The Great War Forum

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 5:15 pm

I was preparing for a coming lecture on tracing military ancestors and having a look at various www resources, and came across The Great War (aka WWI) Forum at http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forum ... hp?act=idx .

You won't find a better such DG on the www. It's about 7 times as big as TS, but, fascinatingly, the number of posts/member ratio is not a million miles away from the TS figure!

It uses a different DG software from TS which I fould a wee bit confusing at first because what looks to be a similar setup is subtlety different, but it's very well worth persisting.

The TGW forum is also linked to the the "Long Long Trail" website which looks like being, or at least developing into, an equivalent to the www.regiments.org website that I've previously recommended, but focusing entirely on WWI, which is a massive subject on its own.

David

Tom-W · Post by **Tom-W** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 5:33 pm

I came across this site while googling a few years ago and I often visit it for a browse - it is extremely informative on all aspects of WW1 and I can thoroughly recommend it.

Tom

Post by **Pandabean** » Sat Apr 14, 2007 5:54 pm

David,

I have these linked up the WW1 Resources thread at the top of this forum.

I must say that the GWF is one of the best ones I have come across when dealing with most things from that period. They are very helpful in offering advice on tracing soldiers. I have been there for many a moon now.

Post by **Merlot** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 9:56 am

I was directed to GWF by a member of Rootschat. Before I had a chance to post on the site the member contacted GWF on my behalf and a gentleman by the name of The MonStar, sent me an e-mail with information about my g-grandfather and recommended a book (Santa brought it) I should have a look at. Friendly, helpful and knowledgable people on that site. I still know next to nothing about the military but find the site facinating none the less.

Merlot

Post by **Pandabean** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 10:32 am

You will find that they are very knowledgeable when it comes to military history and research for the period. However some don't appear to know much about geneaology in the case of my Greenlees line one of them looked up the 1901 census and said that the records show "Fraud-son" when in fact it was Grandson.

You will also find that some of them are more knowledgeable on certain Regiments than others.

They also recommended a book, which I think the author is part of the forum and I have found it a very good book, even lists my John Greenlees in the back listed as KIA.

Merlot wrote:I was directed to GWF by a member of Rootschat. Before I had a chance to post on the site the member contacted GWF on my behalf and a gentleman by the name of The MonStar, sent me an e-mail with information about my g-grandfather and recommended a book (Santa brought it) I should have a look at. Friendly, helpful and knowledgable people on that site. I still know next to nothing about the military but find the site facinating none the less.

Merlot

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 10:48 am

Hi all
Its a very knowledgeable forum. I'd posted there looking for some info on a WW1 great uncle a couple of years ago and received very prompt and helpful replies from several of their members, including quite a few bits of info I was not aware of.

Following that, the wierdest thing happened though - I put in a search for his name in the forum, expecting nothing to turn up other than my own post, but there was another post about him. I suffered a moment of complete incomprehension. However, once I'd calmed down, this post, which had been posted by a relative of a WW1 nurse, led to me being able to contact the great nephew of the nurse who had been in the Somme in 1918 with my great uncle as he lay dying and even more amazingly, this contact was able to send me a copy of a letter written by my great grandmother to thank her for being with my great uncle in his last moments. An astounding and very moving connection - I still think the odds of finding that kind of connection are so slim, it is truly amazing.

Best wishes
Lesley

Post by **Pandabean** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 11:06 am

Wow, thats amazing Lesley.

I to have done the same from time to time and I found that before I joined there was a person from the Burntisland area writting a book and looking for information on William and John. I contacted him and gave him all that I had on the brothers, he also returned the favour by sending me information that he had. Eventually I managed to get a newspaper report from the Local Library (it took a second look to find him though).

Its amazing what you can find out there these days.

JimM · Post by **JimM** » Sun Apr 15, 2007 11:16 am

LesleyB wrote: this post, which had been posted by a relative of a WW1 nurse, led to me being able to contact the great nephew of the nurse who had been in the Somme in 1918 with my great uncle as he lay dying and even more amazingly, this contact was able to send me a copy of a letter written by my great grandmother to thank her for being with my great uncle in his last moments.
Best wishes
Lesley

Hi Lesley
That's a wonderful find..
To think that the letter survived all these years... it must have meant so much to the nurse.

Jim