West Yorkshire Badges - Home Guard?
 

These chaps appear to be badged as West Yorkshire, and the date on the reverse says 21st August 1941. Are these men HG? There are some younger faces mixed in with the more mature ones.

What do the medal ribbons tell us, if anything?

With thanks.

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I think the leather anklets are HG issue, they also usually had leather belts whereas regulars wore webbing in both cases.

I think the older men with medal ribbons are from WW1 and the younger men yet to be called up?

I live Harrogate 'North Yorkshire' which was 'West Yorkshire during the war and after till 1976! but I do not recognise the location? There is a Foster Sq in Bradford.

In fact I would go as far as suggest the old GPO building on Foster Sq. which may well lead this to be a 'GPO' Company??

http://englandevents.co.uk/wp-conten...21019360_n.jpg

Absolutely brilliant, gents. Thank you very much :)

Photo obviously taken from perspective illustrated below:

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Duplicate post.
Eddie

Hi J T,
I think that your photo was taken in Forster Square, Bradford. The handle on the pole was to change the points on the overhead trolley bus or tram cables (pull for island).
The N71 looks like a road number, but the road numbers have been changed since then.
Most of the men look old enough in 1941 to have served in WW1.This may explain the medal ribbons. I think they are West Yorkshire HG.
Eddie

Superb info, Eddie. Thank you very much, sir.

Bradford HG
 

http://www.home-guard.org.uk/hg/cty-westriding.html

West Riding Battalions 1 to 4 from Bradford but no mention here of any GPO connections to those four.

Alan

Just to confirm what has already been said - almost certainly a Bradford (West Riding) Home Guard unit.

The location is the former GPO building in Forster Square (not Foster incidentally) in Bradford city centre. It was near one of the two railway stations, perhaps they were going to or from the station?. The whole area around that location has been extensively re-developed over the past few years.

David

PS...I agree with Eddie, the medal ribbons worn by the older men will almost certainly be primarily for WW1 or possibly even earlier in a few cases!

This is excellent stuff, people. Thank you all very much indeed.

Undoubtedly Home Guard. The absence of county letters and numbers on the arms dates the photo to around the middle of 1941 as they have battledress which began to be issued in early 1941 but lack the county letters and numbers which started to appear in the latter half of that year.

Jon

Thanks, Jon. Great info, as always. Much appreciated.