Where else can I turn?

[Gadget]

I'd check the Glasgow marriage records for a marriage after your uncle's birth; they might have just said 'we married last year in London' to make it look like he wasn't illegitimate.

I had a good look on SP yesterday.

Gadget

[jorose]

Then I'm guessing your hunch is right, and they didn't marry for whatever reason.  Have you tried over on the Armed Forces boards? I think some people there have medal rolls for the Boer War.

[Subaru]

Hi everyone

Thanks for all your help.  Yes I've tried most armed forces websites, including this one.  I don't have a lot to go on, and I'm not sure if I'll ever find out which regiment he was in, not without his army number.

I've also built my family tree on genes, and have had contact with two distant cousins of my mam's on her mam's side.  Also a distant cousin on my husband's side through them.  I would definitely recommend it to anyone.  But on all the websites I've used, nobody has come up with anything on the Fordes.  I think it's a full stop.

I am going to sit tonight and write a long letter to my uncle, and ask him to write back with as much information as he can remember about his mother and father, hopefully something may come up that hasn't before.  I have tried Ethel Main in the marriages to see if she was married before.  There was one, with somebody I can't remember now, but it turned out to be somebody else's relation, and not mine.

Anyway thanks again

Rosemary

[neil1821]

Rosemary,
I came across this one while searching for another Boer War related thread.
I have the medal rolls for the Foot Guards in the Boer War.

There IS in the Coldstream Guards roll a Private T Ford (no E). Service number 21
Awarded the clasps for Cape Colony, Paardeberg, Driefontein, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill, Belfast.
Ford/Forde is so close that it could simply be down to a clerical error.

Doesn't appear on the casualty roll so wasn't injured in South Africa.
Neil

[Subaru]

Hi Neil

Could you please explain 'clasps'?  I haven't heard of that medal/award.  I have been trying both versions of Ford/e.  Are the places listed the places he fought at?  How did Belfast come into it?

It would be nice if it was my grandfather, but I'm not hopeful.  the Coldstream Guards did a thorough search for me years ago, and the dates etc didn't tally.

Thank you so much for replying

Rosemary

[philipsearching]

Hallo, Rosemary

In effect there are two types of medal - awards for bravery and campaign medals.

A campaign medal is issued to service personnel who served in a campaign (or a war) such as the Crimean War, the Boer War, the Great War etc.

In a campaign there may be several individual battles or significant events (eg in the Crimean War there were battles at Inkerman, Balaclava, Sevastopol etc).  A clasp was issued to service personnel who werer at the battle or event.

A clasp is a strip of metal, rather like a tie clip, with the name of the battle (and  the date) on it.  The clasp is attached to the ribbon of the campaign medal.

The picture below shows (left) the Victoria Cross and (right) the Boer War campaign medal with one clasp.

Hope this helps.
Philip

[neil1821]

Sorry Rosemary,
Should have explained myself!
The medal referred to is the Queens South Africa Medal for Boer War service.
Clasps were awarded depending on service as Philip says.
Perhaps some webpages/photos will explain it better

http://homepages.tesco.net/~medals/qsam.htm

Qualification for the clasps is set out here
http://www.stephen-stratford.co.uk/boer_war.htm

Belfast in this case, as you've probably guessed by now, is the site of a battle in South Africa.
Neil

[yankiescot]

Hi Rosemary,

Have you tried putting together a time-line for the location of the Coldstream Guards as it relates to readily available data, like, census years?

Example: in 1891 the Coldstream Guards were located (I do not know where, I am just making an example) Suffolk. Then look for last name matches, etc.. For this example there happens to be a George Thomas Ford born Ireland c1872 in the infantry in Suffolk.