RootsChat.Com

Hi Hannah

You can reach me and Martin (we are brothers as well as co-authors) on twowheelstowar@gmail.com.

When we started the research we had a vision that the material could lead to a television treatment as well as the book that we produced.

You won't be surprised to learn that we think there are many angles which the television production company might want to explore!

best wishes
Nick

Dear Hannah
I'm still very active in my research - my brother and I published Two Wheels to War (Helion Press) earlier this year. It is an expanded edition of WHL Watson's Adventure of a Despatch Rider - it is illustrated with photographs taken by Watson's colleagues and includes biographies of the 5th Signals despatch riders and other men mentioned in the book. It also includes extensive extracts from letters and diaries written by the 5th Signals men and chapters on the men and their machines. Search for the book on Amazon or Bookfinder if you want to find more.

If you post what you are looking for at the archives, I'd be happy to help and advise on what to look for.

Hello again
I stumbled across more information about your photograph this morning - a stereoscopic version of the picture (showing the upper storeys) is now on UK ebay at no 231178222343
 
I made some further enquiries and discovered that the original photograph is one of 167 photographs taken by Dr Birdwood, an official photographer, to be found in the India Office Library at the British Library in St Pancras

this picture is Photo 21/(95) captioned "Motor-lorries and cycles of the Indian Army Corps' Signallers packed in the main square at Merville".

Wikipedia tells us that Merville was completely destroyed but a glance at Streetview shows that there is still a large central square, and I imagine this is where the picture was taken

best wishes!

Hi there
 
I had a very successful visit to TNA - looked at more than a dozen war diaries of Signals units and nearly 100 personal files of despatch riders. There's some fascinating information there, I'm still in the process of entering all the data into my database so I can work out what it all means!

The relevant diaries for the purpose of identifying the Indian Army unit in the photograph were WO 95/3919 Lahore Division Signal Company and WO 95/393 Meerut Division Signal Company. As I frequently found elsewhere, the recording by officers of similar units varied tremendously - some officers wrote long and detailed entries while others wrote the bare minimum.

The Lahore Division landed at Marseilles on 30th September 1914 and went by train to Toulouse, and thence by train to Argenton and Orleans where they were in camp from 2nd to 16th October. On 17th and 18th October they went by train to Boulogne, then Calais and St Omer. The stopping point for 17th and 18th October was written as BLENDECOUVES but I think must have been BLENDECQUES, which is a town near St Omer.

Over the following days they went by road to the Front through the following towns:
HALLINES; LYNDES; BAILLEUIL; ESTAIRES; LOCON; LEVANTIE; LE TOURET

In my opinion the photograph was probably taken in one of those destinations. I've looked at Blendecques and Estaires on Google StreetView and the architecture is very reminiscent of the photograph.

If the town survives, I think we have a good chance of identifying it - I expect the names of the shops will certainly have changed but it is quite distinctive with two four bay buildings looking onto a square with room for the Signals company and the photographer on the opposite side of the square. Have a look for yourself!

regards
Nick

Hi Simon, I'm very I didn't make it to TNA - ill-health, I'm afraid. Will probably go in June, it's very frustrating because I had a lorra lorra documents I was going to look at!! Nick