Award of the Silver War Badge

[jds1949]

I'm pretty sure that you can't do what you want online. The last time I did a look-up it involved checking the code from the medal card against lists in a loose leaf folder from the enquiry desk and noting the relevant piece number and then ordering up the said piece [the actual original roll] as an original document  - to do which you will need a reader's ticket.

If you do decide to visit the very helpful staff will guide you through the process, but there will be very little to show at the end of it - see my previous post.

jds1949

[Doddie]

Thanks to all who have taken the time to help. I will probably visit the Archives early next year. I have been down twice previously (on non WW1 related issues) so know my way around.  Thankfully there is other information I am looking for in addition to my Silver War Badge line of inquiry so the trip will hopefully bear more information than just that.

Regards

Doddie

[forester]

Doddie,

If I've got it right, this is the ledger you will be looking for:

http://www.rootschat.com/links/0flp/

Phil

[mmm45]

Phil....how did you work that one...think its spot on..Issued in Perth....if its on there do you think you can order on the Docs online if you quote the index number?

Ady

[Doddie]

Hi forester, thanks for that. Can I ask how you managed to narrow things down? When I went to check the Nat. Arch. catalogue there were various 'files' all under WO 329 and  all of which relate to Silver War Badges. I couldn't differentiate between them . The Perth reference does seem right as my grandfathers's other medals (Brtish War Medal & Victory Medal) were procesed and issued from there.

Regards

George

[forester]

Ady and George,

I'm sure that there must be an easier way of doing it, but I haven't worked it out yet. I just did it by trial and error from SWB Rolls that I do know the WO 329 reference for.

It isn't on Documents Online. The only SWB Rolls that I do know are online are the first volume of the Officer's Rolls, which to download the complete ledger, will cost over £40. I've yet to see the reasoning behind it; the amount of info is limited and the popularity can hardly match that of a war diary.

Phil

[Doddie]

Hi Phil, I appreciate you taking the time to check through the roll indexes. I will let you know how I get on when I visit Kew.

Regards

Doddie

[10BalmesRoad]

My grandfather - William James Dix - was a private in the 1/Northumberland Fusiliers and was discharged in August 1917 with shell shock and was awarded the Silver War Badge.

I found the Medal Roll Index Card on Ancestry.co.uk and was able to view the 'Roll of Individuals Entitled to the "War Badge" ' at the National Archives. I was allowed to copy the page which indicates enlistment and discharge dates etc.

This was a major breakthrough for me since I had so little information previously. It appears his other service records have not survived. The badge itself was probably lost in the Blitz' when my grandparents were bombed out in Highbury. He couldn't stand the noise of the air raids and spent many hours down the local tube station.

The Roll is now available online through Ancestry.co.uk - http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=2456

Also, the monthly Battalion War Diaries are available on the NA website.

I am currently trying to find a way of identifying other soldiers from the 1st that enlisted in January 1914. Also, I have a photo of him at a convalescent hospital somewhere and may be able to identify the location by way of the uniform of the nurse featured in the picture.

Regards Robert Dix Felixstowe

[mmm45]

Robert the old Documents online search used to let you search by number therefore if you had someone for example with the number 123456 you could put in search parameters 1234** so that would give you lads that would have enlisted pretty much at same time....its not foolproof but it worked for me identifying some lads from a Royal Engineers Tunnel company.

Unsure how the Discovery search engine plays!

Good luck

Ady