My 4th ggf, George Jam?son was born in 1782 in/near Dromore, Down. He enlisted in 1804 as a private in Kells, Westmeath and his final discharge was on the Isle of Jersey in 1828 as a color sergeant (NCO). In between these dates he served in several different units:
97th 4 June 1804 - 23 December 1818 (part of time in Freshford, Kilkenny, achieved rank of sergeant, discharged Dublin)
Out pension 24 December 1818 - 24 November 1819
8th 25 November 1819 - 26 March 1821
Out pension 25 March 1821 - 31 October 1823
3rd 1 November 1823 - 24 October 1825
50th 25 October 1825 - 10 July 1828 (promoted to Color Sergeant in October 1825, discharged due to "long service and worn-out.")
Considering the loss of military records during WWII when the War Office was bombed, I feel fortunate to have found several official documents for his service, through using Fold3 and the National Archives at Kew. I've also consulted: National Army Museum Chelsea, London online collection; Stack, Wayne. Rebellion, Invasion and Occupation: A Military History of Ireland, 1793-1815; and The London Gazette.
I've been trying to fill in the details of his service but so far, have not had much luck in finding online sources of information. George's last regiment was the 50th. I did find Fyler's book, The History of the 50th Or (the Queen's Own) Regiment from the Earliest Date; Chapman and Hall, 1895. It provides some interesting information but nothing specific about George.
Despite googling so much that Google thinks I'm a robot, I still have questions. I hope that someone has some great sources that I can access online to help answer the following:
It appears from Fyler that he may have fought overseas. Did he see other combat? Was he wounded? Was he awarded any medals? Is there a War Memorial which has his name?
He was promoted to Color Sergeant on 25 October 1825. The regiment received its new colors in Weedon, Isle of Jersey in October 1827. Did he take part in the ceremony? If so, what was his function?
How much were his pensions? Were his 2 re-enlistments due to economic hardship as civilian?
Did his family accompany him on all tours of duty? I know that they were with him in Newry. George was given money to assist in transporting his wife, Elizabeth and their 3 children back to the Dromore area in 1821. I have seen a few references that families accompanied soldiers. What were the barracks like? What was family life like? Did woman give birth while living there? [I know that his daughter, Elizabeth, was born in 1810 and his son George, was born in 1813, both in Dromore Parish; but only guessing on his 3rd child]
Thanks for any leads you can provide!
Beth
UPDATE After I posted this, I remembered RootsChat and was going to x-post there. They have a plethora of military resources for me to explore!
Update 2: I had posted a query at Rootschat yesterday and already received 2 very helpful replies which answered some of my questions and made me realize that I had misinterpreted some records. So much to learn! If you'd like to see the discoveries, the link is https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=870647.new#new
Cheers!
