Died in the battle of the Somme

[CJ]

I have just been informed today that a past rellie is thought to have died in the battle of the Somme.  I have very little information regarding him other than his name (William Thompson) and his wife's name (Annie Elizabeth Thompson nee Steele).  Is there any way that I can confirm if he died in WWI?  Would I be able to find out which unit he was in?

Any help or advice gratefully appreciated!

CJ

[Candma]

CJ
Search on the Commonwealth War Graves site.
http://www.cwgc.org/search/SearchResults.aspx?surname=thompson&initials=w&war=1&yearfrom=1917&yearto=1917&force=Army&nationality=6&send.x=34&send.y=16
There are 92 listed for 1917, some with additional initials.  The battle commenced on 1st July 1917.  Hope this helps.
Candma

[harribobs]

The battle of the Somme commenced 1st July 1916

to give you an example of how bad the casualties were, eleven william thompson's died on that one day

the battle stretched out for another four months

[CJ]

That is awful!

Would there be a record of his death to be able to get a death certificate or would it be different as he had died abroard?  Sorry if this sounds a bit dumb but I am very new to this, and have never looked into military history.

CJ

[harribobs]

yes you can get a death certificate, but i thought you weren't sure he died in the war?

there are two main databases for casualties, the commonwealth war graves commission site ( the link is posted above) and a book (which is now a CD) called Soldiers died in the great war. you may be able to find the family link through the CWGC as their records sometimes include NOK

the problem will be finding which william was your william, without a unit, it's a real needle in a haystack. i was just looking at some figures and the number of British (and i include commonwealth) killed in the battle was over 95,000 (nearly 20,000 on the first day)

[sillgen]

If you look on the Commonwealth graves site they almost always give the next of kin on the full details of the entry so look for one with a wife of the right name and you have found him.
Andrea

[old rowley]

hi CJ

having looked on the CWGC site there are at least 12 pages of Thompson's with the first name starting with W (William, Walter, Wilfred, etc) and quite a few with just the initial W. Unless you have a town, parents name, or even a regiment then it is going to be hard going to find him on this site. I have looked for a William Thompson being married to a Annie Elizabeth but can not find either.

old rowley

[Candma]

CJ
Sorry I gave the wrong date 1917 instead of 1916.  (Late night dementia!!!)
Since you were told he died in at the Somme, does whoever informed you know where he lived, if so have you tried the local war memorial.  Many have rank, regiment and date.

[CJ]

His wife lived in Shipley, West Yorkshire with his 4 children.  She was from the Prescot area of Liverpool.  They married in Blackpool in 1899 when she was 18.  It is thought that they had eloped.  My Grandma (who has passed) was their only daughter, she was born in 1911 and knew very little of her father.  Other than being told that he died in the Battle of the Somme.  It is thought that he was either part or fully Scottish and may have been a travelling salesman.  I am going to send for their marriage certificate and hopefully may get some more information with regard to him from that.  However, if they had eloped it may not give me much!  They had a son in 1899 also born in Blackpool, so they stayed there for a while after marrying.  However, she is on the 1901 census with their son living with her parents, under her married name.  I do not have a clue where he was.

Any suggestions gratefully accepted!

CJ