Help deciphering service record page pls....

Happy days for that Steve, appreciate your graft,.......... thought long and hard about posting everything but with 31 pages and being able to interpret most of that myself didn't want to burden folk unnecessarily. Good lesson re the wider context of bits of info though and point well taken.

As for this thread, think I've got as much as needed for now, so thank you all. I can feel lots of searching into West Africa coming on!

Paul

 

Hi Paul,

Please ignore these comments if a contradictory answer is recorded in the papers you haven’t posted online.

Just a further thought about his medical issues and entries in his service papers -

I wonder if he came home Oct 1942 for medical reasons as West Africa was well known as “the white mans grave”?

Or perhaps a medical problem developed while he was in U.K. (perhaps contracted while he was overseas) prevented his return to West Africa?

I make the above comments as he reverts to Home Establishment 16th January 1943 and is posted to the Holding Battalion - which would have been the case had he been unable to return to Sierra Leone after his leave was up.

Having seen many WW1 & WW2 era online Canadian & Australian Service files - that do contain medical papers - I would suggest that the medical 13th May 1943 might’ve been to assess his post illness condition after 4 months or more treatment?

It was the norm to give a man a period of home leave after a UK medical board had approved a return to Regimental duty. That might explain the 30 day gap between his medical and his request to be reduced in the ranks 12th June 1943. That date may have been on or about the day he returned to Regents Park Barracks from his leave.

He possibly simply made the request to be reduced in rank having had 4 weeks to consider the implications of his medical reclassification.

Steve

 

Hi,

If you want any help to research his post Army MN service it might be best to start another topic to attract forum MN expert Hugh MacLean

There may be information in UK National Archives you can access.

Steve

 

William Ernest Gee – Dis.A number 1130758 b. India 1907.

MN service during WW2 should be held at Kew in piece BT 382/636 which will hold his CRS 10. I have also found a possible voyage on PORT ADELAIDE in 1944 but the CRS 10 would confirm all this.
I have transcribed the following records for you from the Fourth Register of Seamen - (1918-1941) there will be some mistakes and omissions and it is likely that he will have completed other voyages not mentioned here. If you wish to pm your email I will send over the originals.

145647 - MERVYN – 28.7.1925
145721 – PORTHMEOR – 12.9.1925
140262 – BAWTRY – 18.9.1926
119888 – TEESPOOL – 15.1.1927
137752 - SEA GLORY – 20.8.1927
149926 - BRITISH PROGRESS – 26.5.1928
146658 - BRITISH LORD – 25.2.1929
131468 - DRYDEN – 31.5.1929
137495 - ELSTREE GRANGE – 6.12.1929
135488 – EURYADES?** – 26.4.1930
161438 – HARMATTAN – 13.8.1931
148055 – WELLFIELD – 21.8.1939
?** difficult to read.

Regards
Hugh

 

Hugh,

Top man! Not expecting that at all..... thanks for being proactive.... will pm you in a bit.

Paul