
                    ***********************************
                           PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE 
                    RECORDS INFORMATION Leaflet No: 101
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  [Note: this and all other PRO Records Information leaflets are (c)
  Crown Copyright, but may be freely reproduced except for sale or
  advertising purposes.  Copies should always include this Copyright
  notice -- please respect this.]  (c) Crown Copyright, December 1987

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           SERVICE MEDAL AND AWARD ROLLS: WAR OF 1914-1918 - WO 329
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These rolls, in 3273 volumes, cover awards of the following medals to
officers and other ranks, Army and Royal Flying Corps: 

                            British War Medal
                            Victory Medal
                            1914 Star
                            1914-1915 Star
                            Territorial Force War Medal
                            Silver War Badge

To trace the entry which you require, you must take three steps:

i)   obtain the former (Army Medal Office) reference of the medal roll
     in which the entry appears: for this you must consult the index to
     individual soldiers. 

ii)  obtain the former (Army Medal Office) reference of the volume in
     which that roll is bound: for this you must consult the index to
     medal rolls, WO 329/1

iii) obtain the current PRO reference, which you will need to order the
     volume: for this you must consult the class list for WO 329. 


1. Index to individual soldiers, by surname

A card index to all soldiers and airmen of the 1914-1918 War who received
a service medal was maintained by the Army Medal Office, which has
provided a copy on microfiche. This can be consulted in the Microfilm
Reading Room. 

a) Ask the member of staff on duty in the Microfilm Reading Room to
   produce the fiche which covers the name which you are researching: you
   should state the surname and all known forenames or initials. 

   Please note that only one fiche can be produced at a time. If you are
   researching a common name, or several names, you may find that a long
   and time-consuming search is needed.

b) Consult the fiche at one of the microfiche readers in the Microfilm
   Reading Room. 

c) Each fiche contains up to 360 cards, arranged as follows:


   SMITH, J. A. 12345 - SMITH J. M. 67890

      1  4  7  10  13  16  19  22  25  28  31  34  37  40
      2  5  8  11  14  17  20  23  26  29  32  35  38  41      (72 cards
      3  6  9  12  15  18  21  24  27  30  33  36  39  42      per row)

      (maximum 5 rows per fiche)


The cards should appear on the fiche in alphabetical order of initials,
covering first men with only one recorded initial or forename, then those
with two recorded initials or forenames. then those with three. and so
on. Thus, very simply, a sequence might run:

          SMITH, J
          SMITH, JAMES
          SMITH, JOHN
          SMITH, JULIUS
          SMITH, JAMES A
          SMITH, JOHN A
          SMITH, JULIUS A
          SMZTH, JAMES B
          SMITH, JOHN B
          SMITH, JULIUS B
          SMITH, JAMES A B
          SMITH, JOHN A B
          SMITH, JULIUS A B

d) When you have identified on the fiche the index card for the name you
   are researching, you should have in front of you a card similar to the
   one illustrated at the top of the next page. You should note from it: 

    (i) the individual's unit and service number (if you do not know these
        already),

   (ii) the medal roll reference(s). 

The example shown traces the references for the British War Medal and
Victory Medal only. The procedures for following up the references are the
same for all the medal rolls included in the class WO 329. 

     {Example not included here - a scan of reasonable size would not
      convey enough information to be worthwhile.}

e) When you have finished with the fiche, please return it to the member
   of staff on duty. You may then request another fiche, if required. 

N.B. i) Some cards were not in the correct order at the time of filming.
        If the entry you are seeking is not immediately obvious on the
        fiche, you should check all cards within the likely range, and
        also, if necessary, any variant spellings of the surname. 

    ii) With a common name, it may be difficult, and sometimes impossible,
        to identify the card for the person you are seeking unless you
        already know both his regiment and his regimental number. 

   iii) Hyphenated surnames may appear in either of two ways. Most such
        names are indexed, and were originally filed by their second
        element. Thus, 'James A Brown-Smith' would have been indexed under
        '-SMITH, James A Brown,'. His card may still be found at the
        appropriate point among the Smiths. However, some index cards for
        hyphenated surnames were refiled by the Army Medal Office under
        the first element of the name, at the end of the sequence for that
        element on its own: that is to say,'James A Brown-Smith' might
        appear after 'BROWN, X Y Z', although his card would still read
        '-SMITH, James A Brown, With any hyphenated surname, it may be
        necessary to check both possibilities. 

        In most cases, the card contains as much informatian as the medal
        roll itself. If you want only the information, you need proceed no
        further. We are not able, however, to supply copies from the
        microfiches. If you require a copy documenting medal entitlement,
        you will need to consult the medal roll itself, as follons. 


2. Index to medal rolls (WO 329/1), with key

a) Photocopies of the original Medal Roll index (WO 329/1) and its
   typescript key are available for consultation in the Microfilm Reading
   Room, on the tables beside the microfiche readers. 

b) First consult the key, which is in a loose-leaf binder. The key gives
   the former medal roll references in alphabetical order, and indicates
   on which page of the medal roll index each roll is listed. 

c) Turn to the appropriate page of the index, which you will find in a
   bound volume, labelled on the spine 'WO 329/1'. When you have
   identified the volume number for the roll which you wish to see, note
   that number down. 


3. PRO class list: WO 329

a) Consult the PRO class list for WO 329, which you will find also in a
   binder in the microfilm reading room. You will see the old volume
   numbers in the right-hand margin (all A volumes, followed by all B
   volumes, and so on). Find the volume number you are seeking, then read
   back to the left-hand margin, where you find the PRO 'piece number'.
   Note it down. 

b) You can now order the document. If you are not familiar with the PRO's
   ordering system, return to the First Floor Lobby, and help yourself to
   a copy of Information Sheet 35, How to use the Reading Rooms at Kew,
   which will tell you how to obtain a seat number and how to order
   documents at one of the computer terminals in the Reference Room. 


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  Public Record Office, Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1LR.
  Public Record Office, Ruskin Avenue, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU.
  Tel: +44 (0) 181 876-3444

  Opening hours: 9.30am - 5.00pm, Monday to Friday. Closed on public
  holidays and for annual Stocktaking (normally the first two full weeks
  in October). 

  Admission is by reader's ticket which will be issued on production of
  proof of identity, such as a (UK) driving licence or passport.
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     Fidonet:  2:253/188         Tel: +44-1242-232623
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