Talking to my sister the other day she mentioned how touched she was by some of the recollections of our late sister that friends had shared with her.
It reminded me of how I felt when someone ( a stranger) had shared some information with me – information that helped to unravel a ‘mystery’ concerning one of my grandfathers.
The man seated is my maternal grandfather – Isaac John Joseph Thompson, my mother’s father. A few years ago I posted this photograph (and his name) on a military forum in the hope of getting it dated – to my surprise I learned a whole lot more than the date.
Yes, we knew he served in the RAMC (Royal Army Medical Corp) and we knew he was a regular and had ‘fought’ in both WW! and WW2 – Mum had told us he was a hero, ‘mentioned in dispatches’ but that was it.
Well, from that photograph, I was given the approx year it was taken and his rank. Also from looking at the medal ribbons on Grandad’s uniform this person was able to determine his ‘mention’ and (through contacts he had) then went on to supply me with information on which conflict he was in at the time.
This is when my jaw dropped – after giving me the date of the award, the forum member told me “he earned his mention for gallantry in the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force (MEF)” When I looked it up I discovered the MEF is another term for The Gallipoli Camapign!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallipoli_campaign
Even though I was not born here in Australia (am a long time naturalised Australian) it brought a smile to my face when I realised he took part in and performed an act of bravery in a campaign that is dear to the heart of most Australians.
Anzac Day – National day of remembrance and first landing of the Anzacs at Gallipoli – is this coming Sunday 25 April.
source – https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anzac_Day
Are there any unknowns in your family’s past
that have become known through research?
Still Waters 