Kew research

[Tuscany]

May I make an appeal for help from all you boys who are military buffs?

Later on in the year I am going to Kew and would like to find information on three family members, two who were in WW1 and one in the Boer War.  I know nothing about the one in the Boer War apart from birth and death but with the WW1 pair I have quite a lot of info.

I know their Regiments, Ranks, Service Nos and have their medal cards.  What I would like to know is what else I can search for, to fill in as much information about them as possible, without wasting a lot of time. e.g. can I get their medical records and service records if they weren't amongst those that were lost.

Any guidance on how and what to search for would be very much appreciated.
The main two are my grandfather and his half brother.

Tuscany

[bernard_lewis]

Assuming their service records survived you can find them. There are leaflets telling you how to do this and staff will help but - BROADLY - you look your man's surname up in an a-z index and this refers you to roll of microfilm(s). You load these up in viewers and plod through until (hopefully) you find the one you want.

Worth checking the Battalion war diary too - they are in WO95 - every unit sent overseas will have one. May not name your man but will tell you what the unit did day by day. Also relevant Brigade and Division diaries may be worth a look.

Bernard

[Tuscany]

Many thanks Bernard.  I need all the help I can get so that I don't waste the time.

Tuscany

[Wendi]

Hi Tuscany

For those who survived thro' the wars there should be pension records, demob records and perhaps medical records too!!!

I'm sure if "themonsstar" sees your post he can advise you further.

Wendi 

[bernard_lewis]

Using the National Archives you could try and pre-order or at least take a note with you of which files you think or know you will want (certainly the War Diaries) - much better than thrashing around the indexes during the visit when time is at a premium. I must say though that I don't find the NA site very intuitive.

Bernard

[Tuscany]

Wendi

What about the one we know who didn't survive the war? What else is there to discover about him?  Would there be medical records, or service records of where he was during the short time he was involved.

Tuscany

[Romilly]

Hi Tuscany,

There's a book by  Stella Colwell, 'The National Archives : a practical guide for family historians'  2006; which gives lots of practical advice about how to research at Kew.

Best Wishes, Romilly.

[Ruth]

Have a look at the National Archives' research guides on the subject.  There's one on soldiers' papers from the First World War:
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/RdLeaflet.asp?sLeafletID=18

And this one may help with the soldier in the Boer War:
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/RdLeaflet.asp?sLeafletID=14

When looking for Army records it's important to try and establish when someone may have left the army, as that's how the records are stored.  For example, if someone served in the Boer War and then went on into the First World War, all his records (if they survived) would be with the First World War collection.

Ruth

[Tuscany]

Thankyou everyone,

I've taken a bit of a break from the computer and have just read the replies.

Bernard, you have referred to 'thrashing around' and this is just what I want to avoid.

Ruth,  the one in the Boer war died from disease in 1912, contracted during the time in Africa.  The other died of wounds in1915 and I would dearly love to discover what they did during their respective wars.  They were brothers.

Tuscany.