Lance Corporal John Munro, 7th Cameron Highlanders

Today's blip, though of poor quality, represents a major triumph.

For the past 10-12 years, I have been trying to track down the details of my Great Uncle John Munro, who I never knew but know that he was killed in the First World War.  Family anecdotal information on him was very limited so I have been on a mission to find out where he died and was buried.  The path along which I've searched has been a difficult one, with many false turns and dead ends.

I've searched the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's records (there are around 67 J Munro's listed) and had managed to narrow it down somewhat.

I visited the Scottish National War Memorial at Edinburgh Castle and discounted others from the list.

I've been to the National Archives at Kew where, sadly, I could not find his service record.  It's probably one of the Burnt Records that did not survive WW2.

In the end, I was fairly convinced that "my John Munro" was Lance Corporal John Munro, S18967, of 7th Battalion Cameron Highlanders.  However, the few army records that I have state that he was born in Tain, Ross-shire whereas I know that he was born in Kincardine Parish, Ross-shire, which is about 10 miles away.

I contacted Inverness Library and managed to find the death notice from the Ross-Shire Journal for John Munro, S18967 which stated that he was the third son R  of Finlay R  and Mrs. Munro.  If only, it had stated his mother's name (Williamina), rather than just "Mrs." then I'd have been convinced.


A month or so ago, I contacted The Highlanders Museum at Fort George as they offer a Family History Research facility.  Their researcher, Terry MacQueen, eventually contacted me with what he had found on John Munro.  While it was useful, there was never concrete proof of the link between Lance Corp. John Munro and my Great Uncle.  Terry confirmed that the picture I sent him of Gt. Uncle John was almost certainly that of a soldier in the Cameron Highlanders.

However, this afternoon I received an e-mail from Terry with a scan of the Enlistment Book for Cameron Highlanders.  The entry for John Munro shows that he was a butcher and was aged 21yrs 2 mo when he enlisted in June 1915.  I know from other family history research that my Gt. Uncle John was a butcher at the time of the 1911 census, and that he would have been 21yrs and 2 mo old in June 1915.

So, it may not be a 100% certainty that the two individuals are the same person,  but the balance of probability is that they are.   

I feel that, next August, I can visit the field close to Martinpuich on The Somme battlefield where my Great Uncle John Munro lost his life.  John has no known grave but is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial.