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Description: | British private served as driver 1st West Lancashire Field Ambulance, Royal Army Medical Corps in GB and Gallipoli, 1913-1916; served as mounted orderly to Assistant Director of Medical Services at Headquarters, 67th Div in GB and on Western Front, 1916-1918; served aboard John Holt II during evacuation of St Nazaire, 5/1940-6/1940
REEL 1 Recollections of background in Liverpool, 1895-1914: family; education; work as apprentice carpenter in shop fitting, 1909-1912; work as joiner in shipyard, 1912-1914. Recollections of recruitment and training as driver with A Section, 1st West Lancashire Field Ambulance, Royal Army Medical Corps ay Tramway Road Barracks, Aigberth, 1/4/1913-4/8/1914: family medical connections; prior experience in Boys Brigade, 1907-1911; ruse to disguise poor eyesight; uniform; first aid course; riding school training; uniform; composition of transport section; weekend an summer camps; setting up horse lines; termination of summer camp on outbreak of war, 4/8/1914. Aspects of training in GB, 8/1914-3/1915: commandeering horses and waggons during initial period at Tramway Road Barracks, 8/1914; story of handing out white feathers to men not volunteering for overseas service as territorials; movements.
REEL 2 Continues: period at Rugby on attachment as 87th Field Ambulance, Royal Army Medical Corps to 29th Div, 2/1915; replacement of horses with mules and comparison; period as officer's groom; role as limber waggon wheel driver and stores carried. Voyage out and periods at Alexandria, Egypt and Mudros, Lemnos, Greece, 3/1915-4/1915. Recollections of landing from Andonia at X Beach, Helles, Gallipoli, Turkey, 25/4/1915: volunteering for small boat work; landing from barges and naval support bombardment of HMS Implacable; establishment of dressing station on beach; assisting stretcher bearers in locating wounded; situation and Turkish cliff top pom pom. Recollections of conditions of service, daily routine and duties at Gully Beach, Helles, 5/1915-8/1915: situation; waggon lines in Gully Ravine; swimming to trawler to refill water bottles; grooming, feeding and watering mules; duties driving ambulances to collect wounded from front line regimental first aid posts up Gully Ravine.
REEL 3 Continues: duties driving ambulances to collect wounded from regimental first aid posts up Gully Ravine; food rations and making jam tin bombs; water supply; rum and tobacco ration; use of glasses to start fires; Greek fishermen selling condensed milk; sea bathing; latrines; uniform; fly and lice problems; dysentery attack; story of meeting de Lisle whilst attempting to take limber along coast track; recites Tramping up the Gully' by Jack Todd; singing before landing, 24/4/1915; relationship with other ranks and officers; evacuation with head wound, 8/1915. Condition on regaining conciousness in hospital at Malta, 9/1915. Period in hospital at Aberdeen, 10/1915.
REEL 4 Move to convalescent camp at Eastbourne, 11/1915: parcel and letter contact with GB whilst at Gallipoli, 1915; question of draft of drivers to artillery. Posting to 3/1st West Lancashire Field Ambulance, Royal Army Medical Corps at Blackpool, 12/1915-1/1916: story of meeting NCO given white feather for refusing overseas service and avoiding duties as officer's servant; reserve role of unit; recovery. Posting to Royal Army Medical Corps stables at 57th Div Headquarters at Canterbury, 1/1916: initial lack of role; assignment as groom and mounted orderly to Assistant Director of Medical Services, Colonel Dewar; duties; movements prior to embarkation, 1/1917. Recollections of period on Western Front, 1/1917-2/1919: movements; relationship with horses; accompanying Assistant Directord of Medical Services on daily inspection tours of Royal Army Medical Corps units; story of role in bolstering inadequate temporary Assistant Director of Medical Services during mustard gas shell attack; story of incidents during retreat in Arras area, 3/1918-4/1918; armistice, 11/11/1918; story of shooting horse wounded by shell fire; demobilisation, 2/1919. Securing work as carpenter's mate on ship, 1919. Recollections of operations aboard John Holt II off St Nazaire, France, 5/1940-6/1940: loading ammunition; story of RAF corporal checking for gas shell leak; rescue of 1100 survivors from bombed and sinking Lancastria and landing them at Plymouth. | Publisher: | http://www.iwm.org.uk | Source: | Imperial War Museum | Creator: | Yorston, Richard | Identifier: | http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/o... | Go to resource |
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recording
British private served as stretcher…
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