Liverpool & South West Lancashire FHS - Forum

My grandfather John McComish was described as a Gunner Royal Field Artillery on his marriage certificate in February 1918. Would this have been part of the Kings Liverpool Regiment or a separate entity? Where would he have signed on for this regiment? I have no other knowledge of his army service and no knowledge of his army number. He was living in Bootle.

As a Gunner, he will have served with the Royal Field Artillery, a totally different unit to the Liverpool Regiment.
Many men from Liverpool served with the artillery in WW1; indeed, a relative of mine, Arthur Parry did so.

Regards

Mark

Have a look on the Ancestry website they have the medal rolls, the surviving Pension records and some Service records I think they're up to N. However only approximately 20 -25% of records survived the Blitz of the Second World War. The Medal Rolls are complete.

Ed Officer

EO

Although the medal rolls on Ancestry are useful, they are NOT 100% complete. Just because an individual cannot be found, it does not mean that medals were not awarded; always check with TNA.

Mark

Sorry I stand corrected.

The cards are also on the National Archives website under Documents online. I don't know if that set is complete.

Ed Officer

When you buy access to the NA version of Medal Index Cards you see only the face side of the card, among a group of near-match names. On Ancestry's you also see the reverse of the one you ask for, and they are in colour. Only a minority have anything on the back.
D

Many thanks to Mark, Education Officer and daggers for your helpful replies. I will follow them up and let you know if I find anything.
Regards
Marie

I have still been unable to find a medal card for John McComish serving with the Royal Field Artillery. Is it possible he could have transferred from another regiment to the RFA? The name is sometimes transcribed wrongly as McCornish or McCormish but I cannot find him under those names either. I have two photos taken of him in army uniform so he must have served. Does anyone have any suggestions for finding him? Are the medal cards 100% accurate?

Marie

If you post one or both photos we can try to help a bit more.
If your man did not serve overseas he will not have a Medal Index Card.
D

I will read the instructions and try to upload the photos asap. Family stories do seem to confirm that he did serve overseas but obviously are not evidence!

Marie

I'm hoping I have followed the instructions correctly and that a photo will appear now!!







Seems like I haven't understood the instructions correctly so will have to try again!!



I would be glad of help in trying to put photos on here! Thanks

Marie

I have managed to edit your post to show your photographs but the second one you will need to rescan, framing just the picture rather than the whole flatbed.

The bandolier is an indication that your man was probably in the RFA, though other mounted units also wore them. They were for carrying small arms ammunition - infantry carried theirs in pouches on the belt.
It is difficult to see any other distinguishing badges - the shoulder titles would help. Perhaps your other photo will help when it appears.
ADDED: When and where was your man born, and where would he be likely to enlist? There are several army service records on Ancestry [free this week]. There is also a medal index card for a Peter McComish, driver, RFA, among those I have looked at.
D

Many thanks Mary for your help with the photos. I'm afraid I won't be able to re-scan the second one as the image was e-mailed to me by a distant family member and is only very small.

Daggers my grandfather was born in 1892 in Derby Road in Kirkdale in Liverpool (very close to the border with Bootle) but I am fairly certain he would have been living in Bootle at the time he enlisted as he was certainly living there at the time of the 1911 census. As to where exactly he enlisted I have no knowledge.

Thank you for your help,

Marie

Marie
I have to admit failure in finding anything in the Ancestry records, despite trying many combinations of details. I know that Liverpool's Absent Voters registers have not survived, but perhaps they have for Bootle. If so, they will be somewhere in Sefton's archives, which I am not familiar with. Do you know at which church or register office your man was married? A church marriage or banns register might possibly have more clues than the bare certificate.
Sorry, but I have run out of ideas.

Daggers

I have also tried different spellings McComish/Comish/McCormish etc

Daggers and Katie, thank you both very much for your time and effort. I have both a copy of the church records for his marriage in February 1918 and the civil records. The church records give no details of his occupation but the civil records of his marriage give his occupation as "Gunner Royal Field Artillery" but that is all. His name is on the electoral roll for Bootle in 1918 and 1918/1919 together with the names of his wife and her parents at their home address. Would this mean he was definitely at home during this time? I will check if they have an Absent Voters register. Did any of the battallions of the Royal Field Artillery remain at home during the First World War?

Thank you once again for your help,

Marie

Hi Marie.

What was the address in Bootle that you have? name of church.

have you tried this website?

http://www.1914-1918.net/cra.htm

Jan

I am going to Kew. So I will check the medal cards there in case his was missed of Ancestry.

In the electoral rolls for 1918/19 if there is a letter (a) at the beginning of the name of those in the house this stands for absent voter which means he was either serving overseas etc