I took the problem to the Great War Forum as you suggested, David. I also took some time to do some reading at the Long Long Trail website. Here's hoping something turns up. Even if it doesn't, I am better informed than I was a week ago. Thanks everyone for their help. alysonePictures?, - near certainly, - but where, - ask the question on The Great War DG. I'd suspect that there's an RAMC museum somewhere ..........
Royal Army Medical Corps ?
Moderators: Global Moderators, Pandabean
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alysone
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- Location: Canada
Hi everyone,
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JustJean
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- Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2004 12:52 am
- Location: Maine USA
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alysone
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- Joined: Thu Apr 19, 2007 3:35 am
- Location: Canada
Feeling somewhat confused...
Today at the Great War forum I was shown pictures of the Aberlady war memorial with my Great uncles names on it. That was wonderful.Nice to read that you may be making progress! It will be good to hear if you get some important breakthroughs from your contact.
I am paddling along on this search for my Grandpa's siblings. I am fairly certain that his 2 brothers left no issue (although I haven't found a prewar MC for James & his wife, Agnes Stewart Maillie). Our line of Birds is all in Canada so there would be no immediate Bird kin to find in East Lothian.
My hope of finding living relatives over there rests on tracing descendants of his 4 sisters. I have found MC's for 3 of them but seem to be stuck now. Can you suggest how I might proceed? I know we are off-topic for this forum.
alysone-
Pandabean
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- Location: Aberdeenshire - Originally Falkirk
Glad you got the pictures you were after. 
As for tracing down the descendants of soldiers and their sisters, I have had luck in doing this just recently. My first contact was through the ScotsatWar memorial site, where there is a person in Canada who was the grandson of one of my great great great uncles. It seems he was sent to Canada in the early 20s as he was in a care home after his mother died.
The other luck I have had is looking for my William, John and Robert's sisters. Seems their sons are still alive (in their 70s-80s) and I sent a letter to one of them recently and had a very good reply.
There are ways of doing this, one is via NRH and viewing certificates that are post the dates on SP. From this I searched for briths during the war and hoped that they would tell me if they were serving on not. Also it was useful for seeing if the sisters married and when they died.
As for tracing down the descendants of soldiers and their sisters, I have had luck in doing this just recently. My first contact was through the ScotsatWar memorial site, where there is a person in Canada who was the grandson of one of my great great great uncles. It seems he was sent to Canada in the early 20s as he was in a care home after his mother died.
The other luck I have had is looking for my William, John and Robert's sisters. Seems their sons are still alive (in their 70s-80s) and I sent a letter to one of them recently and had a very good reply.
There are ways of doing this, one is via NRH and viewing certificates that are post the dates on SP. From this I searched for briths during the war and hoped that they would tell me if they were serving on not. Also it was useful for seeing if the sisters married and when they died.
Andy
[size=75]
[b]McDonald[/b]
[b]Greenlees & Fairnie[/b] (Musselburgh area)
[b]Johnston, Whitson, Whitecross, Runciman [/b] (Haddingtonshire)
[b]Rutherford [/b](Dumbartonshire, Airth & Larbert)
[b]Ross, Stevenson & Robb[/b](Falkirk)[/size]
[size=75]
[b]McDonald[/b]
[b]Greenlees & Fairnie[/b] (Musselburgh area)
[b]Johnston, Whitson, Whitecross, Runciman [/b] (Haddingtonshire)
[b]Rutherford [/b](Dumbartonshire, Airth & Larbert)
[b]Ross, Stevenson & Robb[/b](Falkirk)[/size]
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JustJean
- Posts: 2520
- Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2004 12:52 am
- Location: Maine USA
Re: Feeling somewhat confused...
Hi alysonealysone wrote:Today at the Great War forum I was shown pictures of the Aberlady war memorial with my Great uncles names on it. That was wonderful.Nice to read that you may be making progress! It will be good to hear if you get some important breakthroughs from your contact.
I am paddling along on this search for my Grandpa's siblings. I am fairly certain that his 2 brothers left no issue (although I haven't found a prewar MC for James & his wife, Agnes Stewart Maillie). Our line of Birds is all in Canada so there would be no immediate Bird kin to find in East Lothian.
My hope of finding living relatives over there rests on tracing descendants of his 4 sisters. I have found MC's for 3 of them but seem to be stuck now. Can you suggest how I might proceed? I know we are off-topic for this forum.
Andy's right in that you can have positive success in finding living rellies...but for people like you and me who live on this side of the big pond then it's not easily possible without someone on the ground in Scotland to do a bit of legwork for us. Just because the online BMDs through www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk have cut off dates for privacy reasons.....the records housed in Scotland at New Register House go right up to the current day nearly. It would be quick work to take one of those marriages you've found and are stuck at and jump forward to finding a death perhaps and see who the informant was....and the newer records will give a pretty good address for the informant. So then using www.192.com for exmple to look for the same person via telephone listing or even voter rolls can sometimes confirm if they might still be living....and then you do the old fashioned thing
....you write a letter and put a postage stamp on it!!Word of warning.....they don't always respond....matter of fact I'm pretty sure my response rate is on the losing side....but I'll never forget the very first attempt I made that was gratefully acknowledged and many emails ensued. There's nothing like it let me tell you!!
Best wishes
Jean
PS...don't worry about thread drift...happens all the time
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Pandabean
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- Location: Aberdeenshire - Originally Falkirk
Thats true. Through contacting one of the rellies I have found something that I have been wanting to know for a while now. I will post about it when I have looked into it further.There's nothing like it let me tell you!!
It relates to my two great great uncles who were in the war.Andy
[size=75]
[b]McDonald[/b]
[b]Greenlees & Fairnie[/b] (Musselburgh area)
[b]Johnston, Whitson, Whitecross, Runciman [/b] (Haddingtonshire)
[b]Rutherford [/b](Dumbartonshire, Airth & Larbert)
[b]Ross, Stevenson & Robb[/b](Falkirk)[/size]
[size=75]
[b]McDonald[/b]
[b]Greenlees & Fairnie[/b] (Musselburgh area)
[b]Johnston, Whitson, Whitecross, Runciman [/b] (Haddingtonshire)
[b]Rutherford [/b](Dumbartonshire, Airth & Larbert)
[b]Ross, Stevenson & Robb[/b](Falkirk)[/size]
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alysone
- Posts: 86
- Joined: Thu Apr 19, 2007 3:35 am
- Location: Canada
Moving along here...
Hi Everyone,
I have been off doing my homework based on the good advice in the previous few posts. I now have marriage certificates for 3 of the 4 sisters:
Janet S. Bird married John Templeton in 1910 in Aberlady. (I saw a J. Templeton on the Aberlady War Memorial photo at the GW forum. Since I didn't have a regiment or any other details, I didn't get far tracking him at the National Archives.)
Annie C. Cranston (nee Bird) married Laurence Wallace in 1923 in Edinburgh. She was still alive in 1947 at her mother's death.
Sophia L. Bird married Arthur L. Wood in 1920. He reported her father's death in 1942.
I see a Catherine Bird in the archives of the East Lothian Council who was a midwife. I think that entry would have been the 1930's. So I 'have' the 4 sisters, in all likelihood.
However as Jean points out, I am still stuck. None of them would be alive now. I can't think how I can trace their offspring? I had a look at www.192.com and there are a lot of possibles for each of the married names within the area. Far too many to contact by post, without narrowing it down somehow?
Down but not out! alysone
I have been off doing my homework based on the good advice in the previous few posts. I now have marriage certificates for 3 of the 4 sisters:
Janet S. Bird married John Templeton in 1910 in Aberlady. (I saw a J. Templeton on the Aberlady War Memorial photo at the GW forum. Since I didn't have a regiment or any other details, I didn't get far tracking him at the National Archives.)
Annie C. Cranston (nee Bird) married Laurence Wallace in 1923 in Edinburgh. She was still alive in 1947 at her mother's death.
Sophia L. Bird married Arthur L. Wood in 1920. He reported her father's death in 1942.
I see a Catherine Bird in the archives of the East Lothian Council who was a midwife. I think that entry would have been the 1930's. So I 'have' the 4 sisters, in all likelihood.
However as Jean points out, I am still stuck. None of them would be alive now. I can't think how I can trace their offspring? I had a look at www.192.com and there are a lot of possibles for each of the married names within the area. Far too many to contact by post, without narrowing it down somehow?
Down but not out!
alysone-
alysone
- Posts: 86
- Joined: Thu Apr 19, 2007 3:35 am
- Location: Canada
Aberlady Bird progress!
Hi everyone,
I thought you would like to hear that I have begun to piece things together in my research on my grandfather's siblings. I haven't made any direct contact, as yet. However, I have found relatives of the wife my Uncle James Bird left behind when he went off to France & his death. We made contact on GenesReunited. Agnes Bird (nee Mailie) never remarried and lived until 1958. (It follows that I won't find living relatives there.)
I also know more of John Templeton, who married Janet S. Bird in 1910. My sinking suspicion about the "J. Templeton" on the Aberlady war memorial proved correct. My great aunt's husband died in 1917 in the Battle of Arras. Again at GR, I found a contact for his family. They knew he had died in France but not that he had married beforehand. It was interesting to compare information. Since they married in 1910, there may be living descendants.
I am putting the puzzle together, piece by piece. GR has been a very useful platform at this stage. alysone
I thought you would like to hear that I have begun to piece things together in my research on my grandfather's siblings. I haven't made any direct contact, as yet. However, I have found relatives of the wife my Uncle James Bird left behind when he went off to France & his death. We made contact on GenesReunited. Agnes Bird (nee Mailie) never remarried and lived until 1958. (It follows that I won't find living relatives there.)
I also know more of John Templeton, who married Janet S. Bird in 1910. My sinking suspicion about the "J. Templeton" on the Aberlady war memorial proved correct. My great aunt's husband died in 1917 in the Battle of Arras. Again at GR, I found a contact for his family. They knew he had died in France but not that he had married beforehand. It was interesting to compare information. Since they married in 1910, there may be living descendants.
I am putting the puzzle together, piece by piece. GR has been a very useful platform at this stage. alysone