TOPIC:

Jon

They are on the cover of the book!

Brian

Jon

Newton's medals are in my collection, together with a lot of papers from local archives. The book in the photo is a recent publication, but what is missing are copies of the couple of books that were authored by Newton himself in the 1930's. I hope to find copies and that one of them will reveal more details of Newton's war service.

The recent biography, which is about 220 pages long, has one paragraph dealing with his war service. The Natal Light Horse was engaged in the Battle of Gibeon in German South West Africa, and, amongst other things, I would like to find out if Newton was present at the battle.

Newton was an extraordinary man in many ways, and, although his life is already well recorded, there are still some aspects that are worth researching.

Regards
Brett

As a "fresh recruit" & rookie very much trailing the galactic splendour of the offerings to date by "senior" servicemen, it is with diffidence & trepidation I venture a "best find" - a mere GVIR Military Cross award to a South African Lieut. for gallantry in the opening gambit of Monty's counter coup at Alamein.

But anticipating a moderator's court-martial & certainly ruled out-of-order as this is not ABW thematic, I perforce must hastily withdraw my offer - a pity though, it is a grand story.

Collection of medals, per se, is by no means an interest - my hobby so to speak, is collecting battles & battlefields, people & places. In this pursuit, the ABW website has proven a phenomenal store of comprehensive source material that is topically organized & readily accessed by user-friendly search/find data retrieval. The forum site is a positive Pandora's Box of prodigious expertise, sedulously masterminded by a formidable coterie of "senior" veteran stalwarts, always instant with help & profligate with knowledge.

My second "best find" must be - www.angloboerwar.com - & ALL for free!

LOL - as they say, with more strength to your arm in 2015!!
amb

Hi everybody

My best acquisition of 2014 is an addition to my small (and very slowly growing) collection of groups to Boer War combatants who fought in 4 or more wars/campaigns. Due to a catastrophe of logistical mishaps I cannot yet post a photo of the group.
Group of 8 to F Learoyd :
• QSA: Pte, 9th Coy Imp Yeo
• Natal 1906: Tpr, Natal Police
• WWI Trio : Cpl/SSM, 2nd SAMR
• WM & ASM : 86262
• PFEBS LSGC: SSM SAMR
As to yet I know absolutely nothing of the recipient. Due to the new regulations at the Military Archives I was not able to access his WWI & WWII Cards or Files and I did not have my references at hand to get copies his LS medal forms. I assume there could be some service details in the Natal Archives and there is an estate file 2996/1959
I suspect that he was also entitled to a Yorkshire Imp Yeo Tribute medal: hopefully this will turn up at some stage!

Henk

A manual search of WO128 should, I would hope, bring forth his papers as far as the Anglo Boer War is concerned, WO100/121 shows 26786 Fred Learoyd and the five clasps.

OSAKSA wrote: Hi everybody

My best acquisition of 2014 is an addition to my small (and very slowly growing) collection of groups to Boer War combatants who fought in 4 or more wars/campaigns. Due to a catastrophe of logistical mishaps I cannot yet post a photo of the group.
Group of 8 to F Learoyd :
• QSA: Pte, 9th Coy Imp Yeo
• Natal 1906: Tpr, Natal Police
• WWI Trio : Cpl/SSM, 2nd SAMR
• WM & ASM : 86262
• PFEBS LSGC: SSM SAMR
As to yet I know absolutely nothing of the recipient. Due to the new regulations at the Military Archives I was not able to access his WWI & WWII Cards or Files and I did not have my references at hand to get copies his LS medal forms. I assume there could be some service details in the Natal Archives and there is an estate file 2996/1959
I suspect that he was also entitled to a Yorkshire Imp Yeo Tribute medal: hopefully this will turn up at some stage!

Henk

Hi Everybody

My best find for 2014 is proving to be a group to Civ Surgeon, later Lt-Col George Oliver Moorhead.

QSA Natal, Transvaal
KSA 1901,1902
WW1 Trio 13th Mounted Rifles

This is what I know about him so far:
Born Port Louis, Mauritius, schooled Ireland.
Educated as a doctor Edinburgh.
Came to Transvaal about 1890, doctor in Middleburg,Transvaal.
Sequestrated in 1896, therefore penniless (in his words).
Forced to join/volunteered with the Middleburg Commando , Boer forces for ambulance service from outbreak of Boer War, doctor at Talana hospital and Colenso. Wrote detailed description of Natal Ambulance service in Cornhill Magazine 1900.
Describes Boer suspicion that their British doctors are poisoning them with carbolic acid used to sterilize wounds !
Left via Delagoa Bay for the Cape when Kruger stopped payment to Doctors in service of the Boers.
Joined Imperial Hospital Corps and served on Hospital Ship Lismore Castle.
Awarded QSA, and KSA

Returned to medical practice in Rustenburg/Vryburg, Transvaal.

Joined Northern Province Ruiters. (photo in uniform) circa 1914
Served in Rebellion.
Served in GSWA campaign, MID.
Appointed OC 1st South African Rifles for East Africa campaign ,and left for Nyasaland in late 1915.
Stationed at Karonga, northern tip of Lake Malawi 1916.

Soldiers were bored and near mutinous due to inaction for many months.
Moorhead manufactured home made granades using jam tins, probably in preparation for the planned offensive against the Germans planned to commence on 22 May 1916.
Transported on motor-cycle driven by Leon Haussmann, SAMCC, to bushy area a few miles from Karonga Boma, for testing of granades.
Moorhead threw one, which failed to immediately explode.

He approached it, and was severely injured in the explosion, on 11 May 1916.
Died from injuries at Karonga Hospital on 20 May 1916, buried Karonga Cemetery, Malawi.

There is no doubt, much more I will discover about him in the next few months, once I obtain his records from the military archives.

Regards


Adrian