Durham Light Infantry Museum

[Britjan]

Situated at Aykley Heads Durham DH1 5TU in the same building as the Art Gallery.
Here's the link DLI museum has a medal room "Here you will find the medals of Durham soldiers who fought in the Regiment from the Peninsular War battles against Napoleon two hundred years ago to the last campaign in Borneo in 1966." There's a searchable list of surnames which leads to personal histories surrounding the medals on display. "
AND there is a volunteer willing to look among the medals not on display if you believe ( or hope) it might be there. PM me for contact details.

 

[trebor]

My paternal line originates from Durham but there are no signs in myresearch to date of military involvement.
Is there a way of finding out if this existed?

 

[Britjan]

My paternal line originates from Durham but there are no signs in myresearch to date of military involvement. Is there a way of finding out if this existed?

Military involvement in WWI is likely the best place to start and I am assuming that you looked at both Find my Past and Ancestry.UK. in their military sections. Lives of the First World War is another place to look although it is by no means the easiest site to navigate. The CWGC site is useful I find it very user friendly. If you simply Google search "(Surname you are interested in),Durham, England records for WWI" it is amazing how much information comes up. It will take patience to go through it but you can add filters to your Google search. Remember to check for some variants of the surname as well.
Another way to go is to try to establish the opposite which is to search for proof on line after the 1911 census that they did not join up.
All that being said I have three close relatives on my family tree who are proving difficult to identify in that period.

 

[trebor]

Thanks Britjan your suggestions give me plenty to get my teeth into.
I am on holiday at the moment so serious searches will have to wait until I get back home.

Another way to go is to try to establish the opposite which is to search for proof on line after the 1911 census that they did not join up.

I am not sure how I would go about doing this so any further tips would be appreciated.

 

[Britjan]

I just wanted to start by reminding myself as well as you that it is reckoned that only around 30% of military records from WWI have survived, so Trebor enjoy your holiday and come back refreshed.
I think that a visit to Durham Record Office is going to be worthwhile,but you need to make an appointment. I've listed some details of their holdings in a new sub forum. They have print resources such as newspapers, trade journals, etc. I normally have to travel a long way to reach a record office so I do my homework , search their on line resources and contact them before I arrive.

Probably you' d focus on the last known address and occupation maybe from the 1911 census to see the last official record pre WWI. I don't know what level of personal assistance you could get but when I went to Keighley to trace my great uncle's accidental death the librarian was amazing. By the time I had read {and obtained photocopies of) newspaper accounts of the accident and funeral I had a real sense of closure.
On that same trip I also sat in the Norfolk County archives and looked at electoral roll books. I was looking at the ones for the late 1940's and I do know that rolls were not produced in the latter part of the war. You might find something for 1914-1915 for your relative(s) but remember rarely for a female elector. Here is a quote from http://www.1914-1918.net/records.html
"An electoral roll was produced for the General Election of December 1918. This was the first election after the passing of the Representation of the People Act in February 1918 and meant that for the first time all male resident householders aged 21 or older and all women over 30 (if they were a member or married to a member of the Local Government Register) could vote.
Records Those eligible to be on the roll but who were away from home on military service were compiled into a separate Absent Voters List. The list carried snippets of vital information: regiments, units, numbers. Not all the lists have survived; some appear not to have been compiled at all; local archives often profess to be unaware of them - but as a last resort they are well worth checking."

 

[trebor]

Thanks again Britjan - it looks like I will be very busy when I get back.

 

[Britjan]

Records Those eligible to be on the roll but who were away from home on military service were compiled into a separate Absent Voters List. The list carried snippets of vital information: regiments, units, numbers. Not all the lists have survived; some appear not to have been compiled at all; local archives often profess to be unaware of them - but as a last resort they are well worth checking."

Just remembered a link to the absentee list. However the Durham link is broken and I'll leave you to sort it out.