Durham Home Guard - Records Available

[BWEF]

In the latest email from the National Archives they say that Durham Home Guard records are now available, and can be searched for online:

"These are the records of over 80,000 people who served in the Home Guard in the County of Durham only, between 1939 and 1945."

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/r...home-guard.htm

[Graham Stewart]

Major 5th HG 1 (Medium).JPG
My only Home Guard uniform although WWII and not post-War. This belonged to Major Joseph Michael Smith Coates, OBE, 5th(Gosforth)Bn, Northumberland Home Guard. During WWI he had served with the Machine Gun Corps.

I've also tried to find my grandfathers records among those to Durham Home Guard, but sadly can't locate him. I ended up with his greatcoat and Durham HG badges which were sewn to it.

[Graham Stewart]

Major 5th HG 2.JPG
A better view of the badges sewn to the arm. I have both the jacket and trousers and the beauty of this one is that it's a private purchase uniform, and not the standard rough khaki serge battledress you would expect to find, it's actually made of a material you would normally find with the normal pattern officers SD jacket.

[Jibba Jabba]

Sorry to be the party pooper! What makes these particular records of all those that the Archives hold in relation to WW2 so deserving that they should be digitised first?

In my opinion the Archives need to re-address their priorities and digitise records that will generate the most revenue for them and those that are in the highest demand.

Why havent the WW1 war diaries been finished? Where are the service papers to OR's of the RAF for WW1? etc etc.

[Mike_2817]

Maybe they are doing them alphabetically and are now on D? No method of doing it will please everyone.