Friday 2 August 2013

Deceased Online adds military burial records

From Deceased Online (www.deceasedonline.com):

Deceased Online adds military burial records from The National Archives (TNA)
Second set of records from TNA added to www.deceasedonline.com

Deceased Online, the UK national database website dedicated to burial and cremation records, has added thousands of military burial records sourced from The National Archives, Kew.

The records, which date back to 1756, comprise digital scans of burial registers for eight cemeteries:
  • Aldershot Military Burial Ground, Aldershot, Surrey: 1856-1911
  • Canterbury Garrison, Kent: 1808-1958
  • Greenwich Royal Hospital and Chapel, Greenwich, London: 1844-1966
  • Haslar and Clayhall Royal Navy cemeteries, Gosport, Hampshire: 1826-1911
  • Royal Victoria Hospital, Netley, Gosport, Hampshire: 1864-1975
  • Royal Garrison Church of St George, Woolwich, Greenwich, London: 1937-1964
  • Sandhurst Royal Military College Chapel, Sandhurst, Camberley, Surrey: 1829-1978
  • Sheerness Dockyard Church, Isle of Sheppey, Kent: 1756-1826

Deceased Online digitally scanned the registers at TNA’s Kew premises, created an index and linked the scans into the database. The records are therefore searchable by name, area and location through the normal search tools on the Deceased Online website.

This week’s Deceased Online blog, British Cemetery and Cremation Records written by genealogist and historian Emma Jolly, is dedicated to the new records, see: http://deceasedonlineblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/tna-military-burial-records.html. Emma explains that these records are outside normal war graves and feature families and others as well as military personnel who usually did not perish in military action but whose burial records are notoriously difficult to find:

Emma explains: “The death records of ancestors who died whilst serving in the armed forces can be difficult to find. Where service records and musters don't survive, family historians are often unsure of where in the world their military relatives were buried. The families of those who travelled with their military husband or father can also be hard to trace. Families did not always travel with the regiment, but even if they did they are often not named in muster or pay rolls.”

This is the second dataset of TNA records that Deceased Online has digitized and added to its website; it follows all records for the historic Brompton Cemetery, one of London’s ‘Magnificent Seven’ Victorian cemeteries. Further TNA records are currently in process.

The Deceased Online website is used extensively by amateurs and professionals worldwide, researching family history, and those simply trying to locate lost relatives or ancestors. As well as records from major national bodies and archives, the website contains exclusive records from over 120* local government authorities through the UK. (*Currently online or in process.)

(With thanks to Richard Gray)

Chris

My new book, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet, is now available from Pen and Sword. My Scottish land and church records ebooks are available at http://www.gen-ebooks.com/unlock-the-past.html, whilst my next Pharos Scottish course, Scottish Research Online, starts Sep 4th - see http://pharostutors.com/details.php?coursenumber=102. Time to smash a few brick walls...!

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