served in the 81st Foot but I haven't looked closely at that yet.
(Ancestry has the discharge papers too but inone instance has mis-transcribed the service number as 1850.
MaxD
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Thank you.
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Nothing found for him in the 81st Regiment of Foot.
MaxD
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Did a soldiers pension cease when he died, even though he left a widow and no children to help support her.
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Answer is yes. Pensions for soldiers' widows were not introduced until 1901 although officers' widows received pensions well before that time. She would have to have relied on family if any, whatever work she could do and the parish poor law.
MaxD
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1861 they are in the barracks at Gorleston , Suffolk. Coast Guard.
Thanks again.
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You could request a copy of his service record: http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C12675179 (http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C12675179) the National Archives will provide a quote first.
Martin
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Thanks every one for you help.
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Slightly wounded in the assault on the quarries, 6 June 1855. Listed in the Gazette as 2134 Bombardier Ephraim Bligh, Royal Artillery.
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/21734/page/2443