TOPIC:

Hi
I am busy helping my son with a history project on our ancestry. I can find very few records of my great grandfather, James Gates Wilkinson and family legend says that he came to South Africa with "an Irish Regiment" during the Boer War and then "went missing" from this regiment to marry my great grandmother, a boer girl from the Free State. Were records of missing soldiers or deserters kept and where would I find them?

All surviving British Army papers are in WO97, WO363 and WO364 at Kew, most, although certainly not all, are available online these days and the medal rolls in WO100 normally do state if a man deserted during the war, so that is the best way forward, you would need to look at the many men with the name James Wilkinson who are in the correct time frame.
From memory, there is a partial index of deserters at Kew that actually covers the rewards paid for "turning them in" because of the way things were, desertion was commonplace.
You could have a look at the local press too, for the period in question, if, of course, you happen to know where the man came from in the first place, details of deserters were "advertised" to encourage people to turn them in, although, to be honest, this latter would certainly be less applicable if he deserted whilst on campaign in South Africa.

How would I find these records online?

Just go into FMP and Ancestry.

My wife's GGF rejoined the Army for ww1 but had to give a false surname, we think this is due to deserting in SA Boer war. Did you find a list of deserters.

Welcome Scratch......

Can you please provide both names......

Mike