Operation War Diary

[TheJockGit]

If you have any interest in Military History, and the First World War in particular, i would highly recommend having a look at the War Diary project.

Full details of what it is about can be found here http://www.operationwardiary.org/#/about

I spent a few hours totally engrossed in adding tags to the Diary of an Engineer Field Squadron who were on the front line during the Battle of the Somme in September 1916.

Totally fascinating and doing a bit to keep this part of history alive.

[Dog Pants]

Shit, I'm going to do nothing else all night now. What a great experience, to be reading through these diaries which might have never been read before and identifying key points for future researchers. Fascinating.

[TheJockGit]

Absolutely, and i find myself getting attached to the people mentioned in the Diary i am working on, really hoping I don't find that they are MIA or killed, I would feel truly gutted.

[Dog Pants]

I don't know if it's because Mrs Pants was looking them up (it probably is), but I've done maybe 8 pages of the Sherwood Foresters. I can tell by the handwriting that it's the same guy, and the locations and other units are pretty consistent, but I don't know who he is. They don't come in order but you do get some that are pretty close in time and you get a good impression of what was going on. I was vaguely amused to see they spent four days off the line with a couple of sick casualties per day (which seems to be common for every single day), apart from the day they go back to the front when they had eight. Coincidence?

[TheJockGit]

The guy writing the Diary I am working on for 1/1 East Riding Field Company, Royal Engineers, 3rd Division, a Lieut Col E.M. Newell, must have been a Clerk or Administrator, all very neat with pace names and people highlighted in capitals so they stand out.

So far I have had no KIA and only one MIA though they do seem to have been in the fight as there has been 5 Military Medals (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_Medal) handed out.

Absolutely loving doing this.

Not sure if it will link, but this entry in the 7th October got to me.

[fabyak]

Would this be a good time to mention my Grandad's diary from WWII again? I'm happy to send it to people who would like to read it (I think Doggers and Amblin borrowed it last time iir)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dunkirk-Diary-V ... 1858584612

[Dog Pants]

I did. It's a little eerie when the diaries are by someone whose descendant you know, especially when they have the same surname.

[fabyak]

Although he did use the early 20th Century spelling of it (Yack)