John Alwyne Burgess

[Tony Morcom]

In 2010 I decided to investigate my late uncle's wartime career in the Merchant Navy. Until that time, to be honest, I had not given it much thought. However his widow had recently had a clear out of her loft and had sent me his discharge book and a couple of other bits and pieces. Those items led me into the world of these nostalgia sites whilst attempting some research. Luckily for me, both Ray Buck and Hugh answered my probing questions on another site and this steered me in the right direction. With their help, which I have seen replicated many times on this site, I was able to pin down and establish virtually all of my late uncle's career, the ships he was on, where he went and how his career progressed from apprentice to 2nd mate when he was discharged from national service.

His widow was delighted with my findings which I put together in a booklet form for her. She had not even met him until after the war and her knowledge of his career was sketchy to say the least. As many of us know that generation were reluctant to talk about their wartime experiences. I have now uploaded it to a web site. She has also discovered some old photos which I will be adding at a later date. Whilst this is primarily only of family interest I thought that it would be useful for members and prospective members to see what can be achieved with the help of the researchers on this site. Without their interest and involvement I may never have continued with my own research into his past and almost certainly would not have joined the many sites available to us.

For those interested in the career of an Ellerman and Bucknell Steamship Company Deck Officer the site is HERE

[Hugh]

Merchant Navy medals are not dealt with by the MoD so I am afraid the contact details supplied by Vernon are only relevant to the armed forces. For WW2 Merchant Navy medals you have to deal direct with The Registry of Shipping and Seamen, Cardiff.

Tony,
As there is a file in BT 395/1 for your uncle that means the medals were either issued or claimed by the seaman or his NoK. The RSS, Cardiff will not issue you a duplicate set. What most people do in a situation like this would be to obtain them from a dealer or on ebay. WW2 medals were not stamped with the individuals name so would be easier to obtain. Billly McGee knows a lot more than me about purchasing WW2 medals and he would be better placed to advise. However, I don't think obtaining these medals would be too expensive so well worth trying to obtain them and have them framed.

Regards
Hugh

[DeepSea]

Cardiff would issue replacements if proven the medals were lost or stolen, otherwise there is a fee to pay and a long process along the way. The most important number on the medal card is the number on the far right, which is the actual file number his medal entitlement is held at by Cardiff, but even with this the actual file may no longer exist. Many of the original records have been lost or destroyed.

If yo wish to purchase original medals find a local medal dealer or if you know how to tell an original from a copy, you can alway try ebay. From previous experience I can tell you the most expensive to buy from his entitlement would be the Pacific Star and would probably cost you in the region of £25 to £30. Atalntic Star between £18 to £25. The others should cost no more than £15 each.

if you wish to buy copies then I advise you try Award Productions.

[Tony Morcom]

Thanks for your advice gentlemen.

[Doc Vernon]

Merchant Navy personnel who served during World War II and as part of certain post-war operations or campaigns may be eligible to receive campaign medals. Applications should be made in writing to:

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency
MCA Cardiff
Anchor Court
Keen Road
Cardiff
CF24 5JW

Can I obtain replacements of lost medals?

The Medal Office only issue replacement medals to service veterans or, if deceased, the member of the family who now holds the medals, under certain strict conditions where the loss is completely outside the individual’s control in such instances as burglary, street theft or house fire. Only World War II medals and those issued subsequently can be replaced, provided that the criteria described here are met. The Medal Office is unable to replace medals issued before World War II, such as First World War medals, under any circumstances.
Should you wish to claim for replacement medals in these circumstances, you should please provide details of the incident (i.e. burglary, fire etc.) and submit supporting contemporary evidence from the time of loss, by way of a copy of a successful insurance claim, or a Police crime report, either/both of which should include reference to the loss of the medals. A crime reference number alone is not sufficient. A lost property report is also insufficient.
If these criteria are met then the Medal Office can issue replacement medals, but please note that there will still be a charge for the medals. The Medal Office will also check official records to confirm that the medals requested had been awarded to you or your relative.
In all other cases, you may wish to consider purchasing replica medals from a specialist medal company or reputable medal dealer.