TOPIC:

With the Sister as NoK and the Brummie connection, I think Rory has nailed it.

Here are the SAC papers for both the men as mentioned in the original post.

I have only posted the first page of both.

Here is the first page only for H350 John Gray SAC as mentioned by Rory.



Regards

Many thanks all for your contributions especially CapePolice

The first 4 sets of papers confirm none of the 4 relate to “my” man although it would appear that 1567 Thomas Gray is one and the same as the John Gray I identified living in Cramlington, son of a coal miner and in 1911 working as a “Reading Room Caretaker” (which might have been a grander job than it sounds). Note on his discharge paper his “address upon discharge” is given as “Hartford Colliery, Cramlington, Northumberland”. Soldiers using false names was not uncommon, the most usual being to use their mother’s maiden name, but I have come across a couple who just used different given names. So, I would like to see any more paperwork associated with him if that is not too much trouble.

Moving on to Rory’s Brummie with a NoK sister, my heart began to quicken when I noticed her address was 60 Sycamore Road, Birmingham. Smethwick has always suffered an identity crisis owing to big brother Brum and there was and still is a Sycamore Road in Smethwick which was very much part of my childhood stamping grounds. However checking every census return going there never was a 60 Sycamore Road, Smethwick – every time the numbers jump from 54 to 62. At the time there were 3 Sycamore Roads in Birmingham and a fourth was added later in the land of chocolate (i.e Bournville). Also her name is incorrect as “my” man’s sister was Mrs J Meldicott unless she had remarried by April 1905 and the date of the papers is the second problem as “my” man, based on the date of the Smethwick Telephone article, would have enlisted in the SALH/SAC or whatever in 1901.

Regards, David.

Hello David,

Do you know if this Thomas Gray ever returned to SA ?

I ask as I have a death notice to a Thomas Gray who was born in England and died in Brakpan, South Africa on the 14/06/1957 aged 81 years. He was noted as a retired Miner.

All seems to indicate that it could possibly be him.

Regards

David,

This is the only other bits I have from the Attestation files:



Regards