Showing posts with label King's Own Scottish Borderers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label King's Own Scottish Borderers. Show all posts

1 November 2015

King's Own Scottish Borderers - Other Rank PoWs 1914


This is an edited roll of Other Ranks serving with the 1st and 2nd Battalions, King's Own Scottish Borderers, who were captured by the enemy and became Prisoners of War on or before the 25th December 1914. Read more about this data source on my 1914 PoWs 
page.

This data has been transcribed from a single source at the Imperial War Museum: B.O.2 1/133, a 6-page, typed list sent by the King's Own Scottish Borderers Prisoner of War Fund to Sir Ernest Goodhart, dated 23rd December 1918.

My full transcription of this KOSB data (not reproduced here) also contains:

  • the man's home address
  • the man's battalion and company
There are 190 names on this list, light by some battalions' standards for 1914 but nevertheless a significant loss of experienced soldiers.

The full transcription is available for sale as a download or CD for £20. Contact me if you would like to purchase a copy.


10169 Sergeant J Adair, 9699 Private P Aird, 10959 Private J Aitchison, 11019 Private F Allen, 8814 Lance-Corporal J Allen, 8769 Lance-Corporal P Allen, 7493 Private A Anderson, 11187 Private G Anderson, 8396 Private J Anderson, 11419 Private W Anderson, 4729 Corporal N Armstrong, 8386 Private E Ashworth, 10794 Private H Axford

5912 Sergeant J J Bacon, 11655 Private J Barnes, 9775 Lance-Corporal E Barwick, 9653 Private G Baxter, 8978 Private J Beats, 7625 Private J Beattie, 8305 Lance-Corporal W J Begbie, 8738 Private J J Bell, 8687 Private E Bell, 9314 Private J Black, 9193 Private D Blackburn, 8794 Private W Bloomfield, 7094 Private J Bonnar, 8905 Private C Borthwick, 8733 Corporal E Bowar, 9757 Private R Bowden, 5801 Lance-Corporal W Brady, 9166 Private T Brisons, 9445 Private C Brown, 9392 Lance-Corporal J Brown, 10953 Lance-Corporal R J Brown, 9227 Lance-Corporal P Buckle, 11067 Private W Bunyon

8922 Private P Cahill, 11530 Lance-Corporal G Cairns, 8348 Private J Callander, 8846 Pte James Cameron, 8578 Private J Campbell, 9221 Private R Cassidy, 1545 Private A Chambers, 8074 Private J Charlton, 7441 Private A Chisholm, 7923 Private A Christie, 8730 Private A Clarke, 7678 Private R Clayton, 11206 Private T Clayton, 5914 Private P Conlin, 9311 Private M Cooney, 8613 Lance-Corporal H Cooper, 8641 Lance-Corporal J Cooper, 8626 Private R Cooper, 9701 Private G Coulter, 6534 Private W Cox, 8028 Lance-Corporal J Craig, 9820 Private J C Cullen, 10538 Private W Cunningham, 8724 Private G Curley, 11432 Private A Curtis, 

A/6729 Private J F Dent, 7926 Private R Devery, 9025 Private P Devlin, 8170 Private J Dickenson, 9720 Private W Dixon, 7421 Private J E Dodds, 10190 Private W M Doig, 9477 Private R Douglas, 11593 Private R J Drake, 11599 Lance-Corporal J Dunnion, 

8104 Private G Eadie

11764 Private J Farrell, 9677 Lance-Corporal J Farries, 8140 Private J Faulkney, 8670 Corporal J Feats, 8264 Corporal J Ferguson, 5741 CSM H Fitzgerald

9106 Private A Galloway, 9625 Private J Garrogan, 8252 Lance-Corporal H Gauld, 11424 Sergeant C A Geddes, 9298 Lance-Corporal J Gibb, 11376 Private D Gilmartin, 10636 Drummer H Glover, 11568 Private F S Goldsmith, 11409 Private N Gordon, 8354 Private T Gordon, 574 Lance-Corporal J Grant, 
9675 Private J Gray, 6698 Private O Gray, 7814 Private T Guffney, 10586 Sergeant W N Gunn 

10552 Private J Haley, 11576 Private N Halstead, 8058 Private W Hamilton, 7613 Private P Hannan, 7866 Lance-Corporal J Hartley, 8171 Private T Hastie, 11448 Private A Hechles, 7977 Private R Hennigan, 11766 Private J Herbert, 11714 Private A Hetherington, 10398 Private R Hogg, 10808 Private M Hurst, 11283 Private T Husland, 9615 Private T Hutton, 9453 Lance-Corporal W Hutton, 11582 Corporal W T Hyde 

8044 Pte Edward Jackson, 9212 Private A Johnson, 8659 Private J Johnson, 11557 Pte Harold Victor Johnstone, 9190 Private T Johnstone, 8700 Private W H Jones
 
9195 Private H Kelly, 11546 Private J Kelly, 8291 Private H Kennedy, 7366 Private D King

8692 Private W Laing, 11676 Private C Landells, 8943 Private F Lawson, 1427 Private F J Lawton, 11188 Corporal J R Leslie, 11310 Private J Lockhart, 

7332 Private D Mackay, 9718 Private J Mackie, 8758 Private H Mail, 8964 Private D Martin, 9995 Sergeant D Mathieson, 11464 Private R McAuley, 9199 Private H McCleallan, 8727 Private J McCluskey, 7815 Private W McCracken, 11495 Private C McDonald, 8766 Private J McDougall, 8854 Private W McGeachy, 8760 Private P McGeogh, 8937 Private W McGuire, 10835 Private J D McIlroy, 8980 Private P McInally, 10903 Private W McKie, 9185 Private J McLean, 9683 Private J McLeod, 10641 Private J McLeod, 8385 Private R McMartin, 9708 Private A McNaught, 8134 Private F McShane, 9281 Private A Melrose, 8177 Private A Miller, 8942 Private J Miller, 11060 Private W D Monks, 19750 Sergeant W Moran, 11415 Private O S Muirhead, 10327 Private W Munn, 8903 Private W Murphy
 
8698 Private C Naylor, 7641 Private M Neenan

11344 Lance-Corporal J Partner, 11227 Private W Patterson, 11232 Private T Peckham, 11142 Private T Pike, 11594 Private H Pilling, 11580 Private W Platt, 9678 Private J Purves, 10904 Private W Purves,

11700 Private J Ralph, 8287 Private J H Ratcliffe, 8864 Private S Reilly, 8323 Private J Renwick, 8366 Private J Roach, 9913 Private J Rogers, 9211 Private A A Ross, 8378 Private T Ryan 

11373 Private W Saunders, 7909 Pte H Smith, 7456 Private J Smith, 8600 Private R Smith, 11360 Lance-Corporal T Smith, 11549 Lance-Corporal W C Smith, 11704 Private A Storrie

11470 Private W Tait, 7996 Private A Tancred, 6758 Private S Tenby, 10821 Private J Toolen 

9280 Private E Warley, 10091 Lance-Corporal W Watson, 9774 Private J J White, 10739 Lance-Corporal A F Williams, 7836 Sergeant A Wilson

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21 December 2012

King's Own Scottish Borderers - 1st and 2nd Battalions



The War Office had intended that the regiment should be named The York Regiment (King’s Own Borderers) and with the regimental depot in York.  Instead, it became the King’s Own Borderers with its depot at Berwick-upon-Tweed.  It was formed on 1st July 1881 from the 25th (The York) Regiment of Foot (King’s Own Borderers) and started numbering from 1 in 1881.


There are over 28,000 King's Own Scottish Borderers pension and service records (for this regiment - and its antecedents) in various War Office series held at the National Archives. Clicking on the link will take you to the results on Findmypast but you will need a subscription or Pay-Per-View credits to actually view the records. Some of these records can also be viewed on-line on Ancestry although Findmypast has by far the most comprehensive service record collection.


Use the regimental numbers and dates on which these were issued, below, to determine parameters for when your own KOSB ancestor would have joined up. Note though that these numbers are only for regular enlistments. Special Reserve and Territorial Force battalions operated completely separate regimental number sequences.

15 joined on 31st October 1881
324 joined on 23rd September 1882
775 joined on 16th August 1883

1182 joined on 23rd October 1884
1460 joined on 22nd June 1885
1958 joined on 11th March 1886
2107 joined on 23rd February 1887



On 1st May 1887, the regiment’s name was changed again to The King’s Own Scottish Borderers; the regiment reorganised as the county regiment of Berwickshire, (which had been transferred from The Royal Scots’ district) and Dumfriesshire, Roxburghshire and Selkirkshire (which had all been transferred from The Royal Scots Fusiliers’ district).  Numbering was unaffected and continued sequentially.


2608 joined on 10th January 1888
3073 joined on 25th January 1889
3439 joined on 25th February 1890
3569 joined on 9th January 1891
3928 joined on 10th January 1892
4394 joined on 19th January 1893
4758 joined on 4th January 1894
5161 joined on 3rd January 1895
5603 joined on 20th January 1896
5926 joined on 22nd February 1897
6328 joined on 6th January 1898
6650 joined on 10th January 1899



In 1899 the Galloway (Kirkcudbright and Wigtown) recruiting area was transferred from the Royal Scots Fusiliers to the King’s Own Scottish Borderers.

6913 joined on 9th January 1900



During the South African War, the King’s Own Scottish Borderers’ two volunteer battalions contributed enough men to raised three volunteer service companies.  The regiment did not – at first - heed the Army Order regarding the numbering of VSC men and instead just continued with the next available number in the regular series.  Numbers were issued as follows:


1st VSC: numbers within the ranges 6927 to 7050 as well as the two numbers 7219 and 7306
2nd VSC: numbers within the ranges 7227 to 7330 and 8450 to 8496
3rd VSC: numbers 8516 to 8577

Exceptions to the above are the two numbers 7219 and 7306 which were issued to two 1st VSC men. Numbers in the 8400 and 8500 ranges date to 1901.

7437 joined on 18th January 1901
7802 joined on 20th January 1902
8168 joined on 19th January 1903
8634 joined on 11th January 1904
9113 joined on 4th January 1905
9649 joined on 11th October 1906
9820 joined on 18th July 1907
10209 joined on 5th May 1908
10374 joined on 15th February 1909
10780 joined on 18th March 1910
10941 joined on 17th January 1911
11230 joined on 8th January 1912

11534 joined on 29th April 1913
11791 joined on 13th January 1914



The First World War


When Britain went to war in August 1914, men joining the new service battalions were issued with numbers from the same series in use by the two regular battalions.


Recruitment rates 1881-1911


Between 1st July 1881 and 18th March 1891, The KOSB recruited 3,653 men, a high average of 375 men each year.  Of the sixty-nine infantry regiments recruiting at this time, The King’s Own Scottish Borderers was the eighteenth most successful infantry recruiter.


Recruiting improved over the following decade.  

Between 18th March 1891 and 18th January 1901 the regiment recruited a further 3,800 men, an average of 385 men a year.  The regiment improved its ranking during this decade and finished as the twelfth most successful infantry recruiter during this time.


Although recruitment fell away slightly during the early 1900s, the regiment nevertheless recruited at an average annual rate of 350 men and as early as January 1911 had issued number 10941 to its latest recruit.
Overall, for the period 1881 to 1911, the KOSB was the eighteenth most effective recruiting regiment.

Further Reading

The KOSB in the Great War

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