Regiment: Royal Garrison Artillery, 4th Highland
Mountain Brigade
Rank & Number: Gunner,2262 & 301687
Born: 13 August 1892; Sandyfaulds Street, Glasgow
Died:Not Known
Other: Brother
of William Ramsay
JAMES
RAMSAYwas born 13 Aug 1892 at
114 Sandyfaulds Street, Glasgow.to parents George Graham, French Polisher, and Mary McMahon (who were married in Glasgow on 24 Jun 1892).
In the 1901 Census, James,
aged 8, is in his grandfather's household at 347 Govan Street, Glasgow with
father George (31, French
Polisher, b. Glasgow) and siblings Margaret (7) and William (5)
In
the 1911 Census, aged 18 and a French Polisher, he is living Bay House, Bay
Street with parents George (41, French Polisher) and Mary (40, b. Glasgow, m 18 years, 5
children/3 living) and siblings Maggie (17) and William (16, house
painter)
SERVICE RECORD
Named in the Largs & Millport Weekly News Roll of
Honour of enlisted men printed 21 Nov 1914 and the Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald Roll of Honour
in Dec 1914 (Ramsay, Gr. James, Bay House, Fairlie, Bute
Mountain Battery). Enlisted 24 Oct 1911; first theatre of war entered was
Gallipoli 10 May 1915 to 08 Feb 1916.
Also served Egypt 12 Feb 1916 to 06 Aug 1916, and Salonika 09 Aug 1916
to 12 Mar 1919. Suffered recurrent
malaria throughout service and discharged 25 Apr 1919 (Silver War Badge list). His medal index card shows he received the
1914-15 Star and the British War and Victory medals.
Extracts from the Largs
& Millport Weekly News:- 21 November 1914 Local Roll Of Honour: The following is the first instalment of what
we hope will eventually be a complete list of all connected with this district
who have at present answered the urgent call to arms in the great crisis of our
national history:-
Bute Battery, 4th Highland (Mountain)
Brigade, Royal Garrison Artillery (T)
FAIRLIE - Ramsay Gr., James, Bute Mountain
Battery
8 May 1915 Bute
Mountain Battery: list of those
transferred to other units for active service and are now overseas: 1st
Dardanelles reinforcements: Gunner J.
Ramsay
17 July 1915 Dardanelles: A letter from Gunner James Ramsay, Fairlie,
from Gallipoli. After describing the
conditions of warfare there and with a few scathing remarks about the gentle
young men who stay at home, he complains that they are rather neglected in the
way of parcels and comforts there.
11 December 1915 In a letter from Suvla Bay, Gunner James Ramsay pleads for the gift
of a football. It is proposed to give
the local “sports” an early opportunity of giving their mite for this laudable
purpose.
1 January 1916
Fairlie Cigarette And Tobacco Fund: Writing to Mr. Wm. Miller,
Fairlie, acknowledging a parcel of cigarettes, Gunner James Graham says:- You
must really excuse my delay in thanking you for the splendid gift of cigarettes
which I received, . . . . . but really we have been kept “on the hop” for over
a month now, learning this new branch of the Artillery to which 23 of us have
been attached. The cigarettes were splendid,
and I handed them round the tent the night I received them, and all of us
agreed that they were “kings” to the “special” brands made for poor Tommy in
the trenches. . . . . . We have Jamie Ramsay with us, and he is
really a splendid cook. If you could
only sample some of his roast beef, boiled cabbage, potatoes, and a lot of
other things he turns out, you would be surprised.
26 February 1916 Fairlie Cigarette And Tobacco Fund: Letters of thanks have lately
been received from Trooper Wm. Balchin, Gunner James Ramsay, Private T.
McLaughlin (Dardanelles Force), Private Alex. McLean (Salonica), Gunner Tom
Messenger, Private John Boyd, Driver John Fraser, Corpl. Duncan Douglas
(France), Sergt. A. Davis, Private John McLaughlan, Dan McCallum, and David
Thomson (hospital).
17 June 1916
Fairlie Cigarette And Tobacco Fund: Letters of thanks have been
received recently from James Ramsay, Wm. Ramsay, John Currie, John Ward, A.
Erskine, James Smith, Tom McLaughlin, Charles Rodger, Tom Messenger, Hugh
Burden, Wm. Balchin, Tom Miller, Wm. Stewart, John Fraser, Duncan Douglas, Dan
McCallum, Allan McCallum, Alex. McLean, Alfred Davis, Arthur Crawford, and a
postcard from Robert McLachlan, who is a prisoner of war in Germany.
11 May 1918 Gunner
James Ramsay, R.G.A., who has been in Salonika for over two years and has been
home on leave for a few weeks, left to join his unit again on Tuesday. His native air has wrought wonders and he
returns in good spirits and quite fit.
We wish him the best of luck.
Regiment: Royal Garrison Artillery, 4th Highland
