Richard Daglish, New Zealand

This is a photo of Richard Daglish which he signed and also wrote on the back "Taken "Somewhere in France" 10-1-17".

Richard was born in November 1892 in Tasmania, the son of James Daglish and Lydia Stevenson. James and his wife were married in Newcastle in 1884 and a few weeks later emigrated to Australia. The family later moved to Dunedin, New Zealand.

Richard's army service record shows that he joined the Dunedin Cycle and Signal Corps in 1909, going on to join No.2 Signal Company (Otago) before leaving for Europe in 1915 with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force.

He served first in Gallipoli and Somalia before arriving in France in 1916. On 2 January 1917 he was mentioned in dispatches by General Sir Douglas Haig and the photo was taken a few days after this. On 11 March 1917 he was promoted to Staff Sergeant.

In 1917 he was posted to England, marrying Mary Stewart Scott in Ryton on 5 February 1918.

The photo below of Richard and family is dated May 1918 and taken at the Kapai Studio, Dunedin. Richard also served in the Second World War.

North East War Memorials Project

The North East War Memorials Project is a site that may be of some interest to people with ancestors from the North East who lost their lives in the two world wars.

What makes this site different from some others - such as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission - is that it is dedicated to local war memorials. This includes the public memorials ones that can be seen in towns and villages, and also ones that are less visible being inside schools, churches and working mens clubs.

Details provided include the location and description, a listing of names and a photograph. Searches can be made by name and/or location. A simple search for Daglish produces 43 results.

I have used this to find various memorials on my trips to the North East, such as the Cenotaph at Castle Bank, Morpeth.