Military Chat

LOOKING FOR THE RECORS OF MY GRAND FATHER WILLIAM RILEY WHO WAS A MESSENGER FOR THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDERS IN FIRST WORLD WAR.

I KNOW HE WAS A MESSENGER, HE CAME FROM BELPER, DERBYSHIRE.

THANKS
TERESA

Who were the Scottish Highlanders?

There were the Seaforth Highlanders, Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders, Cameron Highlanders, etc - but not "Scottish Highlanders" as far as I can see.

When was your grandfather born?
Did he survive WW1?


Large numbers of WW1 service records are no longer in existence, so we may not be able to find his record even with additional information..

Forces War Records lists all these W or William Rileys in regiments with Highlanders in the name, in WW1. The years given are the dates of the records.
You'd need to subscribe to see further details on that site:


William Riley 202154 Private 1914 Seaforth Highlanders
William Riley S/19296 Private 1914 [ and 1917] Seaforth Highlanders
William Riley 605 Private 1914 [and 1916 & 1917 ] Seaforth Highlanders
William Riley S/4785 Private 1916 Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders
William Riley S/4786 Private 1914 Argyll And Sutherland Highlanders
William Riley 4865 Private 1914 Gordon Highlanders
William T Riley 3073 Private 1914 Seaforth Highlanders
W Riley 3293 Private 1915 Gordon Highlanders
W F [W T ] Riley 17555 Private 1918 Seaforth Highlanders
W Riley 3909 1916 Cameron Highlanders

https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk


ADDED:
Some further details of the above men from Ancestry:

William Riley 605 survived the war. Lived in Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire.

William Riley 4785 (probably the same person as 4786) died in France on 13 Aug 1916. He was born in Coatbridge, Lanarkshire.

William Riley 19296 died in France 24 June 1917. He belonged to Glasgow.

William Riley 4865 (also numbered as 291688) survived the war. Full name William Charles John Riley. Probably born 1893 in West Ham.

William Thomas Riley 3073 ( also numbered 17555 and 266147) survived the war.
Lived in Aberdeen.

William Riley 202154 lived in Rippardean [ Ripponden ?], Yorkshire.

William Riley 3293 is listed as Reilley or Reilly on Ancestry, and he belonged to Lumphanan, Fife.

Can't see anything for W Riley 3909 on Ancestry.


BUT, as I said, not all WW1 service records have survived.

What was his date of birth - or at the very least, the year?

Only about 30% of WW1 records have survived

EDITED

In the poster’s tree as being born in 1895, but there is no birth registered in Belper in 1895 for his name

No military record for him on FMP as far as I can see

In her tree, the poster has Vera Riley born 1921.

Vera is on 1921 with parents, William and Sarah Ann, nee Waterfall - both said to have been born 1884

Sarah is also in the poster’s tree

1939 Register
Halls Yard, Nottingham Road, Belper, Belper U.D., Derbyshire, England

William Riley 03 May 1884 Male Railway Engineer Repairer Staff Labourer Married 95 1
Sarah Ann Riley 28 Mar 1884 Female Domestic Duties Married 95 2
Herbert Riley 29 Nov 1886 Male General Labourer Single 95 3
William H Riley 07 Mar 1913 Male Warfe Knitter Operator Single 95 4
Vera Hunt (Robinson,Riley) 14 Dec 1920 Female Domestic Duties Single 95 5

BUT…………NO military records

Vera was the poster’s mother

Thank you all for your response I waas just hoping to find some documentation.

He did survive bless him. He died in 1953 ish I believe.

???
William Riley
in the England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007
Name: William Riley
Death Age: 66
Birth Date: abt 1885
Registration Date: Jan 1951[Feb 1951] [Mar 1951]
Registration Quarter: Jan-Feb-Mar
Registration District: Belper
Inferred County: Derbyshire
Volume: 3a
Page: 62

Many thanks