Coastguards during the Crimean War

[crimea1854]

Hi Rebecca

As you rightly say William served during the Crimean War on HMS Royal George as an able-seaman (ships No.8). I have been singularly unsuccessful in downloading one of the earlier CG Establishment Books, but I have reconstructed his service career from 1837. On 22 April 1837 he appears to have been transferred from Hastings to Portreath where he remained until 15 Sept 1848 when he was removed to St Agnes (ADM 175/7 pdf 538). On 26th July 1850 he was promoted to a Commissioned Boatman and transferred to Coverack (ADM 175/7 pdf 539). He remained at this station until being superannuated on 31 July 1865 (ADM 175/33 pdf 51).

According to my database he was born in Dover and I have a birth date of 20 June 1811, I can only assume I got this from his Merchant Seaman's Ticket on FMP (Ticket No. 250260), but the later CG records have his date of birth as 20 Aug 1809. If you can get access to his Ticket there may well be a physical description together with some earlier details of his career.

Hope this helps.
Martin

PS For his Crimea service he was awarded the Baltic Medal sent to Falmouth CG District in 1857.

[rebeccajonesnz]

Hello Martin,

Thank you for sharing this valuable information, I am most grateful and now have the information from the National Archive site. William's birthdate is still an anomaly and I have both dates recorded at the moment until more concrete evidence turns up.

Thank you again and cheerio for now.
Rebecca

[elsinore]

From England, Select Births and Christenings 1538-1975:

William Wilkins EBBET baptised 27th October 1811 at St James the Apostle, Dover. Father William EBBET, mother Susanna.

Peter

[kentishmaid]

There were approximately 2600 Coast Guards who entered the Royal Navy to help fill a manning shortage during the Crimean War (1854-56). For the majority of these men there is no official record of this service.

In an effort to redress this I have just completed a three-year project (I work slowly!) to create a database intended to identify those men who did serve in the navy. This has been constructed from Ship’s Muster and Description Books, cross-referenced with the Medal Roll, it records the ship(s) they served on, their ships no., place of birth and age in 1854, together with where their medal was sent.

If you have an ancestor who was a Coast Guard during the Crimean War, I’m more than happy to do a lookup.

Martin

Hi Martin
My Great, Great Grandfather, James Wyatt, born in Binstead Isle of Wight 1819, was a coastguard. Do you have any records of him?

Thank you so much for your time on this!
Kentishmaid

[crimea1854]

Kentishmaid

I have no record of him on my database, but there is a service record for him held by the National Archives in ADM 29/80/313 (this is also available on Ancestry). The record has a note written very faintly - lent/sent to RN 1854, which ties in with the start of the Crimean war, but I could find no record of him on the medal roll.


Most of his early career was aboard Revenue Cruisers and I did find him in ADM 175/20, this can be downloaded for free from the NA website. I also found him on ADM 175/35 pdf 458 @ Kingsdown, Deal. Unfortunately the earlier record book for the previous CG Ships Book (Hector Vol 1) is missing from the series.


Hope this has been of some help

Martin

[kentishmaid]

Martin
Thank you so much for this - how amazing! I massively appreciate your efforts to find out more about my great, great grandfather. He's absolutely key in our family history; he held together a huge family without a wife, and supported not only his children, but their spouses too through illness and unemployment. I think he had a tremendous work ethic that he passed down the generations and we're very proud of him.

Thanks again,
Kahryn

[kentishmaid]

Hi Martin
Have had a look at those records and think they might not be my James Wyatt, as the date for when he was allotted is 1806 and he wasn't born until 1819. I wonder if it another relative - who deserted!

Thanks again!
Kahryn

[crimea1854]

It occurred to me after I'd posted, that if you could get to the National Archives it would be worth looking at the Muster Book for the RC Rose - https://discovery.nationalarchives.go...ils/r/C2189924 this could provide details of where he was lent if he served in the RN during the Crimean War. The other avenue worth exploring is if he was issued with a seamen's ticket, these can be found on Find my Past or at the NA.


Martin

Correction: the ref in my first post should be ADM 175/24 not 175/20

[johnb1]

Martin, I have a grt grt grt granddad who served in the coastguard in england and ireland. Robert Bennett. he was born in 1799/1800 and joined the coastguard in 1829. having served in the royal navy for 5 years 1819 -1824, the years between navy and coastgaurd are a mystery. The weird thing is that he served up till 1851 in england, last station kessingland ... then appears back in ireland as a permanent extra man in adm175-19 pages 272 (Belderig) and 278(Ross) 1851-1857.. I know they drafted a lot of guys into the royal navy so he might have been coaxed out of retiremen to fill in vacancies but the strange thing is, in kessingland he is married to margaret in the 1851 cencus then in the 1861 he is retired living with her in Lowestoft.... but he is also living n Killala married to Judith and had at least three children there with her, and died in Killala in 187? and died in lowestoft in 186?... leads me to believe that thier were two Robert Bennetts but I have searched through the appointment books and can only find a record of one joining in Hawich in 1829 and on page 278 it mentions him joining in 1829 to much of a coincidence do you think....?? I think i have asked you this question in Coastguards of yesteryear, but there is a problem with my id and i cnnot get on to that site any more

[kevinvictordowd]

Martin, a great service you are offering. TIA

Do you have any record of my coastguard ancestor, Robert Atkinson Watson?