Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) - 6th Battalion (TF) - 1908-1914

This is my final post on the Territorial Force battalions of the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) and this one will focus on the 6th Battalion. This was the only one of the four Territorial Force battalions to be headquartered outside Glasgow and it was administered by the Lanarkshire County Association whereas the other three battalions were all administered by the City of Glasgow Association. In this post I will look at regimental numbering in the 6th Battalion (TF), The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) between 1908 and 1914.

The 6th Battalion was formed on the 1st April 1908 and prior to this had been the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, Scottish Rifles. The Territorial Year Book for 1909 recorded that the battalion strength was 25 officers and 722 men. 352 men attended camp in 1908 for 8 days, with eight 300 men attending for 15 days.

The following year, The Territorial Year Book for 1910 recorded that the strength was 25 officers and 957 men and at the annual camp at Troon in 1909, 363 officers and men had attended for eight days whilst 589 officers and men had attended for 15 days. Colour-Sergeant T Lavin was the best shot of the unit. Camp in 1910 was scheduled from the 16th July at Denny.

The battalion was headquartered at Muirhall, Hamilton drew its recruits from the following areas:

A Company: Muirhall, Hamilton

B Company: Muirhall, Hamilton

C Company: Uddingston

D Company: Larkhall, with a drill station at Strathaven

E Company: Bothwell, with a drill station at Palace Colliery

F Company: Blantyre

G Company: Motherwell

H Company: Motherwell

The battalion formed part of the Scottish Rifle Brigade with the Lowland Division.

Here are some sample regimental numbers and joining dates for the the 6th Battalion (TF), The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). The battalion started a new number series beginning at 1 on the 1st April 1908.

3 joined on the 1st April 1908
798 joined on the 26th February 1909

1144 joined on the 8th March 1910

1326 joined on the 9th February 1911
1610 joined on the 15th April 1912
1707 joined on the 4th April 1913
1975 joined on the 26th March 1914
2180 joined on the 7th August 1914

Use the regimental numbers above to estimate when a man would have joined this battalion between 1908 and August 1914. For example if your man's number was 1500 he would have joined the battalion between February 1911 and April 1912. Furthermore, if he came from Motherwell, he probably served in G or H Company. 

The photograph on this post shows officers of the 1/6th Battalion. It was published in The Tatler on the 28th April 1915.

You may find these related posts of interest:

1st and 2nd Battalions, Cameronian, Scottish Rifles

3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion

4th (Extra Reserve) Battalion

5th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)

7th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)

8th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)

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To search for photos of your Scottish Rifles ancestors, check my British Army Ancestors website.

Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) - 8th Battalion (TF) - 1908-1914

The 8th Battalion, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) was formed on the 1st April 1908 and prior to this had been the 4th Volunteer Battalion, Scottish Rifles. The Territorial Year Book for 1909 recorded that the battalion strength was 25 officers and 584 men. Sergeant J Miller was the best shot of the unit. 112 men attended camp in 1908 for 8 days, 33 men attended for between 9 and 14 days, and an impressive total of 408 men attended for 15 days.

The following year, The Territorial Year Book for 1910 recorded that the strength had increased to 25 officers and 938 men and at the annual camp in 1909, 223 officers and men had attended for eight days whilst 655 officers and men had attended for 15 days. Private W J Clark of A Company was the best shot of the unit. Camp in 1910 was scheduled from the 16th July at Denny.

The battalion was headquartered at 149 Cathedral Street, Glasgow and, in common with the 5th and 7th Battalions was administered by the City of Glasgow County Association, drawing all of its recruits from Glasgow. It also formed part of the Scottish Rifle Brigade in the Lowland Division.

Here are some sample regimental numbers and joining dates for the the 8th Battalion (TF), The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). The battalion did not start a new regimental number series from 1 on the 1st April 1908, but rather continued with the number series that had been in use for the 4th Volunteer Battalion. There is a wealth of surviving service records for men of this battalion who joined in April 1908, many of these numbers in the 4000s and lower. These are all men who joined from the 4th VB, bringing their old VB numbers with them.

7366 (formerly 4th VB) joined on the 6th April 1908
8145 joined on the 13th February 1909

8604 joined on the 31st January 1910

8733 joined on the 13th March 1911
8852 joined on the 22nd April 1912
9157 joined on the 27th February 1914

9403 joined on the 5th August 1914

9638 joined on the 29th September 1914

By December 1914 the battalion reached number 9999 and started a new number series from 1.

Use the regimental numbers above to estimate when a man would have joined this battalion between 1908 and September 1914. For example if your man's number was 9500 he would have joined the battalion between  August and September 1914. 

The photo shows a regular soldier of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) when he was stationed in India.

1st and 2nd Battalions, Cameronian, Scottish Rifles

3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion

4th (Extra Reserve) Battalion

5th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)

6th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)

7th Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)

 

Battalion history, With the 8th Scottish Rifles 1914-1919, available from Naval & Military Press.

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To search for photos of your Scottish Rifles ancestors, check my British Army Ancestors website.

Black Watch - 5th Battalion (TF) - 1908-1914

This post will look at regimental numbering in the 5th (Angus & Dundee) Battalion (TF), The Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) between 1908 and 1914.

The 5th Battalion was formed on the 1st April 1908 and prior to this had been the 2nd & 3rd Volunteer Battalions of the same regiment; the 'Angus' and 'Dundee' battalions. The headquarters of the battalion was at Arbroath and the county Territorial Association for Forfarshire administered the first six companies whilst companies G and H were administered by the Association at Dundee. 

The fact that two separate county associations administered companies in the same battalion means that there were two separate regimental number series in play; at least for a time. One series was used for men joining companies A to F, and another series was used for men joining companies G & H. The companies were distributed as follows:

A Company: Kirriemuir, with drill stations at Glamis and Newtyle
B Company: Forfar
C Company: Montrose, with a drill station at Craigo
D Company: Brechin, with a drill station at Edzell
E Company: Arbroath, with a drill station at Friockheim
F Company: Arbroath, with drill stations at Carnoustie and Monifieth
G Company: Dundee
H Company: Dundee

The Territorial Year Book for 1909 recorded that the battalion strength was 34 officers and 650 men. The best shot of the unit that year was Lance-Sergeant D K Mitchell.

The following year, The Territorial Year Book for 1910 recorded that the strength was 667, all ranks, and at the annual camp that year, 369 officers and men had attended for eight days whilst 298 officers and men had attended for 15 days. Camp in 1910 was scheduled from the 16th July.

Here are some sample regimental numbers and joining dates for the 5th Battalion (TF), The Black Watch (Royal Highlanders). The numbers come from the series operated by the Forfarshire Association.

54 joined from the 2nd Volunteer Force Battalion on the 3rd April 1908
1028 joined on the 17th May 1909
1222 joined on the 7th April 1910

1387 joined on the 6th February 1911
1516 joined on the 1st October 1911
1846 joined on the 9th February 1914
1978 joined on the 6th August 1914

Use the regimental numbers above to estimate when a man would have joined this battalion between 1908 and August 1914. For example if your man's number was 1111 he would have joined the battalion between May 1909 and April 1910.

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To search for photos of your Black Watch ancestors, check my British Army Ancestors website. 

Image source used on this blog post is unknown.

Royal Engineers - Dorsetshire Fortress Company 1908-1914

Here's a taster from my Royal Engineers' database, a corps I've largely, and inadvertently, neglected on this blog due to concentrating on infantry and cavalry.

The Dorsetshire Fortress Company was tiny. Formed in 1908 it consisted of a single Territorial Force Electric Lights Company and was administered by the Dorsetshire County Association. Writing in 1909, Walter Richards, in His Majesty's Territorial Army, wrote of the Dorsetshire Fortress Company:

"It may claim a distinguished place amongst the corps called into existence by the Territorial Forces Act, having since May 1909 its strength up to establishment, 137 of all ranks and... possessing the complete equipment prescribed by regulation."

My database notes that 132 Robert Long joined on 25th May 1909 and 138 Charles Derrick joined on 25th June 1909. Thus number 137, referred to by Walter Richards must have joined a good three weeks before Charles Derrick who presumably had to wait until someone left the unit before he could attest as number 138.

Here are some regimental numbers and attestation dates for the Dorsetshire Fortress Company between 1908 and October 1914. Six digit numbers from the number block 516001 to 518000 which were issued in 1917 are also noted. The lowest six digit number was given to the longest serving man, the second lowest six digit number to the next longest serving man, and so on.

68 / 516007 issued on 30th November 1908
138 / 516013 issued on 25th June 1909
154 / 516017 issued on 7th November 1910
194 / 516021 issued on 17th August 1911
203 / 516034 issued on 4th July 1912
241 / 516052 issued on 23rd May 1913

By 1914 the Company was headquartered at Sidney Hall, Weymouth, with a drill station at Portland and formed part of the Southern Coast Defences.

516061 issued on 9th April 1914
286 / 516065 issued on 5th August 1914
297 / 516074 issued on 28th September 1914
328 / 516097 issued on 1st October 1914

This is my last post on this blog this year. My thanks to everyone who has visited these pages over the past year, a year of particular significance to those of us who hold dear the memory of the 1914-18 generation. My thanks too for visitors to this blog who have subsequently commissioned research. I look forward to undertaking more projects in 2015.