Re: my first visit to the National Archives at Kew - advice?

Thank you, Forrest,
This is fantastically helpful. It is very kind of you to have given me so much really good information.

In answer to your one question, I have 'proof' of him being alive as late as 1912 when he had a child. But I haven't yet ordered that birth certificate to find his occupation. That is the next step. But I will try the NA search first (thanks for the box references for the discharge records - great help), as I don't need the certificate for any other purpose, so I am loath to spend 7 pounds if I don't have to!

I realise I listed him as Albert on my post. I keep doing this. I have an Albert Edward and and Alfred Edward in my tree. He was ALFRED Edward Turner. I'm very sorry about that. It's the late nights on Ancestry.... But I followed your lead on the CWGC page, but i don't think he's there. I found some medal card records for an Alfred Turner, Royal Garrison Artillery listed on the NA catalogue. I will try those too - WO 372/20. There seem to be a lot of Alfred Turners, though.

Can't wait until next Friday...

Thanks again,

Naomi

Forrest Anderson wrote:
On Fri, 02 Mar 2007 12:47:31 GMT, in soc.genealogy.britain, Naomi
<n.spannerdavies@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

I think I need the Quarterly Army List for the period 1897 to 1915. The person I'm researching (Albert Edward Turner, b.circa 1868, Ireland) was, in 1901,
Sergeant, Royal Garrison Artillery, 30th Coy, Eastern Division

So, I think that means he wouldn't count as an officer? Are the Quarterly Army Lists the right place to search?

Army Lists are mainly for officers, but details of certain categories
of Warrant Officer can sometimes be found. If your man was
subsequently promoted to one of these categories of Warrant Officer,
or was commissioned as an officer, then I would expect him to be
found, but as a Sergeant in 1901 I wouldn't expect him to be found.

However the Army List *can* be used to track the movements of units,
and you should be able to follow 30th Company's movements over the
years. On 1 Jan 1902 it was re-designated as 24th Company RGA; in May
1904 it was re-designated as 24th (Heavy) Company RGA; and in Dec 1906
it became 24th (Heavy) Battery RGA. Bear in mind that he may have been
posted to another unit, so before you spend too much time
speculatively following 30th/24th Company, you should try to find his
Discharge Documents or Service Record which will give details of his
postings.

If so, are they the sort of thing you book in advance or can you just walk in and browse?

They are mostly on shelves in the microfilm reading room, and can be
browsed at your leisure.

If not the right place, where would you suggest?

I would hope that his Discharge Documents would be in the WO 97 series
for 1901-1913 discharges. See
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/RdLeaflet.asp?sLeafletID=14
which says:

-----------
Soldiers discharged 1900-1913 For this period all discharge papers were filed alphabetically, for
the whole army (WO 97/4232 to WO 97/6322 ). Some discharge papers may
have been misfiled, and are now in a second alphabetic sequence in WO
97/6323 to WO 97/6354 . These documents are seen in the original, and
are ordered on computer. -----------

You might like to order possible boxes in advance, and the following
two boxes would seem to be the most likely:

WO 97/6112 Turnbull Albert - Turner Alfred 1900-1913 WO 97/6354 Quaide - Woods 1900-1913

After war broke out, the Army advertised for recruits on posters and
in the press. Many of the recruiting posters asked for ex-soldiers up
to the age of 45, and the age limit was raised later in the war, so
it's quite possible that he was in WW1.

If he served in WW1, then his documents may be in the Burnt or Unburnt
Documents collections at WO 363 or WO 364. These records are on
microfilm, and can be viewed without ordering in the microfilm reading
room. See
<http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/firstworldwar/service_records/sr_soldiers.htm>

The information I'm after (in an ideal world!) is
a) his parentage

Quite possibly this won't be recorded in his Discharge Documents. His
next of kin may well be there, but if he was married then his NOK
would most likely be his wife.

b) When he died - did he die in service?

Do you have any proof of him being alive after 1901?

If he did die in service before WW1, his documents probably won't be
in the WO 97 series. Men who died in service during the period
mid-1880s to 1913 can be difficult to research, since Muster Rolls
generally haven't been kept.

Men who died in WW1 are much easier, and you should check the
Commonwealth War Graves Commission's Debt of Honour Register at
www.cwgc.org

There are quite a few Albert Edward Turners listed by the CWGC, but
several can be discounted due to their young age. However two men
don't have ages:

http://www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=1627037
http://www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=1627038

Of these two, "Soldiers Died in the Great War" states that the first
man was born in Swindon. No place of birth is given for the second
man, but he enlisted in Stockport, Cheshire. Note that although he was
in the RGA in 1901, he might have served in a completely different
regiment or corps if he re-enlisted in WW1.

c) Why he might have given a middle child up for adoption

I reckon it's a bit unlikely that you'll find that information in his
military records, but WW1 Service Records can contain some rather
unusual bits and pieces.

Good luck at Kew!

Forrest


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