Please help? Alfred Shaw born 1894, Rugeley, Staffordshire

[arthurk]

topics now merged

I'll ask a moderator to lock this one.

[Flemming]

Not all of the entries on the CWGC website have an age or (for example) a service number. Also, if he died of injuries from the war but after 31st August 1921, he wouldn't necessarily be included. See criteria below on the IFCP website.

http://www.infromthecold.org/war_grave_criteria.asp

In the search section, if you click on 'Additional Information', you can enter things like a parent's christian name or where they lived. Again, this information may not be recorded and so you may not get a return from it but worth a try.

Once you have a list of names showing, click on 'download' above the top right corner of the table and the data will export to your downloads folder in spreadsheet format. Much easier to go through.

[Flemming]

Is this a relation on the Rugeley war memorial?
https://www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk/memorial/177453

Did he marry Lucy HINDLEY in 1915 in Lichfield? If so, you know his death was after that.

EDIT: Just another long-shot thought - if he died of wounds after the war ended, he may have drawn a pension until that time. Ancestry has many of the Western Front Association WWI Pension Ledgers and Index Cards 1914-1923 and there are a few Alfred SHAWs on there.

[SonnyN67]

Thanks for all your replies ref Alfred born in 1894, very interesting.

I have had a look on the CWGC as suggested - found one possible interesting entry.

Private A Shaw (hope that’s A for Alfred!?) service number 37136 2nd Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment.

The tiny bit of passed down information I have, is that he was shot/died in Belgium....but the above person’s war Grave is in Metz-En-Couture (Calais) France.

So daft question time then, as I say I’m new to this.....how do I find out if I have the correct man, did they issue actual death certificates if you died in action and how would I go about finding his...I would assume a death certificate would have his next of kin on....and that’s how I verify him?

Wondering if there is any mileage in contacting the regiment for info?

Sorry for the ramble, more questions than answers at this stage.

Thanks

[Flemming]

You could try finding his service record although c. 75% of those from WW1 were destroyed in a fire.

The surviving records are indexed on the main websites, Ancestry and FindMyPast. I've checked the latter quickly and there are four entries for A/Alfred SHAW for the service number you found, one of which is a service record. If you don't already have a subscription to these websites, perhaps a 14 day free trial may help. You can then download scans of the original documents.

The National Archives also has a medal card for Alfred SHAW for that service number but it's £3.50 to download and you're likely to get similar info (and more of it) in the service record.

[jonw65]

I have had a look on the CWGC as suggested - found one possible interesting entry.

Private A Shaw (hope that’s A for Alfred!?) service number 37136 2nd Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment.

Soldiers Died In The Great War 1914-1919 says Alfred Shaw, 37136, Sth Staffs, was born in Mansfield and resident in Sutton in Ashfield.

You can search the free index (results gives the place of birth info) here
https://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-Records/soldiers-died-in-the-great-war-1914-1919

The National Archives also has a medal card for Alfred SHAW for that service number but it's £3.50 to download and you're likely to get similar info (and more of it) in the service record.

It's the medal index card. No need to pay £3.50 as they are free on ancestry (you just need to be registered)
See it here, it would have course been of no help in identifying 37136
http://www.rootschat.com/links/01nh8/

Registers of Soldiers' Effects, 1901-1929, on ancestry (and not free), has Alfred Shaw, 37136, South Staffordshire Regiment, died 3.2.18
And that shows that payments were to be to his widow Fanny.

[Flemming]

Possible marriage for Alfred SHAW to Fanny WARDLE in Q3 1914 in Mansfield. Google FreeBMD to get the website that has an index for this. Just a hunch, but the marriage posted earlier to Lucy HINDLEY looks more likely for a Rugeley resident.

Don't know what jonw65 means by 'It's the medal index card'. National Archives has a scan of the medal card to download (the catalogue description is 'Medal card of Shaw, Alfred...etc.') although it does feature in 'WO 372 - War Office: Service Medal and Award Rolls Index, First World War'.

[jonw65]

A bit on Lucy Maria Hindley, who married an Alfred Shaw in 1915
This looks like her in the free index to 1911 (you need to be logged in!)
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XW7L-5XN

Teachers Registration Council
1 Dec 1919
Lucy Maria Shaw
St George's Girls' School, Stamford, Lincoln (she was Head Mistress there)

It says that she had been an Assistant Mistress at Chase Terrace Girls' School, nr. Walsall, Staffs, 1905-19

Possible death?
March 1969 Stamford 3b 170
Shaw, Lucy M.
age 83

Probate, same year, for a Lucy Maria Shaw of Stamford, who died 19 March 1969
https://probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Calendar?surname=shaw&yearOfDeath=1969&page=9#calendar

In between, she can be found easily enough in the 1939 Register. And also Stamford electoral registers.

[BillyF]

Just a thought - I use my library for free access to Anc. and FindMyPast.

One man`s record I found had his complete family listed, wife and children. I think I was very lucky  to find all this, but he had a very unusual surname.