Lost Military Service Record

[BrianClaydon]

Do you have his marriage certificate and/or the birth certificate of the eldest child? If he had not been medically discharged before then, and if you are lucky, they will probably show his service details.

If medically discharged with the loss of an eye, he should be a record of a pension.

Hi Jebber,

I do have an original copy of his marriage certificate but his profession is not listed as Soldier or Seaman. I do not have a copy of his oldest child's birth certificate but will check with other descendants to see if it is on there. If they don't have a copy it may be something to pursue - thank you for the suggestion.

Kind Regards,

Brian

[jim1]

Every man discharged through sickness or injury was entitled to the SWB.
Have you tried the London Electoral Rolls (1918 Absent Voter's list) ?

[jim1]

Just had a look & there's a Charles Westrop at no. 7 Date St. Southwark
but he's not an Absent Voter so a civilian at this time.
Is this him?

[Jebber]

I have found his marriage certificate and he is recorded as a packer, the same as his job in 1921.

[ALAMO2008]

I have found his marriage certificate and he is recorded as a packer, the same as his job in 1921.

Yes just saw that - Strange he  declared his Father as Henry George not Arthur Henry (Harry)

[ALAMO2008]

His Younger Brother Richard enlisted as 2441 8th London Regt
They usually do what the older brother had enlisted into

[BrianClaydon]

As Jim1 said you have only a Story which appears about his injuries as Jebber says there should be a Pension and there is only one record for 11101 in the Lincolnshire Regt but he was Discharged 22 May 1919 as  Class Z and fit to be recalled so obviously not him.
If he married 8 April 1917 he was in UK 1917 1918 1919 per his Children Births
There is no Evidence that he Enlisted- Sorry

Hi ALAMO2008,

thanks for your post. No apology is necessary. I would be happy to know that he didn't serve in the forces if I could discount it completely. The evidence is certainly against him. I want to be absolutely sure though that he didn't serve his country, as to do anything less is negates the contribution that generation made to our existence today. I would like to answer as many questions as possible before I close the door on this area of my research.

It is certainly unlikely as you say that he was in the forces in 1919 due to the births of his children. However the war started in July 1914 and his wife appears to have been pregnant at the time of their marriage in April 1917 as the child is born in September the same year, so there is still windows of opportunity that cannot be discounted, however unlikely. Second child was born March 1919.

Many service record were lost in the Blitz - I don't know whether that had any impact on other records such as Silver Badge recipients, or pensions. I know that I have trawled through fragments of burnt service records looking for him to no avail.

I also know that my other great-grandfathers records were lost in the Blitz, although we fortunately still had his medals, medal cards and a citation in the London Gazette for the award of his Military Medal. With the loss of his records we may never know what the award was specifically for.

The reason I have posted on here is to answer the questions I am not qualified to answer, such as those above about SB recipients and pension records. I would like someone with a greater knowledge of WW1 than I to say, 'If he was in WW1, or in the forces just prior he would definitely be recorded here, as these records were not lost or damaged.'

Perhaps you are already happy to say that based on your knowledge and the details I have provided. If that is the case please kindly advise. As I have stated I have limited knowledge of Military research and have more questions than answers.

Thank you for your observations.

Kind regards,

Brian

[BrianClaydon]

I have found his marriage certificate and he is recorded as a packer, the same as his job in 1921.

Hi Jebber,

that is correct. On the marriage certificate and 1921 census he is a 'Packer'. On the 1921 Census it states it was for Johnson, Riddle and Co at that time.

Thanks for your research,

kind regards,

Brian

[BrianClaydon]

His Younger Brother Richard enlisted as 2441 8th London Regt
They usually do what the older brother had enlisted into

Hi ALAMO2008,

well found! His eldest brother John Wallace Westrop (39947) was also in WW1, after joining the Imperial Yeomanry in 1907. Which is another reason why I wondered whether he served before WW1.

Thank you for your research and thoughts.

Kind regards,

Brian