At the moment I am putting together some information on the 40 or so young men who were born in the little hamlet of Cargo, NSW and enlisted in the Great War. Cargo was not a place of enlistment and some or most of these men walked or joined marches to enlist many miles from home. My very first soldier on my list joined up leaving a wife and three children. Im not too sure yet if he deserted her to do it but his records show that he did desert his service when in England recovering from a knee injury. Injured not as a result of his war effort. He was missing for 3 years and as a consequence his wife divorced him and his war medals were retained. So, what do I write about him. I feel I should not elaborate too much as I don't wish to upset any of his descendants, although the records are there on line for all and sundry to read. After finding that out of the four so far that I have researched, two were KIA and another died of his injuries, there he is living it up in England. Do I just gloss over him and any others who may have done the same? Considering the size of Cargo, 40 men to enlist was well above the average per capita.
I would stick to the facts. As you say, the records are "out there" for folk to find. What happened upon his reappearance?
I have done a piece on all the men who fell in the great war for my site. There were a few I was worried about adding stuff too. As Jan says 'Stick to the facts' Remember you are a reporter. If you went looking for info on one of your ancestors wouldn't you want to know the facts and not some made up story. When doing something like this you have to stand back (not get involved with the individual, no matter how hard it seems) People want to know the facts. Rather ruthless, I know, but it's better that way. Someone may be searching for info on him and getting nowhere as they loose him in England. You will be telling them what became of him. Which is far better than being left hanging with no further info. We all hate brick-walls. Just my slant on things
Wifey divorced him and remarried. Thankfully I don't have to give a blow by blow report of their whole lives. Just whether they returned or KIA or died of injuries received. I just don't know what to put about him, and another has turned up. He lasted 2 months and didn't even leave the country. What makes it difficult is that we have heard from a descendant of the first one who wishes to contribute to the book. Maybe we should talk to her when we see her tomorrow.
I've felt this while reading the WW1 Records - but we've got to remember not to apply 21 Century morals to previous century events. (Do I hate my grandad 'cos he drowned kittens in the water butt? No - that was normal behaviour in the 1950s) Don't judge 'em, just record their actions. Jane Chimp & Jan beat me to it - again!
Gee whiz.......wounded with influenza, veneral disease and court martial as he escaped the venereal hospital. Not the chap in post 7 This just keeps getting better as the afternoon progresses. I’m back on the red.
Ditto to all the above answers. If the information is there for you to find, then it is there for anyone to find. Some years ago, I compiled some booklets for the local museum, using the birth, marriage and death notices from the local papers. I was contacted, via the museum, by an irate lady who said I had got some of the details wrong about her mother in her death notice. I told her that I had just quoted the 'facts' as had been reported in the paper and sent her a copy of the death notice. I didn't hear back from her.
This is hopefully going to be a glossy book. Lets just hope we get the funding. Otherwise all this work..............perhaps it may be in a cheaper format.....on line. but that's OK. Then you can all read it,
I was confronted with a similar story for a recent publication for our Society. I was so worried that I suggested this man (who had never had children) be omitted but was told to include him and stick to the facts. I learned heaps about the punishments for desertion. He had SIX courts maritial in the field and various other on field punishments. His papers were in such a mess as they had been gone through so many times they were woefully out of order. He returned to NSW with a wife who was actually my grandfather's brother's wife who had run off with him (and a few years later the Welsh papers were full of reports that my great-uncle had done her in so she had to write to the Welsh courts from NSW saying that she was still alive ... so they only charged HIM with bigamy)! On the soldier's return to NSW he must have spun some great tales as when he died in 1936 newspaper reports waxed lyrical about his long war service. (He had actually been in Wandsworth for theft!) Include a disclaimer in the publication? I like Trove's disclaimer and have used it on my site. It basically says that anything published legally is not removed without proof that it shouldn't have been published in the first place. Jane
Well, we met the lady yesterday and she has MS so I think I will just gloss over anything untoward I come across.
