Introduction

In 2014 the centenary of the outbreak of World War One, Cumnock History Group began researching the names on the Cumnock War Memorial plus other men and women with Cumnock connections mentioned on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission or in the Cumnock Chronicle of the time. The research is not limited to those who died but also to men and women who served, using family history information.

The group would like to appeal to individuals with knowledge of family members for photographs of the soldier, either in uniform or not, and photos of medals or other memorabilia eg letters sent home from the Front. If you would be prepared to share these on this site, please email the web manager info@cumnockhistorygroup.org The group is willing to share any copies of documents found with the soldier's descendants.

Saturday 15 March 2014

Robert Gilmour

Robert Gilmour was born in Cumnock on 25 April 1878 to Robert Gilmour and his wife Agnes Irvine.

In the 1901 census he was a police constable in Largs and later that year he married Barbara Ellen Murray of Saltcoats by which time he was a police constable in Ardrossan. He had left the police by the time he enlisted.

He was a Sergeant in the 6th Battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers and died in France of wounds on 2nd August 1915. He was 37. He is buried in Lillers Communal Cemetery in France and is remembered on the Cumnock War Memorial.

He was the brother-in-law of William Twigg who also died.

See the family on the Cumnock Connections tree. I realised he is related to me by marriage!

His entry on Commonwealth Graves Commission

I've just received this photo from his grandson William Braniff in Norfolk. He says it is a photo of RSF corporals taken at Aldershot. He was in the 6th Battalion.
Robert is the one on the extreme right. Maybe one of the others is his brother-in-law William Twigg?


His soldier's will is available from scotlandspeople for £2.50.

1 comment: