Printed email dated April 2015 regarding the burial place of Captain Hector Lamont, Gott (1891-1939), who died on board SS ‘Ormer’ in Egypt in 1939 and was buried “at the British Cemetery at Suez”, which may now form part of the WWII cemetery there.
Extract: “A letter from the Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Company Superintendent in Suez to my Granny Captain Lamont’s wife stated: “Arrangements were made for the funeral which took place from the English Church, where a short service was held. The cortege was followed from the Church to the burial ground by fifty cars carrying the majority of the British Community and local Shell employees.” I also have a copy of the obituary from the ‘Marine Staff News’ (presumably the above Company). It states: “The funeral took place at the British Cemetery at Suez.”
Royal Navy and Royal Marines next of kin casualty card used by relatives of Navy personnel during WWII to notify them of their injury or death during an air raid. The next of kin is listed as niece Mary Brown McDonald of Mannal who was a Wren on board HMS Lochailort. HMS Lochailort, formerly Lochailort House, was requisitioned by the Navy in 1942. Found amongst the belongings of the MacDonald/Campbell/Brown family of Mannal House.
Printed memoir of a childhood spent on Tiree during WWII by Barry Kerr, 2015. Barry’s father, George (Jock) Kerr, was posted on the island as an RAF Signals and Telegraph Officer. Barry recalls the ‘black house’ he lived in at Balephetrish, the coal puffers, Cornaig school and prisoners of war.
Softback book ‘Eilean Uaine Thiriodh / The Green Isle of Tiree’ by Margaret Bennett and Eric Rose, 2014. Signed “Presented to An Iodhalnn by Ethel MacCallum, May 2015”, it is a biography of Ethel MacCallum who, in 1942, was evacuated from an orphanage in Glasgow to the Island of Tiree. She became fluent in Gaelic and, with her natural gift for music and song, was encouraged to write her own compositions. The book includes some of her original work on a CD.
Efficiency Medal bearing the head of King George VI on one side and on the other the words “For Efficient Service”. Instituted in 1908, the Efficiency Medal was awarded to members of the Territorial Army (UK), Colonial Auxiliary Forces and Indian Volunteer Forces, with more than 12 years service. This version of the medal was issued during 1949-1952 and includes the word “INDIAE”. The recipient’s name is engraved on the rim: 544938 CPL W MACLACHLAN AYR YEO. The ribbon would have been dark green with yellow borders. Found in a garden in Scarinish.
Softback book ‘Eilean Uaine Thiriodh’ by Margaret Bennett and Eric Rose, 2014. ‘The Green Isle of Tiree’ is a biography of Ethel MacCallum who, in 1942, was evacuated from an orphanage in Glasgow to the Island of Tiree. She became fluent in Gaelic and, with her natural gift for music and song, was encouraged to write her own compositions. The book includes some of her original work on a CD.
Brass artillery shell casing dated 1941 found in 2014 amongst the belongings of the late Les Crawte in ‘Windrush’, Milton, his last home on Tiree. Engraved on the bottom: LOT1 EOC 1941 [symbols x3] 12Pr 12CW[remainder obscured].
Emailed information, photographs and query about medals and portrait of Hugh Archie MacArthur of Milton, Caoles, in uniform during WW2. The framed portrait hung in the house of the enquirer’s parents in Gloucestershire for many years, having been found in a local junk shop. How the shop came by it is unknown.