I just saw something interesting today - and only by virtue of being on this side of the world. When you type in "google.com" here you get redirected to "google.jp" and the search results are in Japanese. Since my Japanese hasn't improved sufficiently enough for that to be helpful, I have "google.com.au" as my home page so I get Australian google and therefore english results. Today they had a poppy at the bottom of the search block and hovering over it, it said "ANZAC Day". After a few seconds search, I saw what it was about. I had never actually heard of it.
Gallipoli
Upon the margin of a rugged shore
There is a spot now barren, desolate,
A place of graves, sodden with human gore
That Time will hallow, Memory consecrate.
There lie the ashes of the mighty dead,
The youth who lit with flame Obscurity,
Fought true for Freedom, won thro' rain of lead
Undying fame, their immortality.
The stranger wand'ring when the war is over,
The ploughman there driving his coulter deep,
The husbandman who golden harvests reap-
From hill and ravine, from each plain and cover
Will hear a shout, see phantoms on the marge,
See men again making a deathless charge.
John William Streets
Australian troops charging an Ottoman trench, just before the evacuation at Anzac.
"A trench at Lone Pine after the battle, showing Australian and Turkish dead on the parapet. In the foreground of this much published image is Captain Leslie Morshead (later Lieutenant General Sir Leslie Morshead) of the 2nd Battalion and on his right (standing facing camera), is 527 Private James (Jim) Brown Bryant, 8th Battalion, of Stawell, Vic. As a 60th Battalion ("daughter" or "pup" battalion of the 8th) Company Quartermaster Sergeant (CQMS) Bryant was awarded the Military Medal (MM) in 1918. He enlisted in the Second AIF as VX55299 Lieutenant J B Bryant, and survived three years as a prisoner of the Japanese in Changi Prison, Singapore. Bryant lent his camera to an unknown friend who took AWM image A03869, an equally famous image of the Gallipoli trenches. Later in life he was one of the few Gallipoli veterans to undertake a private pilgrimage to Anzac Cove. Private Bryant was previously identified as Private Angus Sutherland Allen, later (Captain Angus Sutherland Allen MC), who was killed in action on 21 July 1918 in France. Note the prominent white over red 8th Battalion colour patch worn on Bryant's right shoulder".
A WWII veterans discharge document is the best source for learning the facts of his time in service. When starting your research on a WWII veteran, the discharge document is the first thing you should obtain. See "Locating & Obtaining a copy of a WWII Veterans Discharge Document" in another post in this thread section.
One important point i must make concerns an old adage: ' Things May Not Be What They Seem'
The unit shown in Box 6 is a common source of confusion for some people starting their research. The unit shown in Box 6 may NOT be the unit the veteran served in during his or her entire time of service, but may only be the LAST unit he/ she was assigned to and discharged from. For example, many men in the Army Air Corp who flew on bomber crews have an Army Air Forces Base unit ( xxx AAF Base Unit) listed in Box 6. Thousands of high point infantrymen in Europe whose divisions were being redployed to the Pacific or staying for Occupation Duty were transferred to other units to be shipped home and this 2nd unit will be the one shown in Box 6.
This help document is a little lengthy so i put it in a .pdf
Locating & Obtaining a copy of a WWII Veterans Discharge Documents.
1. You may obtain the Discharge Documents of a Veteran from the Veteran, or the Veteran's family.
Ask everyone in your or the veterans family.
2. Veterans were encouraged to register a copy of their Discharge Documents at the Court House of the County that they resided in after WW 2. Discharge Documents are in the Public Domain, so anyone can obtain photocopies of any WW 2 Veteran's Discharge Documents, IF the Veteran registered a copy of their Discharge Documents.
3. Many Town Clerk offices have discharge documents on file.
4. A copy might have been filed with estate records at the county Probate Court.
5. The Funeral Home that handled burial arrangements will have a copy if the veteran had a military funeral or applied for a government headstone.
6. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). may also have a file on the veteran. The documents in this file will have the veteran's serial number on them and also may have a social security number. During World War II the serial number was NOT the social security number. The documents will also show designated next of kin and the file will contain marriage records and birth certificates.
To get a copy of this file call (800) 827-1000. This will ring at your regional office. They will be able to tell you where your veteran's file is located and where to write. You will need to be able to give them identifying information, a serial number or the VA file number. Later medical records were filed by the veterans Social Security Number. Be sure to tell them you are requesting a "retired file." However, if someone is alive (for example the widow) and is still receiving benefits from the veteran, the file will be "active". You may have to get permission from that person or ask them to request the file in their name. If the widow never remarried and always received benefits, the file will be near where she is living or was living at the time of her death. After they tell you where the file is located, write to that address requesting a copy of everything in the file.
7. If the Department of Veteran Affairs does not have any information you can try contacting the Veteran Affairs Insurance Center at 800-669-8477.
8. IF you have the veteran`s Army Service number, you can use E-vetreqs at the National Archives website or fill out a Standard Form, SF-180 with as much information as you can and mail it to NPRC in St Louis requesting ONLY the DD-214 or equilvant Discharge documents. The is no fee for just a discharge document for next of kin. I do NOT recomend requesting anything from NPRC without the Army Service Number.
