What we want

1. Life before WW1:

1. Date and place of birth, parents
2. If married, date and name of spouse, and any children.
3. Occupation and address.

2. Service:

1. Date joined, number, rank, Regiment or Corps.
2. Where he went, what battles he took part in.
3. Date of death, where and how.
4. Where buried and/or remembered.

 

How to find it

Life:

Find him in the 1911 census:

 http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/group/1911uki

or http://www.findmypast.co.uk/search/census/1911/person

Use the same sources to search in 1901 census.

Use age and place of birth to find birth and marriage dates: http://www.freebmd.org.uk/

Search local directories or newspapers (in Rugby Library)

 

Service: 

 

Most of the men on our list have the basic info, which has come from http://www.cwgc.org/ 

 

Medal Roll Index Lists: http://search.ancestry.co.uk/search/db.aspx?dbid=1262

Also on Ancestry are: British Army WWI Service Records, 1914-1920, British Army WWI Pension Records 1914-1920 and much more. 

 

The medal index cards can also be downloaded from TNA (£3.36) http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/medals.htm

There is a lot more at TNA. Check the Research Guides on specific subjects. Links to soldiers, sailors and airmen can be found here http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/

If you know the Regiment, you can download the War Diaries to find out what was happening http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/war-diaries-ww1.htm

WW1 Soldiers Wills can be found at https://www.gov.uk/probate-search although they cost £6 to download.

Other useful sites:

http://www.1914-1918.net/ The Long Long Trail: The British Army in the First World War 

http://www.roll-of-honour.com/ A collection of databases

www.thegazette.co.uk Official notices of military awards

http://www.iwm.org.uk/ Imperial War Museum

http://www.ffhs.org.uk/ww1/intro.php An introduction to WW1 and lots of links.