Morning all, Here is a photograph I discovered yesterday. My granddad James Rice is second row, second from the left. He was born in Ayr, Scotland in Oct 1919 and I know he was in Thornton Heath getting married by July 1953- the rest is a mystery. Are you able to help identify anything from the photo that may help me work out a potential regiment? I do have memories of seeing him on a horse in military gear, so maybe cavalry? But not convinced. He never would speak of his war experiences, his wife died in 1954, my mum who was born 1954 has now also passed away so I am literally at a dead end. Any help would be really appreciated IMG_20200619_104517 by KMA55 posted Jun 19, 2020 at 10:53 AM IMG_20200619_084135 by KMA55 posted Jun 19, 2020 at 10:53 AM IMG_20200619_104336 by KMA55 posted Jun 19, 2020 at 10:53 AM IMG_20200619_084202 by KMA55 posted Jun 19, 2020 at 10:53 AM
Where and when did James die? If you have his death certificate apply for his official service records here Get a copy of military service records It will cost £30 from MOD and you could have a lengthy wait. I think turn around had slowed up even before Covid shut everything down and restrictions aren't lifted yet in Scotland. You already know his date of birth, so you won't need to provide his service number. Don't waste your money on other websites, the official record is the only one that can give you the info you need. I see from the Scotlandspeople.gov.uk he was born in the district of Stevenson, North Ayrshire. Was his father's name Joseph? There was a tenant by the name Joseph Rice living at 24 Carment Drive, Limekiln Road, South Side, Stevenston on the 1920 property Valuation Rolls.
Welcome to the forum. My only observations are that each man has a single ribbon, and although the contrast isn’t great, these appear to be for the Africa Star, which was instituted in 1943. As this star confirms an entitlement to the War Medal also, instituted in August 1945, and as its ribbon is absent, the photo was taken before these were distributed – so probably between 1943-6, and my impression is it was taken in the UK. Hopefully someone else can provide you with something more useful.
That's really useful thank you. He dad was called Henry. I'll have a look at that site as ancestry is pretty useless for Scotland. Thank you
Thank you for your response, so he could have potentially served in Africa? Hopefully that will help me a bit in the research.
