"Military Hospitals Admissions and Discharge

[monkstown]

I was trying to find a record for Alec Watson, Cameron Highlanders 16936 in "Military Hospitals Admissions and Discharge Registers WW1" but I can't locate it. I know every record is not in it but just wondered was I doing something wrong?

[Pam Downes]

I was trying to find a record for Alec Watson, Cameron Highlanders 16936 in "Military Hospitals Admissions and Discharge Registers WW1" but I can't locate it. I know every record is not in it but just wondered was I doing something wrong?

Yes. You're ignoring the first half of your final sentence.

You're also ignoring the fact that FWR say

These were originally created and kept by the ‘war office’ under the heading ‘representative medical records of servicemen’. MH106 is not by any means a complete collection of all medical records of those who fought in WWI by some margin as most records are believed to have been destroyed before going into storage after the great war,

https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/collections/129/military-hospitals-admissions-and-discharge-registers-ww1
So if it started out as 'representative medical records' that means less than 100% - possibly as low as 10% of all records. Which is a much lower figure than the approximately 30% of service records which survive from WW1.

Note that at the top of page about these records it says "This collection is a work in progress" which means that there are more records to be added, so you might still be lucky. I don't know if FWR would be able to give you an indication of the percentage of records are still to be transcribed.

[christanel]

Hi
Looking on ancestry there is this. note the first name is Alexander.
UK, World War I Service Medal and Award Rolls, 1914-1920
Alexander Watson
Military Year: 1914-1920
Rank - Lance Corporal
Regiment - Cameron Highlanders (Queen´s Own)
Regiment Number - S/16936
Medal Awarded - British War Medal and Victory Medal

UK, British Army World War I Medal Rolls Index Cards, 1914-1920
Alexander Watson
Regiment or Corps - Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders
Regimental Number - S/16936
It states his first theater of war was France which he entered 11 may 1915. It also shows he received the 15 Star.

On the back of the card next to the Address section is written 8 May 1943, Etteridge? Sons?
R.R. no 2, Woodstock Ontario? Canada.
Does any of this sound like your man?
Christina

[christanel]

His entry in the UK, World War I Service Medal and Award Rolls, 1914-1920 for the 15 Star says the disembarkation date was 11 May 1915 and he was discharged 9 November 1916.

There are his Pension Ledgers on Fold 3 accessible from ancestry.com but at an extra charge so I can only see the transcription.
Alexander Watson
Record Type: Card
Service Number: 16936
Corps, Regiment or Unit Cameron Highlanders
Title: WWI Pension Record Cards and Ledgers
Description - Other Ranks Survived
Reference Number - 58709/Os/M
Of course you may already have all of this but if you have been using the first name Alec and not Alexander that may be why you are not finding anything for him in the Military Hospitals Admissions and Discharge (which I haven't looked at)
Christina

[Jomot1]

Not what you're asking for, but I see he received the Silver War Badge due to wounds and was discharged on 5 Jul 1916, having enlisted on 18 Jan 1915.

His pension card on Fold3 says he received a GSW to his left knee.

GSW is shorthand for Gun Shot Wound, although it was also used for things like shrapnel wounds etc.

[christanel]

On Forces War Records there are 3 entries definitely him. Would he have been in Perth Scotland 1917?
Living on this side of the world I immediately thought Perth Australia until a flicker of comprehension crossed the tiny brain.
Christina

[Jomot1]

On Forces War Records there are 3 entries definitely him. Would he have been in Perth Scotland 1917?

The address on his pension record is 12 Armour Terrace, Darvel, Ayreshire

The only reference I can see to Perth is the medal award rolls which were stamped by the military records office in Perth (No 1. District/Area).

[Jomot1]

I’m not sure what information you were hoping to find in the hospital admissions records, but it looks like he was injured in 1915 as he appears in the casualty lists in the Dundee Courier 22 Oct 1915.

These were usually printed several weeks after the event, and the same edition includes the death of another member of the 1st Cameron Highlanders – R Bryson, 17720. From the CWGC site he died 5 Oct 1915, although this was at the 10th Stationary Hospital, St Omer, so the event is likely to have happened a week or so before this. Other casualties on the page – from different battalions or regiments – died of wounds 25-27 Sep 1915.

Looking at the war diary for the 1st Cameron Highlanders, they were attacked at 5.30 am on 25th September, with casualties amounting to 17 Officers & 369 men. This differs very slightly to the figures elsewhere in the diary which say 4 officers had been killed, 11 wounded, 1 missing (believed to be in hospital), and ‘other ranks total’: 369

The war diary for the 10th Stationary Hospital doesn’t mention anyone by name, but Alexander may have been transferred there alongside Pte Bryson as the hospital war diary says that on 25th Sept they received a wire stating “Your hospital to be prepared to take in cases to the number of 50% above its establishment. Accommodation to be improvised from equipment available in Ordnance Stores. Report action taken urgent. Palliasses should be used in preference to stretchers if beds not available”

The hospital diary notes that 300 extra beds were created, bringing capacity to 900, and that convoys began arriving from the front shortly after 1.30am on 27th. By 7.30am that day 626 men and 17 officers had been admitted. More were admitted over the next few days including (on 29th) “77 lying cases (GSW) admitted as transfers from barges No. 106, 107 & 110". Over the next few days there were various evacuations & transfers via hospital trains etc.

The diaries can be downloaded for free from the National Archives.

[Peter Goodey]

Very often worth looking at the National Archives catalogue.

It includes the following...

The records in this series are a representative selection of the original collection and were prepared after the destruction of the 1914-1918 War Medical Records. The destroyed Medical War Records were sent for pulping between April and July 1975, and filled 16,524 sacks, weighing 275 tons. The surviving sample weighs 2½ tons.

So we're talking about a sample of less than 1% by weight!

[monkstown]

Thank you all very much. What I was actually hoping (and I suppose I should have looked at another soldier's record in detail to check) was if the name/signature of a medical staff member might be on his record documenting his care. I know he was cared for in 2nd Western General Hospital in Manchester from Sept 1915 (according to a personal note written by a nurse - would he have reached Manchester from Stationary Hospital, St Omer by the end of Sept? ) to July 1916 for treatment of his GSW. Fascinating reading - many thanks.