On this November 11th, many family historians may be thinking back to those ancestors who fought, and indeed lost their lives, during the First World War. As many genealogists may have already found, only around 40% of WWI army service records survive, due to bombing during WWII. However, information can sometimes be gleaned from other sources regarding our ancestors' military careers.
One of our researchers, Elizabeth Yule, has been investigating her great grandfather, James Kerry, who fought in WWI as part of the Suffolk Regiment. Like so many, he does not have a surviving service record, although his Medal Card shows he was awarded the 1915 Star. Searches of Suffolk newspapers, also reveal that he was wounded in 1917, and this entry gives additional details about when and where he joined up. Thus interesting snippets can be found, despite missing service records.
