SOURCES OF INFORMATION USED ON THIS WEBSITE

The information shown on the basic page for each casualty has been taken from the the database of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) or Soldiers Died in the Great War (SDGW).

Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC)
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (initially named the Imperial War Graves Commission) was set up in May 1917 and took over responsibility for the marking and recording of the graves of those killed in the Great War from the Graves Registration Committee.  It now looks after the commemorations of 1.7 million men and woman who died in both world wars.  Information on individual commemorations can be found by accessing their website at www.cwgc.org.

Soldiers Died in the Great War (SDGW)
This is a publication which was first produced in 1921 in 80 volumes.  It lists those of each regiment who lost their lives in the war, alphabetically by unit (eg. Battalion) and gives details such as place of birth, place of enlistment, residence at the time of enlistment (if different from place of enlistment), regimental number, rank, whether killed in action or died, and the date and theatre of death.  Now available on a fully searchable CD-rom, it is widely accepted that Soldiers Died contains many errors and information obtained from this source should therefore be verified from other sources.  

Officers Died in the Great War
Similar publication to above, listing officers in one volume.  Only unit, cause of death and date and theatre of war are given.

Having found the basic information other sources have been, or are being, searched to obtain more details about each casualty.

Local newspapers
Cullompton did not have a newspaper of its own, but the area was covered by the Tiverton Gazette which was first produced in 1848.  I accessed most of the newspapers relating the wars on microfiche by prior appointment with East Devon College Library, Tiverton.  Most British newspapers are available for inspection at the British Newspaper Library, Colindale, London, many in their original paper form.

Medal Rolls
Held on microfiche at the Public Records Office in Kew, the medal rolls show the entitlement of each person who served during the Great War.  There is no such roll for participants of the Second World War.  The medal roll was originally a massive card index system.  The cards were copied on to microfiche which for many years was available at the Public Records Office only.  These records have recently become available on line via a pay per view service at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk.

Census records
The census is taken in Britain every ten years and, in theory at least, you could expect to find every man killed in the Great War to be shown on the 1901 census as anyone born after this date would not have been old enough to have fought in the war.  In practice it is well known that many men joined up whilst still under age.  It is thought that the youngest soldier to die in the Great War was 13 years old, whilst the oldest was 68.  Many of them therefore appear on the census records taken in 1891 and earlier.  The 1901 census can be accessed on line using a pay per view service at www.census.pro.gov.uk.

General Registry Office certificates
Civil Registration was introduced to Britain in 1837 from which date (in theory at least) all births, marriages and deaths are recorded. The births of all of the casualties of the world wars should therefore be in these records, together with their marriages.  Records were also kept of deaths and it is possible to obtain copies of death certificates for servicemen, although the information provided is not as detailed as on a civil death certificate.

War Diaries
Each unit kept a war diary during the Great War which are now available for public inspection at the Public Records Office, Kew.  The amount of information provided varies considerably depending on the unit and writer, leading to both joy and frustration for the researcher!

Service Records
The service histories of many participants of the Great War were destroyed or severely damaged during the bombing which took place in World War II. The damaged records have now been painstakingly transferred on to microfiche and are available be to viewed at the Public Records Office, Kew.  However, most appear to relate to those who survived the war, the records being reconstructions undertaken in order to deal with pension entitlements.

Published sources
I have used various books and publications from my personal collection. Space does not permit any further details here - sorry.

Unpublished sources
There are many sources of unpublished information about the wars.  In many cases museums have vast resources which are available to view by appointment.  A visit to the library of the Imperial War Museum, for example, is a fascinating experience! Regimental archivists can be extremely helpful, although most are woefully under resourced for the number of queries they receive.