The Scottish Military Research Group - Commemorations Project

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 1:21 pm Post subject:

SGT. A/G. P.J. DONOGHUE.
Peter John Donoghue – age 21 – Sergeant (1365471) 120 Squadron, Coastal Command, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
“Jackie” was educated at the Holy Cross Academy in Edinburgh and he was an apprentice bricklayer in Edinburgh when he joined the RAF. He was the Wireless Operator/ Air Gunner on his Liberator bomber which had taken off from RAF Tiree to provide anti-submarine escort to a convoy but the aircraft crashed when the port wing tip hit the water during a turn over the convoy and the depth charges exploded.
Born 1920 in Liberton, Midlothian. Son of Peter and Bridget (Moran) Donoghue of Cumledge Mills, Duns who married in 1919 in Duns.
Killed in Action/Lost at Sea on 12 August 1942 and named on the Runnymede Memorial, Surrey.
Also named on the Our Lady Immaculate & St Margaret's Catholic Church memorial in Duns.

L.A.C. M. FLINN.
Mark Moffat Flinn – age 24 – Aircraftman 1st Class (1053276) Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
Mark had been employed by fish merchant in Duns before he joined the RAF. He became a prisoner of war in March 1942 after the fall of Singapore and he died at the Sandakan Camp in Borneo. Mark was re-interred at Labuan in June 1949.
Born 1920 in Duns. Son of Robert Reid Flinn and of Robina (Moffat) Flinn of Tannage Brae, Duns.
Died on Service on 4 October 1944 and buried in Labuan War Cemetery, Malaysia.

GNR. W. McLEAN.
William Robert McLean – age 33 – Gunner (14349988) 57 (1/5th Battalion, The East Surrey Regiment) Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery.
Bill was a bricklayer in Duns when he enlisted. 192 Battery of the Regiment was deployed to the Anzio beachhead on 2 February 1944 and Bill was fatally wounded two weeks later.
Born 1911 in Lauder, Berwickshire. Son of Alexander and Margaret (Redpath) McLean of Channelkirk, Lauder. Husband of Agnes (Carr or Feeney) McLean of Earlsmeadows, Duns who he married in 1939 in Duns.
Died on Wounds on 16 February 1944 and buried in Anzio War Cemetery, Italy.

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 1:28 pm Post subject:

PTE. W. MAUGHAN.
John Wilfred Maughan – age 25 – Private (3191405) 1st Battalion, King's Own Scottish Borderers.
John had been with his battalion in France and Belgium in 1939/40 and had been evacuated from the beaches at Dunkirk in June 1940. He returned to France on D-Day, 6th June 1944, landing at ‘Queen’ Beach but he was killed three days later. John was re-interred at Douvres in May 1945.
Born 1919 in Duns. Son of the late John Maughan and of Agnes Thomson (Duncan) Purves, and step-son of Thomas Chambers Purves of Easter Street, Duns who married in 1923 in Edinburgh.
Killed in Action on 9 June 1944 and buried in La Delivrande War Cemetery, Douvres, France.
Also named on the Episcopal Christ Church Roll of Honour in Duns.

TPR. A.T. MITCHELL.
Andrew Tofts Mitchell – age 25 – Trooper (3191394) 44th (7th Battalion. The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment) Regiment, Reconnaissance Corps, Royal Armoured Corps.
The 44th Regiment had been operating as infantry until on 27 January 1944 it was relieved, moving back to Montanaro to re-organise on to a jeep, carrier and White scout car establishment, but plans were changed and they returned on foot north of the River Garigliano on 1 February to relieve 8th Royal Fusiliers at San Lorenzo. Andrew was killed two days later.
Born 1918 in Duns. Son of James Milne Mitchell and of Margaret (Tofts) Mitchell of Duns.
Missing in Action on 3 February 1944 and named on the Cassino Memorial, Italy
Also named on the Boston United Free Church memorial in Duns.

FLT. SGT. A.S. NAIRN.
Andrew Swanston Nairn – age 22 – Flight Sergeant (1122824) 640 Squadron, Bomber Command, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
Andrew was employed as a grocer in Duns when he enlisted, His Halifax bomber had taken off from RAF Leconfield in Yorkshire for a raid on the Sterkrade synthetic oil plant but the aircraft crashed near the target. The crew were buried in Dusseldorf North Cemetery and were re-interred in October 1946.
Born 1922 in Duns. Son of ? Grandson of Andrew Nairn of The Mount, Duns.
Killed in Action on 6 October 1944 and buried in Reichswald Forest War Cemetery, Germany.

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 1:35 pm Post subject:

LIEUT. A. O'BRIEN, R.N.
I cannot trace this man.

SGT./OB. J. McK. OLIVER.
John McKelvie Dunn Oliver – age 21 – Sergeant (1371746) Bomber Command, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
John's Wellington bomber from 15 Operational Training Unit had taken off from RAF Harwell in Oxfordshire in support of a raid on Bremen but the aircraft crashed off the Dutch coast.
Born 1921 at Whiting Bay, Isle of Arran, Kilbride (Bute) as John McKelvie Dunn. Son of Hannah (Dunn) Oliver and step-son of James Walker Oliver of Duns who married in 1925 in Glasgow.
Killed in Action on 25 June 1942 and buried in Harlingen General Cemetery, Netherlands.
Also named on the Berwickshire High School memorial in Duns.

A.C.1. P.L. PATTERSON.
Peter Lindsay Patterson – age 22 – Aircraftman 1st Class (1105299) Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
Peter was educated at the Berwickshire High School in Duns before he joined the staff of a local bank. He enlisted just after the outbreak of war and was posted to the Middle East. Peter was killed during an air raid on his airfield near El Alamein in Egypt.
Born 1920 in Duns. Son of Peter and Margaret A. (Howie) Patterson of 7 Market Square, Duns.
Killed by enemy action on 26 July 1942 and buried in El Alamein War Cemetery, Egypt.
Also named on the Berwickshire High School memorial.

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 1:41 pm Post subject:

FLT. SGT. M.S. PEARSON.
Monteith Samuel Pearson – age 23 – Flight Sergeant (1066692) 622 Squadron, Bomber Command, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
Monteith was a well known local sportsman and racing cyclist. He had been educated at the Berwickshire High School in Duns before joining his father's coal business. He joined the RAF in 1941 and he was posted to a barrage balloon unit. He was promoted in January 1943 and became an air gunner. His Lancaster bomber had taken off from RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk for a raid on Berlin but the aircraft crashed at Neu Gaarz. The crew were re-interred in Berlin in July 1948.
Born 1920 in Duns. Son of Robert Hogg Pearson and Rachel Fortune (Samuel) Pearson of Lothian House, Duns. Husband of Isabella Thompson (Davidson) Pearson of the Police Buildings in Duns who he married in November 1943 in Duns.
Killed in Action on 15 February 1944 and buried in Berlin 1939-1945 War Cemetery, Germany.
Also named on the Berwickshire High School memorial and on the Boston United Free Church memorial in Duns..

L/CPL. J. RENTON.
James Tweedie Renton – age 25 – Lance Corporal (3190016) 6th Battalion, King's Own Scottish Borderers.
James was a baker to trade and was a member of the Territorial KOSB. He was posted to the 6th Battalion who were on Home Defence duties in Epping, Essex until they landed on the Normandy beaches on 15 June 1944, and then fighting through France, Belgium and Holland.
Born 1919 in Duns as James Renton. Son of David Charles and Margaret Ann (Bell) Renton of 9 Tannage Brae, Duns. Husband of Myrtle (Jenkins) Renton of Epping, Essex who he married in 1943 in Epping.
Killed in Action on 14 September 1944 and buried in Valkenswaard War Cemetery, Netherlands.
Valkenswaard was the first village to be liberated on the main line of the British advance into Holland in September 1944.

SPR. D. ROBERTSON.
I cannot trace this man.

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 1:54 pm Post subject:

FLT. SGT. D.C. SPIDEN.
David Christie Spiden – age 27 – Sergeant (950495) 115 Squadron, Bomber Command, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
David was educated at the Berwickshire High School in Duns before being employed by the Post Office in 1933, becoming a sorting clerk and telegraphist in Elgin in 1935. He was on the staff at Hawick Post Office when he enlisted in June 1940 and his duties initially were clerical but he volunteered for air crew and he was trained as a Flight Engineer. His Lancaster bomber had taken off from RAF Witchford in Cambridgeshire for a raid on the Krupps steelworks in Essen but the aircraft crashed near Mulheim and the crew were buried there. They were re-interred in August 1947.
Born 1917 in Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland. Son of John Tunnah Spiden and Mary (Edgar) Spiden of 4 The Crescent, Duns.
Killed in Action on 25 October 1944 and buried in Reichswald Forest War Cemetery, Germany.
Also named on the Berwickshire High School memorial and on the St. Andrew's Church memorial in Hawick, Roxburghshire.

PTE. G. STOREY.
George Storey – age 31 – Private (3061696) 7th/9th Battalion, Royal Scots.
George was working as a labourer and living in Edinburgh when he married in 1940. The 7th/9th Royal Scots landed at Ostend in Belgium in October 1944 and took part on the assault on the Island of Walcheren on 3 November. By December they were in the south-east corner of the Netherlands near the German border.
Born 1913 in Duns. Son of Mary Shearlaw Storey. Nephew of Elizabeth Agnes (Storey) Bain of 25 Market Square, Duns. Husband of Yolanda Jean (Wilson) Storey of Edinburgh who he married in 1940 in Edinburgh.
Killed in Action on 17 December 1944 and buried in Brunssum War Cemetery, Netherlands.

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 1:58 pm Post subject:

FLT. LT. W.A.L. SWAN.
William Allan Laidlaw Swan – age 27 – Flight Lieutenant (47497) 13 Squadron, Royal Air Force.
William was educated at Berwickshire High School in Duns and in 1939 he was an insurance inspector living at Lanark Lodge, Duns. He had been commissioned in the Territorial Royal Engineers in October 1937 and he transferred to the RAF as a Pilot Officer in February 1942. He joined his squadron in North Africa in March 1943 and was promoted Flt.Lt. in November 1943. William had taken off from Sidi Amor in Tunisia in a Lockheed Ventura on an anti-submarine patrol over the Mediterranean but the aircraft was never heard from again.
Born 1916 in Whitsome, Berwickshire. Son of the late Thomas Allan Swan (died 1930) and of Agnes Alexandra Helen (Laidlaw) Swan of Lanark Lodge, Duns.
Missing in Action on 27 November 1943 and named on the Malta Memorial, Malta.
Also named on the Berwickshire High School memorial.

FLT. SGT. G.W. WHEELER.
George William Wheeler – age 21 – Flight Sergeant (1552002) 15 Squadron, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
George spent much of his early years in Duns and was educated at the Berwickshire High School before the family moved away. His Lancaster bomber had taken off from RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk for a raid on Stuttgart but the aircraft crashed in Normandy.
Born 1923 in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Son of Ernest James Wheeler and Alice Gertrude (Whalley) Wheeler formerly of Teindhillgreen, Duns. They had married in 1917 in Bradford.
Killed in Action on 25 July 1944 and buried in St. Desir War Cemetery, France.
Also named on the Berwickshire High School memorial and on the Our Lady Immaculate & St Margaret's Catholic Church memorial in Duns.

TPR. F.D. WILKINSON.
Francis David Wilkinson – age 23 – Trooper (329784) 12th Royal Lancers, Royal Armoured Corps.
The 12th Lancers served as an armoured car regiment. They landed in Port Tewfik, Egypt in November 1941 and they fought as divisional troops for the 1st Armoured Division in North Africa.
Born 1920 in Coldingham, Berwickshire. Son of the late Frances Alice (Utterson) Wilkinson (died 1935) and of John Wilkinson of Buxley and of Manderston, Duns.
Killed in Action on 26 April 1943 and buried in Medjez-El-Bab War Cemetery, Tunisia.

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 2:10 pm Post subject:

SGT. A/G. W.M. WILKINSON.
William Middlemiss Wilkinson – age 19 – Sergeant (3020028) 192 Squadron, Bomber Command, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
William had been a member of the Duns Air Training Corps and was an air gunner on his Halifax bomber which had taken off from RAF Foulsham in Norfolk to support the bombing of the town of Pforzheim in the south-west of Germany but the aircraft was shot down by a night-fighter over Stuttgart. The crew were buried in Steinhalde Civic Cemetery and were re-interred in June 1948.
Born 1925 in Duns. Son of William and Mary (Middlemiss) Wilkinson of Earlsmeadow, Duns.
Killed in Action on 23 February 1945 and buried in Durnbach War Cemetery, Germany.

FLT. SGT. W. WOOD.
Warren Wood – age 21 – Flight Sergeant (550594) 148 Squadron, Royal Air Force.
Warren was educated at Berwickshire High School in Duns before he joined the RAF in 1936. In 1941 his squadron, flying Wellington bombers, was carrying out attacks on Axis bases in Italy and Libya, first from RAF Luqa on Malta until March 1941, and then from Egypt. Warren was reported missing from the Hospital Ship “Aba” and was presumed to have drowned.
Born 1919 in Blaigowrie, Perthshire as Warren Wood Milligan. Adopted son of David and Jessie Jamieson (Veitch) Redden of Easter Street, Duns.
Lost at Sea on 10 August 1941 and named on the Alamein Memorial, Egypt
Also named on the Berwickshire High School memorial and on the Boston United Free Church memorial in Duns..
_________________
Ken

Somarc · Joined: 14 Nov 2021 Posts: 3 Location: Dumfries & Galloway

Hello, I am hoping that someone might be able to help me please?
I am researching the life of my Great Grandfather - Albert Edward Ballantyne - a solider in the KOSB. He was born in India in 1914 and died, due to war operations in Duns, Roxburghshire on 28 August 1941. His father was John Russel Ballantyne born in Hawick and his mother was Rebecca Hills born in India, they met and married in Bengal in india. They had several children: Isabella, Phyllis, Dorothy and Albert. They left India in 1921 and returned to Hawick (Melgund place). Sadly it looks as though John Russell and Rebecca Ballantyne Died on their return from India. I am led to believe Albert was raised in Hawick by his Father’s brother George Ballantyne. Albert married my great grandmother (Lilian Potter) in Dumfries and they had one daughter, my grandmother: Dorothy Ballantyne. Sadly Albert was killed 2 weeks after her birth. His birth certificate states he was killed due to war operation at Duns but we dont know what that means? Does anyone have any information please? Is there any memorials to Albert in the Borders? I have contacted the KOSB and have Albert’s soldier papers but there isn’t much info. I have also obtained posthumous war medals and given these to my grandmother, she was delighted. She never met Albert and has never seen a photo of him, I wonder if there is a photo in a local newspaper?
Albert is is burried in a commonwealth war commission grave in dumfries.
Apologies if I have put this message on the wrong board on this site?
Thanks in advance
Somar

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Wed Nov 17, 2021 12:57 pm Post subject:

Hi Somar and welcome!

Probably should have posted this in Q&R section and perhaps one of the moderators will move it but in the meantime.......

The Dumfries and Galloway Standard of Saturday 6 September 1941 has:

K. 0.S.B. SERGEANT'S DEATH.
Many members of the local battalion of the K.0.S.B8. will learn with regret of the death of Sergeant Albert Edward Ballantync, which occurred through an accident at Greenlaw on Thursday last. Sergeant Ballantyne, who resided at 37 Bank Street, Dumfries, joined the K.0.S.B.’s eight years ago, and prior to the war had served in India. He was in France with the battalion, and took part in the evacuation from Dunkirk. Since returning to this country he had been selected for service with a reconnaissance unit, and was with it at the time of his death. He was married a little over a year ago to Miss Lilian Higgins, Bank Street, and is survived’ by his widow and a daughter born only a few days before his untimely death. Sergeant Ballantyne was most capable and efficient soldier and was greatly esteemed by all ranks. The funeral took place to Dumfries Cemetery on Tuesday, and was attended by officers and men of his unit.

The death was recorded at Greenlaw, Berwickshire (near Duns)
_________________
Ken

Somarc · Joined: 14 Nov 2021 Posts: 3 Location: Dumfries & Galloway

Hi Ken,
Well I am so glad I posted. This is the most information I’ve gathered so far about Albert. What an extraordinary life my Great Grandfather had and sadly cut short.
I have just contacted his daughter (Dorothy - my Grandmother - who has recently turned 80), she is delighted to know all this information and is very proud of her late father.
Thank you very much for taking the time to respond and sharing this info! You’ve made my Grandmother’s year!
Would you happen to know if there was a photograph of Albert in the Standard?
Thanks again.
Somar

Kenneth Morrison · Posted: Wed Nov 17, 2021 7:46 pm Post subject:

Hi Somar - Can't see a photograph I'm afraid nor can I find a reference to the "accident" In Greenlaw.
I see you have a specific date for Albert's death - is that from Scotlandspeople?
Often there is an extra page which gives more detail of the cause of death.

Wikipedia has quite a good entry about the activities of the "Recce" Corps and that they were encouraged to be adventurous.
Sound like a recipe for accidents!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reconnaissance_Corps
It includes this:
52nd Reconnaissance Regiment formed January 1941 from the three Brigade Reconnaissance Groups of the 52nd (Lowland) Division: 'A' Sqn (Royal Scots and King's Own Scottish Borderers); 'B' Sqn (Royal Scots Fusiliers and Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)); 'C' Sqn (Highland Light Infantry and Gordon Highlanders).

from https://www.kosb.co.uk/history/world-war-two/

It looks as though Albert was with the 1st Battalion of the KOSB at the outbreak of war.
"1st battalion KOSB embarked for France in 1939 as part of the 3rd division of the BEF. They crossed the Belgian frontier in May 1940, and like the rest of the force, outgunned by an enemy of overwhelming numerical superiority, they were ordered to withdraw.
Fighting their way to the coast, on the night of 31st May/1st June they were evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk and reached England."
_________________
Ken

Somarc · Joined: 14 Nov 2021 Posts: 3 Location: Dumfries & Galloway

Thanks for all the information Ken which I have passed over to my Grandmother. Really interesting stuff.

We are planning on a trip to the KOSB museum next year, we’d like to find out more about what Albert was doing when in India.

Thanks again,

Somar

Merseman · Joined: 07 Aug 2013 Posts: 339 Location: Duns, Berwickshire

'Accident' can be almost anything: training, road crash, drowning, machinery.

If his death certificate has a RCE (additional page you pay extra for) it'll say.