VM to RN SPO...

[Hannibal Rex]

Hey folks.

Could someone out there shed some light on a VM I have? I haven't been collecting much by way of British Commonwealth ODM for awhile now and found this today in my unresearched bits.

The bloke is 144492 S.P.O. C.F.W. Phippard, RN.

Thanks!

[MREID]

Dear Hannibal;

I'm no expert on the Royal Navy but your Victory Medal would appear to be named to a Stoker Petty Officer. The RN introduced a letter prefix for newly-joined men in the early 1900's I seem to recall, with the letter "K" going to Stokers, so your man probably joined before 1900. Your man is entitled to at least a British War Medal and you can acquire a copy of his service record by Googling The National Archives at Kew. Look under Seamen's Service Records and for the paltry sum of a few Pounds, ( $6 ) you can receive an electronic copy within seconds if you use your credit card. The service sheet will give a list of his ships, promotions, qualifications, etc. and should provide a good idea of his naval career.

I hope this helps and good luck with your research.

Mark

[Hannibal Rex]

I'm no expert on the Royal Navy but your Victory Medal would appear to be named to a Stoker Petty Officer. The RN introduced a letter prefix for newly-joined men in the early 1900's I seem to recall, with the letter "K" going to Stokers, so your man probably joined before 1900. Your man is entitled to at least a British War Medal and you can acquire a copy of his service record by Googling The National Archives at Kew. Look under Seamen's Service Records and for the paltry sum of a few Pounds, ( $6 ) you can receive an electronic copy within seconds if you use your credit card. The service sheet will give a list of his ships, promotions, qualifications, etc. and should provide a good idea of his naval career.

Hey there MREID...

Thanks for the info.

Yeah, I know about the Kew online access, but I'm trying to remember if someone said the Ancestery.Com website (I think that's it) is much better quality, or if that's just for the MICs (or both). I don't have that $75 pounds type account on ancestors that I've heard about as I haven't been collecting much British/Commonwealth material as of late (though I am still researching some of my older acquisitons). Can't really justify that kind of expense unless I'm mortgaging the house for more medals.

I think there are a few letter prefixes and suffixes for RN personnel...just search Phippard I see one guy with a K, one with a J, and another has an A after the serial number.

I see on the free service papers preview page this guy has April 14th, 1870 listed under date (I am assuming this is birthdate). That would make him in his 50s during the war! I'd guess if that's the case he might be at least entitled to a LSGC? Probably a pretty salty guy. He's also from Portsmouth. Born into the maritime life perhaps?

[MREID]

Hey there MREID...

Thanks for the info.

Yeah, I know about the Kew online access, but I'm trying to remember if someone said the Ancestery.Com website (I think that's it) is much better quality, or if that's just for the MICs (or both). I don't have that $75 pounds type account on ancestors that I've heard about as I haven't been collecting much British/Commonwealth material as of late (though I am still researching some of my older acquisitons). Can't really justify that kind of expense unless I'm mortgaging the house for more medals.

I think there are a few letter prefixes and suffixes for RN personnel...just search Phippard I see one guy with a K, one with a J, and another has an A after the serial number.

I see on the free service papers preview page this guy has April 14th, 1870 listed under date (I am assuming this is birthdate). That would make him in his 50s during the war! I'd guess if that's the case he might be at least entitled to a LSGC? Probably a pretty salty guy. He's also from Portsmouth. Born into the maritime life perhaps?

Hello again Hannibal;

Yes, the date shown on the Archives website for this man is his birthdate so he certainly was an " Old Salt " during 1914-18. The Ancestry.com website does have a better version of the MIC's but haven't heard that their naval records are any better. Certainly cheaper to spend the three quid via the Archives website, you may very well discover that Petty Officer Phippard had a long and interesting naval career, perhaps earning some other medals. You may find that he was born in Portsmouth because his father was a sailor, soldier or marine. I was born in Portsmouth too but opted for the Army! Good luck with the research.

Mark

[ItemCo16527]

Ancestry.com doesn't have anything in the way of RN records. The Medal Index Cards are Army-only, although you will sometimes find one to a member of another branch. However, this was usually a case of a relative applying for a deceased sailor or Marine's medals to the wrong office.

In my case, I was looking for an MIC for a soldier by surname only and found an MIC to a Lt. Cragg of the Royal Navy. He had been killed in action while serving ashore in France, and it appears his father had applied for his medals through the Army medal office by mistake. For whatever reason, an MIC was created for him even though his medals would have had to be issued by the Royal Navy.

I highly recommend using the services of J. Collins Military Research. I've used them numerous times, and not only are their prices very reasonable, but they get your research to you fast. You can find them at this link: http://www.militaryresearchon.com/ Just use the drop boxes to select what branch and time period you're looking for.

As for Royal Navy service number prefixes, they had several for various ratings, ranks, and branches. Some examples:

J - Seaman & Communications ratings (Signalman & Telegraphists)

K - Stokers

L - Officers Stewards & Cooks

M - ERAs (Engine Room Artificers), Artisians (Shipwrights, Plumbers, Coopers etc.), Ship's Police, Sick Berth/Supply ratings, and Bandsmen

SS - Short Service enlistments

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Divisions:

BZ - Bristol

CZ - Clyde

LZ - London

MZ - Mersey

PZ - Crystal Palace

SZ - Sussex

TZ - Tyne

Y - Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Deferred Enlistment (this would replaced by divisional prefix on actual enlistment)

WZ - Wales

Edited March 1, 2010 by ItemCo16527