Comments on: Somewhere in France http://airminded.org/2007/11/11/somewhere-in-france/ Airpower and British society, 1908-1941 Sat, 20 Mar 2010 15:05:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Brett Holman http://airminded.org/2007/11/11/somewhere-in-france/comment-page-1/#comment-74063 Brett Holman Mon, 12 May 2008 16:42:35 +0000 http://airminded.org/2007/11/11/remembrance-day/#comment-74063 The <a href="http://www.cwgc.org/" rel="nofollow">Commonweath War Graves Commission</a> (CWGC) would certainly be the best place to look initially, as they maintain all the cemeteries. Searching on their website finds <a href="http://www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=1452926" rel="nofollow">this record</a> of Harold Oliver Watt. Looking at it, and comparing it with the record for <a href="http://www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=196235" rel="nofollow">my relative</a>, I'm pretty sure that Watt has no known grave. His record gives no 'Grave/Memorial Reference', and it refers to a 'Memorial', not a 'Cemetery'. So it looks like his name is recorded on the <a href="http://www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=93000&mode=1" rel="nofollow">Villers-Bretonneux Memorial</a> and he's not actually buried there. (Most of those buried there were killed in 1918.) The following doesn't prove much, but if you go to the <a href="http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/recordsearch.aspx" rel="nofollow">NAA</a> and search for Harold Oliver Watt, you can actually see his army service record. The third page of his records (it might be visible <a href="http://naa16.naa.gov.au/rs_images/lun3/images/sparimg3_images/ww1/Tape32/B2455_4/Small/8376161_0003.jpg" rel="nofollow">here</a>) says that he was 'Buried between Pozieres & Mouquet Farm'. This was a temporary, post-battle burial and after the war his body would have been relocated to one of the permanent cemeteries (like Courcelette, where Mulqueeney is buried). But I note that there is some uncertainty there: it says 'Probably in [...]' and there follows what looks like some sort of map reference. So if they weren't sure where he was buried at the time, maybe they couldn't find him after the war? But I'm not an expert on this, it's just my best guess. You could try the CWGC, I assume they are used to handling such enquiries. If you have no luck there, maybe try registering at the <a href="http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/" rel="nofollow">Great War Forum</a> -- lots of helpful and knowledgeable people there. Hopefully I'm wrong and somebody can locate his grave! But if not it's probably better to find out now than go all the way over there and be disappointed ... The Commonweath War Graves Commission (CWGC) would certainly be the best place to look initially, as they maintain all the cemeteries. Searching on their website finds this record of Harold Oliver Watt. Looking at it, and comparing it with the record for my relative, I’m pretty sure that Watt has no known grave. His record gives no ‘Grave/Memorial Reference’, and it refers to a ‘Memorial’, not a ‘Cemetery’. So it looks like his name is recorded on the Villers-Bretonneux Memorial and he’s not actually buried there. (Most of those buried there were killed in 1918.)

The following doesn’t prove much, but if you go to the NAA and search for Harold Oliver Watt, you can actually see his army service record. The third page of his records (it might be visible here) says that he was ‘Buried between Pozieres & Mouquet Farm’. This was a temporary, post-battle burial and after the war his body would have been relocated to one of the permanent cemeteries (like Courcelette, where Mulqueeney is buried). But I note that there is some uncertainty there: it says ‘Probably in [...]‘ and there follows what looks like some sort of map reference. So if they weren’t sure where he was buried at the time, maybe they couldn’t find him after the war?

But I’m not an expert on this, it’s just my best guess. You could try the CWGC, I assume they are used to handling such enquiries. If you have no luck there, maybe try registering at the Great War Forum — lots of helpful and knowledgeable people there. Hopefully I’m wrong and somebody can locate his grave! But if not it’s probably better to find out now than go all the way over there and be disappointed …

]]> By: Chris http://airminded.org/2007/11/11/somewhere-in-france/comment-page-1/#comment-74043 Chris Mon, 12 May 2008 10:27:05 +0000 http://airminded.org/2007/11/11/remembrance-day/#comment-74043 Brett Thanks for the recent info, re Harold Oliver Watt. Is there a way to find out if he is buried in a certain cemetry??? chris Brett
Thanks for the recent info, re Harold Oliver Watt. Is there a way to find out if he is buried in a certain cemetry???

chris

]]> By: Airminded · Acquisitions http://airminded.org/2007/11/11/somewhere-in-france/comment-page-1/#comment-64857 Airminded · Acquisitions Fri, 23 Nov 2007 06:39:49 +0000 http://airminded.org/2007/11/11/remembrance-day/#comment-64857 [...] Fourth: A History of Sydney’s 4th Battalion 1914-19. McCrae: Slouch Hat Publications, 2007. Private Mulqueeney’s unit, though the poor sod was with it in the field for only a couple of months before his death. It [...] [...] Fourth: A History of Sydney’s 4th Battalion 1914-19. McCrae: Slouch Hat Publications, 2007. Private Mulqueeney’s unit, though the poor sod was with it in the field for only a couple of months before his death. It [...]

]]>