(Charles) Colin Fisher 1st Bn, Worcs Reg. 14577478

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(Charles) Colin Fisher 1st Bn, Worcs Reg. 14577478

Postby fisha » Sun Feb 19, 2012 1:01 am

Hello,
I'm trying to find out anything at all about my uncle who served in the Worcs Regiment, 1st Bn. I think he joined-up in 1943.
I think that he may have been in 'D' Company and in 1944 he landed in France on the 23rd of June 1944. He was killed in action
on the 7th July 1944, aged 19. From reading the war diaries, this would have been in Mouen,during operation Epsom, and would
have probabley been due to intense enemy mortar fire.

His war record states that his name was Charles Collins Fisher, but his family & friends knew him as, and called him 'Colin'.
I am his nephew and have never seen a photograph of him as the family don't have any. So, I would love to be able to see
a photograph of him. He was from Dudley and lived in Oakeywell Street. His army number was- 14577478.

So i just wonderd if there was anyone still out there that knew of him or recalled serving with him ? I know it's a big 'if'
but I thought I'd try. It'd be lovely if there was someone out there who could shed some light on what he was like,
or who might have come across him etc etc... or at least what it was like in the Worcs Regiment of 1944, landing in France
in late June and what it was like travelling through Normandy to Cheux & Mouen etc.

many thanks, David Fisher.
fisha
 
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Location: Dudley, West Midlands

Re: (Charles) Colin Fisher 1st Bn, Worcs Reg. 14577478

Postby scully » Sun Feb 19, 2012 4:22 pm

Hi David,

I checked the list I have of all 1st Battalion 'D' Company men an he is on that list (dated 20th February 1944). The strange thing is that when I check the group photos I have of 'D' Company men taken at Turnpike Camp, Hythe, he is not named on any of the photos. Possible he was on leave that day the photos were taken.

You can find information and photos of the 1st Battalion in Normany, Cheux and Mouen on the website. Simply click on BATTALIONS on the top menu bar then click on 1st BATTALION on the drop down list the click of either "Normandy 1944" or "Cheux 1944" or "Mouen 1944" and you will get lots of information.

'D' Company was made up of 16 Platoon, 17 Platoon and 18 Platoon.

I do not someone who served in 17 Platoon of 'D' Company and he is still living in Bromsgrove. I will email you his contact details as I not post them on the forum for security reasons.

I will also send you a separate email with a booklet I have produced covering Normandy, Cheux and Mouen. It is PDF format.

Regards,

Louis (webmaster)
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Re: (Charles) Colin Fisher 1st Bn, Worcs Reg. 14577478

Postby scully » Sun Feb 19, 2012 5:04 pm

Hi David,

Sent you 2 emails.

I did a little bit more reaseach and found that 2 other men were killed that same day 7th July 1944 they were:
Lance-Corporal Martin Baldwin (5257676)
Private James Lowe (5257784)
Interestingly both these men were with the Support Company of the 1st Battalion. Although Charles Collins Fisher is shown on a list dated the 20th February 1944 with 'D' Company it is possible that he was transferred to Support Company before going to France and that they were together when they were killed by shelling. This would make some sence as he is not on any of the photos I have of 'D' Company men taken in April 1944.
I do have a couple of group photos of Support Company men in the Mortar Platoon and Anti-Tank Platoon but sadly do not have the names of the men on the photos appart from a few. Copies ofthese two photos are in the booklet I have sent you.

Regards,

Louis (webmaster)
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Re: (Charles) Colin Fisher 1st Bn, Worcs Reg. 14577478

Postby fisha » Mon Feb 20, 2012 12:35 am

Hi Louis,
Many many thanks for you help and replies.

I will get in contact with the person you mentioned and will of course say that it was through yourself.
I didn’t realise that the website was run by yourself, I thought some branch of the army funded it!

We visited my uncles grave in 2008 at the Hottot-Les-Bagues War Cemetary in Normandy. I have some pictures of the cemetary and his grave. I don’t know if they’d be of any interest for your website? If they are let me know, and I’ll mail them to you. I also took a camcorder and did a little 15minute filming of the cemetary, again, let me know if you’d be interested and I could always forward a copy onto you.

I did manage to find 2 pitures of 1st BN, ‘D’ company on your site. These were of the 17th and 18th platoons in April 1944, and they had all of the names attached (no mention of Colin Fisher) and so I then assumed that he must of been in 16th platoon, but I couldn’t find a picure of that platoon to back it up! But after what you’ve said about the other two soldiers that got killed in the Support Platoon, that does make sense. I do have an 89 year old aunt still around, and I will ask her to have a look at the two picures you sent in the booklet that you wrote, but whether or not she can remember what my uncle looks like, I don’t know. Maybe I’l never know. I guess it’s a bit of a mystery that he’s mentined as being in ‘D’ Company in Feburary but doesn’t appear on the pictures.. I guess he could of even been transferred to A, B or C Company for that matter, but like you say, it does point to the Support Company and the war diary does state that on the 7th of July (when my uncle got killed) that the BN HQ area got heavily hit with mortar fire, and I’m guessing that the support company (or at least the mortar platoon) might have been more toward the rear along with BN HQ ?

Myself and my wife will definately be taking another trip to France, later this year hopefully. This time I am going to follow the route of the 1st BN through Mont Fleury,Manvieux,Brecy,Brouay,Le Mesnil-Patry,Cheux and down to Mouen. Obviously, thinking my uncle was in ‘D’ Company, I thought he landed on the 22nd of June aboard the Canterbury, but now that he could of been in the support Company, would that mean he sailed on a different ship? Or would just the mortar equipment be on another ship and most of the soldiers would still have been on the Canterbury? ( I’m thinking of the ship that carried the Motor Transport, that got held up at the harbour in France and didn’t embark until a few days later – The MT48 ‘Empire Duke’ ) Am I also right in thinking that the mortars and rounds wouldn’t be put into the landing crafts and been able to be carried ashore?, therefore they’d have been aboard the MT ship that had to moor up and get unload properly?

Never-the-less, I will still try and go through all the towns that the 1st BN went through and re-tread their paths and will then visit The Hill 112 memorials and Churchill Tank and then go onto what I think was called ‘Cornwall Wood’ as we didn’t visit this area the last time we went over.

Once again, many thanks for your help. What you have done with your website is fantastic. It is a sad and at the same time, fascinating experience for me, trying to trace the footsteps of my uncle, and without your help, I wouldn’t have gotten very far at all.
fisha
 
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Location: Dudley, West Midlands

Re: (Charles) Colin Fisher 1st Bn, Worcs Reg. 14577478

Postby scully » Mon Feb 20, 2012 3:43 pm

Hi David,

Mortar Platoon were part of Support Company so they would have been on the MT48 ‘Empire Duke’ with their motars.

I will email you a photo of the whole of the men of the 1st Battalion Worcestershire Regiment (April 1944), as it is very large I will send it in 2 parts so you need to join them up ! As this is of all the men and officers of the 1st Battalion your uncle should be on this photo - but which one I do not know.

I would welcome any photos of the Worcestershire Regiment gravestones which you mentioned.

Regards,

Louis (webmaster)
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