The Walker Brothers

Paul Walker first sent me his research on his father and Uncle’s service a couple of years ago and before I begin this blog entry I’d just like to say thanks to Paul for his patience! All photos via Paul Walker. The four Walker brothers were from Carlton, Nottingham. Frank Walker, Frederick George Walker (Paul’sContinue reading “The Walker Brothers”

Chagford Officers Photo

I took this photo when we visited Freddie Friend in 2014. In my recording of our meeting Freddie remarked that Lt Gray is the only officer not wearing the peaked hat. The image has been resized and flattened to fit this page. This photo and others remain with Freddie’s family. Unfortunately I didn’t feel itContinue reading “Chagford Officers Photo”

Disbandment

87th’s disbandment date is something I’ve written about before because it’s not always recorded correctly. According to the regiment’s last war diary the official disbandment date was 26 June 1944. The documents below include the disbandment order, a directive on what should happen to personnel (including the band) and the programme for the farewell serviceContinue reading “Disbandment”

Freddie Friend

It’s St George’s Day today and a good day to write about Freddie Friend, as it’s his birthday. I was lucky to meet Freddie in 2014, two years before he passed. In his role as secretary of the Torbay branch of the Devonshire & Dorset Regimental Association and 87th Anti-Tank, he communicated with many peopleContinue reading “Freddie Friend”

The IWM Photo Mystery

I’ve been meaning to tackle this for a while. The Imperial War Museum (IWM) photo library contains two images that purport to show 269 Battery, 87th Anti-Tank Regiment in Italy at the Foglia River. The photos are below. 87th Anti-Tank did not deploy to Italy as a combat unit. The band stayed together on disbandmentContinue reading “The IWM Photo Mystery”

The Walker Brothers

This post is long overdue as I’ve been sat on a treasure trove of information sent by Paul Walker. His father, Frederick George Walker and Fred’s two brothers, Herbert Walker and John William (Billy) Walker all served with 87th Anti-Tank. All survived the war. This post will be updated but firstly here’s another excellent photoContinue reading “The Walker Brothers”

Chagford Memories

Lin Sharland kindly sent me these cuttings from her Dad’s collection describing the unit’s time in Chagford. There’s some great little insight, not least the reference to 87th using French 75mm guns in North Africa. I’m not sure this is correct as my understanding is they were using 6-pdr guns only. They trained on 2-pdrsContinue reading “Chagford Memories”

The Chagford Photos

The regiment had a series of photos taken during it’s time in Devon. It’s clear a number of men held copies of these and I’ve featured the ones sent to me on this site. It wasn’t until I received the band photo (below) from Lin Sharland that I had could place the images. All ofContinue reading “The Chagford Photos”

“A Stylish Batsman”

This week I was contacted by Mark Rogers, who is researching men on Worcester’s King’s School war memorial. Lieutenant Thomas Norman Gray is listed on this memorial. Gray was killed with his batman, Gunner Richardson, by enemy shelling at Testour, as they were having breakfast on 4th May 1943. Mark kindly provided the following information:Continue reading ““A Stylish Batsman””

Gunner Marsh’s Unit

Researching granddad’s regiment had two positive outcomes. One was correcting an error in Harry Marsh’s burial records and the second, via the help of the members of ww2talk.com, was putting Freddie Friend in touch with Harry Marsh’s family. I will cover that story in another blog post. Gunner Henry “Harry” Marsh, 4126455, was killed onContinue reading “Gunner Marsh’s Unit”

John Green

Some time ago I found a web entry by Stephen Corcoran about his grandfather, John Green, who served in 7th Devons/87th Anti-Tank. Before joining 7th Battalion, he served in 1/9 Manchester Machine Gun Regiment, then after 87th, 60th Anti-tank Regiment. Stephen sent me the below images. Unfortunately the Troop and Company information is unknown, but theContinue reading “John Green”

Alfred & Leslie Jones

This little blog is already having some success. I’ve been contacted by two people in the last couple of weeks who had family in 7th Devons/87th Anti-Tank. The first is Lin Sharland. Lin’s father, Alfred James Jones (1919-2002, from Teignmouth) and his brother Leslie Frank Jones (1921-2002), were in the regimental band. Both played drums.Continue reading “Alfred & Leslie Jones”