Hello all,
I only know that my uncle William died Aug 31 1918 "killed in action". Is there anymore I can learn? He was in Training Res Royal Welch Fusiliers when he joined up. his # being 26252.
Hello,
I have done a quick check and find both some possibles and problems with tracing a William Burns 26252 RWF who is supposed to have been killed on 31 August 1918.
Firstly, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission do not show a Royal Welchman with these exact details for the the First World War. There was however a William Alfred Burns who was Private no.266833, in "C" Company of the 9th Battalion, RWF, who died on 22 March 1918 and has no known grave, being officially commemorated on Bay 6 of the Arras Memorial. Arras, France. He was aged 28 and the son of Mrs Edith Burns, and the husband of Mrs Isabella Burns of 25 Grey Street, Abbey Hey, Gorton, Manchester.
The publication Soldiers Died in the Great War states that he was born and resident at Gorton, and enlisted in Manchester, and was killed in action.
Changing it to a 31 Aug 1918 date search for W. Burns (any unit), I came across only the following:
53688 Pte W Burns, 18th Battalion of The York and Lancaster Regiment. Date of death 31 Aug 1918. Buried in Plot III, Row H, Grave 9 of the Ypres Town Cemetery Extension, Ieper, Belgium.
No family details on that site, but the publication Soldiers Died in the Great War states he was indeed a William Burns, born at Cheadle, Cheshire, and enlisted at Ashton-under-Lyme, Manchester, and was formerly no.58456 in the RWF, and was killed in action.
Cross-checking with the National Archives Medal Cards online confirmed that he had previously served in a Theatre of War as Private 58456 in the RWF. So he's a possibility.
Just as a final check, the medal cards online state that the only Royal Welchman with the number 26252 in WW1was a Private Daniel Sides.
If you can check your family details with the above records, does any of them stand out as a likely candidate?
Hello,
I have done a quick check and find both some possibles and problems with tracing a William Burns 26252 RWF who is supposed to have been killed on 31 August 1918.
Firstly, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission do not show a Royal Welchman with these exact details for the the First World War.
Hi David, welcome to the Forum.
Further to Clive's response, the only extra info i can provide relates to:
12252 Private Burns. WJ
RWF
Who was gazetted for a Mention in Dispatches on the 13/7/1916 page 6948
Note the similarities of the soldiers service number
Can you tell what your original source for the information was ?
Last edited by ap1; 29-02-2008 at 22:28.
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Clive and ap1,
Thank you both so much. W Burns from Cheadle is with certainty my uncle. I thought he had no resting place. The story was that nothing was found of him. It's nice to know where he lays. I will try to research the circumstances of his death. I was told his gun took a direct hit from a German gun. Thank you again David Burns
Slight change of plan, same man, slightly different details.....but with supporting documents!!!!!
I've found the service records on Ancestry for a William Burns RWF/ York and Lancs killed in action on the 31 Aug 1918.
The initial details are:
William Burns
Age: 17
Birth Year: abt 1899
Residence: 10 Back Cecil St, Mossley
Regiment Name: Training Res Royal Welsh Fusiliers
Regiment Number: 26452
Document Year: 1916
Number of Images: 20
There are 20 pages within the document. Much is unreadable. Clive for your information the document number commences 13507. It may take some of the members with a more detailed knowledge to pick through it
Just to confirm we have the right man, below is an extract from his medical history at the point in 1917 when he moves from the RWF Training Reserve battalion to a fighting battalion. It shows his old service number 26452 crossed out and replaced with his new number 58456
Attached is the opening page of the service record
Last edited by ap1; 01-03-2008 at 11:00.
Our researchers provide their time and considerable expertise for free. However if you want to say thank-you, a donation to the up-keep of the forum would be greatly appreciated. Click here to make a donation
Our researchers provide their time and considerable expertise for free. However if you want to say thank-you, a donation to the up-keep of the forum would be greatly appreciated. Click here to make a donation
This document dated the 10th March 1919 deals with Williams medals. It states they are to be sent to his father Cornelius Burns at:
White lea Cottage
Greenfield
Oldham
Interestingly in other documents his mother is shown as his next of kin in relation to payments/allowances. She lives at the same address
It is amazing for me to see these documents after all these years. Cornelius was of course my Grandfather his wife was Isabella. Another thing of great interest to me was the address of White lea Cottage. My Dad often spoke of White lea and I thought it was a Farm. Now I see it was a cottage on a farm and that makes a lot more sense to me now.My Dad moved to the South of England during the depression and over the years all contact has been lost with the family in the North. Again thank you David Burns
I can confirm Isabella Burns, is listed within the records as Williams mother. The only other detail I can provide is Williams Medal Index Card, which will confirm which medals he was entitled too:
It will cost £3.50 to download, and we will be happy to answer any queries you have.
Some small detail about the 18th Y & L :
18th (Service) Battalion
Formed in Margate on 11 June 1918, absorbing the cadre of the 2/7th Bn, the West Yorks.
11 June 1918 : attached to 41st Brigade, 14th Division.
The only thing to do now is to make that family trip to his grave.
Last edited by ap1; 01-03-2008 at 17:40.
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A little more information is also available from the National Archive online. The link below will allow you to download the 18th Bn's War diary for the period Aug-Oct 1918. Again at £3.50
This may tell you where his battalion was when he was killed. Although its unlikely that he will be named. Can you let us all know how you get on David.
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Originally Posted by Clive Hughes
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