One of the 19th century methods of war fare was to blow up bridges especially those over difficult to cross rivers. Get all your people over then stop the enemy following/advancing etc. The 'engineers' built temporary bridges. There is a lovely very rare early 19th century book, older than 1870 on Military bridges with illustrations of how soldiers can put long bits of timber across a large gap to start to repair, them also showed how they could use timber to repair broken stone bridges. Somewhere on the net I found some American bridges that were destroyed during the American Civil war. Regards Elizabeth Roberts PS I was looking for bridges. -----Original Message----- From: Joyce Robertson [mailto:joyisorob@hotmail.com] Sent: Thursday, 26 April 2007 7:59 PM To: gloucester@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [GLS] Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers Cecilia Thanks that helps quite a bit. It explains how someone who worked as a labourer would have been involved. i presume they would have done some basic training as well. thanks again. Joyce >From: "Cecilia Bell" <bell193@btinternet.com> >Reply-To: gloucester@rootsweb.com >To: <gloucester@rootsweb.com> >Subject: Re: [GLS] Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers >Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 09:25:55 +0100 > >Joyce, >I don't know if it helps, but I had the same problem with a great great >grandfather who had been in the Royal Engineers. The Engineers seem to be >the soldiers who do things like digging ditches and other basic physical >work. My gggrandfather was a stone mason in the censuses. In other words, >engineers are not necessarily engineers! > >Regards, >Cecilia Bell in Essex UK > >----- Original Message ----- >From: "Joyce Robertson" <joyisorob@hotmail.com> >To: <Gloucester-L@rootsweb.com> >Sent: Monday, April 23, 2007 3:43 PM >Subject: [GLS] Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers > > > > Hi List > > > > I am trying to find some information about the Cheltenham Engineer > > Volunteers. I have a copy of a certificate which says- > > > > Sapper George Ballinger has this day been struck off the muster roll of > > the > > Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers at his own request. > > > > This is my gtgrandfather and the date was 1878. It was signed by the > > Captain > > of the 1st Gloster Engineer Volunteer Corps > > > > I wonder if anyone can tell me more about this. As far as I know George > > was > > never an engineer as every certificate etc says he is either a labourer >or > > later a house painter. Can anyone tell me what roll he is likely to have > > played in this organisation? > > > > Joyce Robertson (Kirkintilloch, Scotland) > > > > _________________________________________________________________ > > Could you be the guest MSN Movies presenter? Click Here to Audition > > http://www.lightscameraaudition.co.uk > > > > _____________________________________________ > > > > Browse the list archives at: > > http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GLOUCESTER/ > > > > Keyword search - any or all lists: > > http://archiver.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/search > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > GLOUCESTER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > _____________________________________________ > >Browse the list archives at: >http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GLOUCESTER/ > >Keyword search - any or all lists: >http://archiver.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/search >------------------------------- >To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >GLOUCESTER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the >quotes in the subject and the body of the message _________________________________________________________________ Get Hotmail, News, Sport and Entertainment from MSN on your mobile. http://www.msn.txt4content.com/

Elizabeth Thank you. It was obviously much more of a labouring job than I had thought in those days so George would have fitted in well! Thanks to everyone who has sent me information. Joyce (Kirkintilloch, Scotland) >From: "Elizabeth Roberts" <earoberts@bigpond.com> >Reply-To: gloucester@rootsweb.com >To: <gloucester@rootsweb.com> >Subject: Re: [GLS] Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers >Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 18:10:47 +1000 > >One of the 19th century methods of war fare was to blow up bridges >especially those over difficult to cross rivers. Get all your people over >then stop the enemy following/advancing etc. The 'engineers' built >temporary >bridges. There is a lovely very rare early 19th century book, older than >1870 on Military bridges with illustrations of how soldiers can put long >bits of timber across a large gap to start to repair, them also showed how >they could use timber to repair broken stone bridges. Somewhere on the net >I >found some American bridges that were destroyed during the American Civil >war. >Regards Elizabeth Roberts >PS I was looking for bridges. > >-----Original Message----- >From: Joyce Robertson [mailto:joyisorob@hotmail.com] >Sent: Thursday, 26 April 2007 7:59 PM >To: gloucester@rootsweb.com >Subject: Re: [GLS] Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers > >Cecilia >Thanks that helps quite a bit. It explains how someone who worked as a >labourer would have been involved. i presume they would have done some >basic > >training as well. > >thanks again. > >Joyce > > > >From: "Cecilia Bell" <bell193@btinternet.com> > >Reply-To: gloucester@rootsweb.com > >To: <gloucester@rootsweb.com> > >Subject: Re: [GLS] Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers > >Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 09:25:55 +0100 > > > >Joyce, > >I don't know if it helps, but I had the same problem with a great great > >grandfather who had been in the Royal Engineers. The Engineers seem to be > >the soldiers who do things like digging ditches and other basic physical > >work. My gggrandfather was a stone mason in the censuses. In other words, > >engineers are not necessarily engineers! > > > >Regards, > >Cecilia Bell in Essex UK > > > >----- Original Message ----- > >From: "Joyce Robertson" <joyisorob@hotmail.com> > >To: <Gloucester-L@rootsweb.com> > >Sent: Monday, April 23, 2007 3:43 PM > >Subject: [GLS] Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers > > > > > > > Hi List > > > > > > I am trying to find some information about the Cheltenham Engineer > > > Volunteers. I have a copy of a certificate which says- > > > > > > Sapper George Ballinger has this day been struck off the muster roll >of > > > the > > > Cheltenham Engineer Volunteers at his own request. > > > > > > This is my gtgrandfather and the date was 1878. It was signed by the > > > Captain > > > of the 1st Gloster Engineer Volunteer Corps > > > > > > I wonder if anyone can tell me more about this. As far as I know >George > > > was > > > never an engineer as every certificate etc says he is either a >labourer > >or > > > later a house painter. Can anyone tell me what roll he is likely to >have > > > played in this organisation? > > > > > > Joyce Robertson (Kirkintilloch, Scotland) > > > > > > _________________________________________________________________ > > > Could you be the guest MSN Movies presenter? Click Here to Audition > > > http://www.lightscameraaudition.co.uk > > > > > > _____________________________________________ > > > > > > Browse the list archives at: > > > http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GLOUCESTER/ > > > > > > Keyword search - any or all lists: > > > http://archiver.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/search > > > ------------------------------- > > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > > GLOUCESTER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without >the > > > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > > > > _____________________________________________ > > > >Browse the list archives at: > >http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GLOUCESTER/ > > > >Keyword search - any or all lists: > >http://archiver.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/search > >------------------------------- > >To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > >GLOUCESTER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > >quotes in the subject and the body of the message > >_________________________________________________________________ >Get Hotmail, News, Sport and Entertainment from MSN on your mobile. >http://www.msn.txt4content.com/ > > > > > _____________________________________________ > >Browse the list archives at: >http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/GLOUCESTER/ > >Keyword search - any or all lists: >http://archiver.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/search >------------------------------- >To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >GLOUCESTER-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the >quotes in the subject and the body of the message _________________________________________________________________ Solve the Conspiracy and win fantastic prizes. http://www.theconspiracygame.co.uk/