TOPIC:

Hey there,

Thank you for replying. I have seen and been told chances of papers are very unlikely given he died during service in the Boer War. And yes, apologies I meant Nazareth House, that public family tree is the one I am currently building out to find anything further. I had already noticed that the two sisters did end up after living with the maternal grandmother in the 1911, but for some reason no family members took them in when they were war stranded or orphaned.

In regards to the medals, would these have likely been handed to the Next of Kin at all? I hadn’t considered looking up about the place itself! Could there be an error in the notice at all?

Kacj,

Yes, his medal would have been issued to the next of kind recorded on his papers. Sometimes the rolls say when and to whom but not in this case. As IL says, the rolls only record that he was deceased.

@David, Rivaanspruit is a mystery for now. Stirling picks up their history in the month after his death.

Best wishes
David

A source of possible help will be this book:

'The Royals in South Africa, 1899-1902' edited by E. Makins, published in 1914, 199p

Cannot locate a copy online yet ...

No luck with Private Higgins place of demise I'm afraid.
Unusual name Rivaan, it has its origins in Sanskrit / Indian dialect. It translates into a couple of meanings. Little King, Sunrise and Shining Star. The Afrkkaan equivalent may be Riaan. Either way, Private Higgins along with 2 of his comrades were involved in a skirmish East of Rivaan/Riaan Spruit on that fatefull Thursday in March 1901. His fellow soldiers who were with him and were severely and dangerously wounded were 4520 H T Fryer and 4471 R Castleton.
As Riaan is a South African name it could be possible that the skirmish may have taken place near a farm with a dry water course nearby?I had a quick check of other actions/ skirmishes that occurred on the 14th March 1901 with casualties attributed to Dragoons. There were a couple of entries, 5th Dragoon Guards at Mabole River and the 7th Dragoon Guards at Boontjesfontein.


Dave....