Disem on WW1 medal index

[Andy J2022]

Hi Alamo, here’s his entry (top one). Does this give you enough detail to see if he was wounded?
Born 21 April 1899
Deirdre

Sadly the image is too indistinct to read the number and name.

[Deirdre784]

Apologies Andy, so it is. He was Harry A (Adams) Dowling, M.G.C (Cav), private, 100887 and North Somerset Yeomanry 1829.

[Andy J2022]

Deidre,

I can't find any thing else about his military career.

[Deirdre784]

Cheers Andy, thanks for looking

[AllanUK]

Just in case you are interested:

To try and find when Harry enlisted, I have looked for other soldiers that had a North Somerset Yeomanry service number close to Harry's ---

#1816 T H Hornsby -- enlisted 26 July 1915
#1833 S C Tucker -- enlisted 14 August 1915
#1835 H J Preston -- enlisted 18 August 1915

This suggests that Harry (#1829) enlisted late July / early August 1915.

To try and find when he was transferred into the Machine Gun Corps (Cavalry), I searched for near numbers and came up with --

#100884 F S Mann -- transferred into the MGC (Cavalry) on the 9 October 1917

This suggests that Harry (#100887) was transferred much the same time.

[Deirdre784]

Thanks Allan, that's a great help. He was born on 21 April 1899 so barely 16 in July/August 1915. All helps to set up a timeline, but i think it makes it doubtful that he could have fathered a child born on 3 June 1918 in London. Do you know where the MGC were based?

[Andy J2022]

Deirdre, you've probably seen a newspaper article about when he started his next career in 1921, in which the report says he had given 3 ¹/₂ years service during the Great War, so this information suggests that was correct. At first I thought it might have been a bit of an exaggeration (his or the newspaper reporter's).
Merthyr Express 11 June 1921. Page 12 left hand column, 12th item down under the heading Local Intelligence.

[Deirdre784]

Thanks Andy, I remember seeing it before now, but hadn’t found any service info at the time, but it wasn’t coming up in my search again today. Had to find the paper by date and then the article. Confirms it’s him though and the service which is great. His younger brother Edmund later spent 3 years as a Japanese PoW.

[AllanUK]

Thanks Allan, that's a great help. He was born on 21 April 1899 so barely 16 in July/August 1915. All helps to set up a timeline, but i think it makes it doubtful that he could have fathered a child born on 3 June 1918 in London. Do you know where the MGC were based?

As he was born 21 April 1899, he wouldn't have been able to serve overseas until he was 18 years of age -- i.e. sometime after 21 April 1917. The newspaper article that Andy found (11 June 1921) working 3¹/₂ years backwards would tie in with the suggested date of transfer into the MGC (Cavalry).

When formed, the MGC (Cavalry) was split into 20+ squadrons. Each squadron consisted of 8 officers; 203 other ranks; equipped with 299 horses, 18 limbers, 1 GS wagon and 1 water cart. These were formed up into six two-gun sections each of a Subaltern, 33 men and 46 horses. The Squadron was commanded by a Captain or Major. (see link below to the Long, Long Trail website)

As Harry's service record doesn't exist, it is almost impossible to discover which squadron he was with. However, when Number 6 Squadron was formed on 29 February 1916, it was made up of men from the machine gun sections of the 1st Dragoons, 3rd Dragoon Guards and the North Somerset Yeomanry. As Harry had served with the North Somerset Yeomanry before he was trained as a machine gunner, it is possible that he was with No 6 Squadron but I can't find anything to prove this.

https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/regiments-and-corps/machine-gun-corps-in-the-first-world-war/machine-gun-corps-cavalry-squadrons/