The Scottish Military Research Group - Commemorations Project

geoff501 · Joined: 15 Mar 2007 Posts: 40 Location: Worcestershire

Hi,

DerekR · Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2009 9:05 am Post subject:

Adam Brown · Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2009 8:18 am Post subject:

Geoff

Thanks for the updates and tips.

geoff501 · Joined: 15 Mar 2007 Posts: 40 Location: Worcestershire

spoons · Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 9:42 pm Post subject:

I am just posting Kirkcudbright cemetery graves on the SWGP and 2 of the first 3 family gravestones were Canadians.

By the way, how do we get a login for the WW1 search engine page?

\Paul

Adam Brown · Posted: Thu Aug 13, 2009 11:38 am Post subject:

Geoff

Thanks for the Link, I'll listen to that later.

There are a great many CEF men listed on Scottish memorials and a fair few Australian, New Zealand and South African units too. On my local memorial out of sixty names there is one Australian, one South-African and eight who had served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force.

Interestingly for Kinlochbervie across the other side of Sutherland the numbers are one Canadian and five new Zealanders out of a total of 22.

For Rogart, in the middle of the County, out of 42 names there is one AIF, three CEF, two NZEF and two South Africans.

These are three communities in the North of Scotland so it may not be the case for other parts such as the Central Belt or the Borders but in these three cases they all have a high proportion of overseas units.

Cheers

Adam

Regards

Adam

geoff501 · Joined: 15 Mar 2007 Posts: 40 Location: Worcestershire

kinnethmont · Joined: 19 Dec 2006 Posts: 1649 Location: Aberdeenshire

Geoff

Large numbers of men / families linked to agriculture left rural areas of Scotland for Canada after c1904. Many had been Territorials and joined the Militia. The same was true to a lesser extent for Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in that order.

When the call went out to the Dominions in August 1914 large numbers of these men joined the CEF. Others enlisted out of Duty and some the prospect of a paid trip home.

This accounts for the very high numbers of CEF men on our memorials, in many cases brothers, cousins, etc. A figure well in excess of 13% of CEF casualties were born in Scotland.
_________________
Jim

If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

www.kinnethmont.co.uk

spoons · Posted: Fri Aug 14, 2009 9:20 am Post subject:

The Carsphairn memorial was unveiled by Lt Col Clark-Kennedy VC of Knockgray who served with the Canadians. Col John McCrae, author of 'in Flanders fields' served with the Canadians was the great grandson of a Carsphairn resident.

\Paul

DerekR · Posted: Fri Aug 14, 2009 2:10 pm Post subject:

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Fri Aug 14, 2009 7:10 pm Post subject:

Recently I've been in e-mail contact with the archivist of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (about ethnic Japanese who served in the Canadian Forces !!!) and his research indicates that until 1917 Canadian born recruits were in the minority.
_________________
Ken

dhubthaigh · Posted: Wed Aug 19, 2009 1:27 pm Post subject:

Can anyone tell me how to search or obtain a username/password ? I can't see an answer here

Mark

DelBoy · Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 8:11 pm Post subject:

The ww1 search engine seems to be back online, there's pre-filled in login details so just click login and away you go.

spoons · Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 8:16 pm Post subject:

Geoff now has a page explaining how these changes, when made, will prevent his search engine from working. I have today emailed CWGC as follows:

Dear Mr Stacey

I am very concerned about the proposed changes to the CWGC debt of honour register.

I accept that the remit of the CWGC is to record and honour the dead and it does not have a remit to aid family history or military history researchers but I do not think it should be making changes which seem designed to prevent others from providing such a service.

I am a regional volunteer for the War Memorials Trust and a member of both the Scottish War Memorials Project and the Scottish War Graves Project and give public talks on researching war memorials and those who died in war, all on a purely voluntary basis. I also work in a school where I help pupils research war dead as part of their curriculum studies on war and remembrance.

I believe that the changes will stop any links direct to individual entries on the database from working. This means that any links that I have sent in the past to relatives of the deceased will no longer work (I frequently identify individuals for surviving relatives and send them the info by way of a link, free of charge). I don't think that your proposed changes are fair to any of these individuals - I know some who like to record the link as part of their family tree.

I also make use of 'Geoff's search engines' which has far greater search facilities than your site and which then points to the records found. I encourage pupils at the school where I work (and others) to use these engines as part of the research into and commemoration of war dead. Local war memorials often contain only names or perhaps names and regiments. Without a rank or date of death, this is often the only way to identify the individual commemorated. I feel that this research by today's children is essential to their understanding. I mean this as no criticism of the CWGC site as I understand the limited remit and funds but I understand that the changes you propose will prevent such search engines from working and surely you can see that preventing others from carrying out such research does nothing to assist the continued commemoration of those who gave their lives?

In short, I believe that 'not forgotten' means that each generation should be able to find out exactly who these men and women were from the scant information available on their local memorial and I strongly urge you not to make any changes which would reduce their ability to do this.

Yours sincerely

kinnethmont · Joined: 19 Dec 2006 Posts: 1649 Location: Aberdeenshire

Paul

Below is the text of a recent reply to a member of another Forum from David Stacey's boss Peter Francis (Head of External Communications, CWGC) .

I think they now fully understand the position regarding links to their records ( see final sentence). Allowing 3rd party software to search their data is another matter. You may be aware that the data Geoff's Search used was an outdated record and CWGC still needs to be checked to verify the latest information on casualties.
Personally, I suspect when a new CWGC search appears it will be more helpful to researchers than is currently the case.