TOPIC:

Thank you for all of these Paul.

Plenty to keep me busy.

N

The Beverley Tribute Medal

The report of the 29th June 1901 in the Beverley Recorder refers to the presentation of the Freedom of the Borough which was granted to the 11 men named. The reference to the medal in the article is not the Beverley Tribute medal but I think their QSA’s as the Mayor is blaming the War Office for the delay in issuing them. The War office would not issue the Tribute medals. An advert for this Presentation appeared in the Beverley Recorder 22 Jun 1901 and again it notes its purpose is to present the Freedom of The Borough to the Volunteers and no medals are mentioned. The 29th June article also mentions that Lieut P J Hobson was top of the list but he was detained in Aldershot taking an Examination.


The medals were presented by the Beverley Borough Treasurer Alderman Joseph Hobson father of PJ who was away having been examined for a commission in to the Regular Army.
Beverley Recorder Sat July 13th 1901
Beverley and the Returned Volunteers
Presentation of Medals
On Tuesday night (9th July) the Beverley members of the returned Volunteer Service Company were presented with medals in commemoration of the war at the Armoury in Walkergate and those present included the Mayor, Councillor Elwell, Mr Joseph Hobson, Capt Stanley, Lieut Eng---- and others. Mr Hobson, who presented the medals referred to the interest he had been taking of the doings of the company and on mentioning the name of his son, Lieutenant P J Hobson the room resounded with hearty cheering , the Lieutenant being evidently a keen favourite among the men, The medals are of silver with a gold centre and on one side the arms of Beverley and the name of the recipient whilst on the other side the words South Africa 1900 1901. The Mayor proposed and Sgt Gavan seconded a vote of thanks to Mr Hobson and this was carried with great enthusiasm. The medals are provided out of funds raised by the Beverley Reception Committee.

There was a further presentation in 1903 of the Freedom of the Borough to returned Volunteers but no mention they were given a medal. So it could be only 12 were issued i,e the 11 you have plus Lieut Percy Joseph Hobson and the other OR on this list.

I have PJ Hobsons medals and a lot of original paperwork, commission docs etc but no mention of the Beverley Tribute medal his father accepted on his behalf on the 9th July 1901. I wonder whether his father remembered to give him it. I also have the Coronation Medal given to the Mayor Elwell but despite putting in a bid of 5 times estimate still no Beverley Tribute medal. One turned up in a DNW sale in the late 90's and was "hoovered into the Upfill Brown Collection" as part of a mixed lot at £1500 (3 times my bid!). Mr Upfill Brown donated them all to the National Army Museum and this still inadequately described treasure now languishes in a warehouse in Stevenage and probably has done for at least the past 20 years. It has been defaced so the naming has been obscured. I will provide full details including a poor copy of the medal later when I dig out my papers with a fuller provenance.

Thank you,
Entry updated with your additional information.
N

Do you know what the NAM accession number is for the Upfill Brown example?
And who was the recipient - Hobson or one of the OR's?
N

Neville

I dont have the NAM access number but I do have the description

Medals awarded to Pte B Dyer 2nd Vol Bn East Yorkshire Regiment: Queen's South Africa Medal, 1899-1902, clasps: Cape Colony, Transvaal, Witteberger and silver and gilt Boer War Tribute Medal 1900-1901; associated with the Boer War (1899-1902).

I remember now why I was reluctant to bid any higher. The lot had the medal described as awarded to Pte Dyer. Having done my due diligence I established Dyer was born in somewhere like Derbyshire and I could find no obvious connection that he went anywhere near Beverley except perhaps to the East Yorks Depot there between posting. He was a regular soldier in the 2nd East Yorks not a Volunteer Company. I wrote to Tony Upfill Brown through the OMRS database and I got a very charming letter. I presented my evidence and he passed on to the person at the NAM who had gladly accepted all his treasurers. She said she would do something but you can see how it is described. Even wrote to them asking if they would part with it as I would give it a good home but they declined of course and despite that later correspondence the Accession Lot is still as described.

I have even asked if I can see it but because its tucked away they need a months notice. I dont plan my trips to London that regularly and the NAM is an awkward place to get to from Kings Cross. I hope someone in the future will be able to make use of my notes and get a nice clear picture

The one in Beverley Record Office i.e the photo only I do have the accession for is a very poor photocopy enlarged on a 1990's machine by Matthew Taylor who collaborated with Mr Hibbard on his book.(DNW sold his Tribute collection when he died.
More information to follow as I dig it out. Its been buried nearly as long as the medal in the Stevenage Warehouse!!

As to whether it could be Hobson I think definitely not from recollection I believe all you could make out was a W.

An Amusing aside I seem to recall when Mr Taylor first wrote to Beverley archives he described the animal on the emblem as a duck and he thought the beavers tail was a ducks bill. Easy mistake for a Scotsman as who would readily know the town over Beverley was previously called Beverlac a corruption of Beaver Lake

That is all for now. Great initiative Neville your database. I am only interested in 2/3 Tributes and you have uncovered 850!

Andrew


I will send via Email to Mr Biggins so he is satisfied we are not breaching any copywrite on his website
Beverley Record Office entry for the photo

• zDDX441 - SOUTH AFRICA WAR MEDAL (PHOTOGRAPH)

Level Collection
Finding No DDX441

CalmView : Collection Browser




Extent(1 item)TitleSOUTH AFRICA WAR MEDAL (PHOTOGRAPH)Date1901DescriptionContains photographs of South Africa War medal presented by Beverley Corporation to townsmen serving in the 2nd Volunteer Battalion East Riding Regiment c.1901.AccessStatusOpenPlaceCodeNA3416NA2309SubjectBOROUGH COUNCILSPHOTOGRAPHSBOER WARMEDALSARMY




Beverley Record Office entry for the photo

• zDDX441 - SOUTH AFRICA WAR MEDAL (PHOTOGRAPH)

Level Collection
Finding No DDX441

CalmView : Collection Browser


Extent(1 item)TitleSOUTH AFRICA WAR MEDAL (PHOTOGRAPH)Date1901DescriptionContains photographs of South Africa War medal presented by Beverley Corporation to townsmen serving in the 2nd Volunteer Battalion East Riding Regiment c.1901.AccessStatusOpenPlaceCodeNA3416NA2309SubjectBOROUGH COUNCILSPHOTOGRAPHSBOER WARMEDALSARMY

St Mary's Southampton tribute and medals to P.O. H.C.W. Lee HMS Powerful. My favourite group.