Royal Fleet Reserve Long Service & Good Conduct Medal. GV 2nd issue 'Coinage Head' (SS.116170 (Po. B.10459) S. H. Bird. Sto.1, R.F.R.)

Medal verification: The award of the Royal Fleet Reserve Long Service & Good Conduct Medal is confirmed per the respective naval medal roll (ref ADM 171/146), which shows that the recipient was issued his medal on 19 March 1931. The recipient had additionally prior qualified and received three campaign medals for his Great War service, vide 1914-15 Star, British War Medal (silver issue) & Interallied Victory Medals, (ref ADM 171/96)

Samuel Hotham Bird, son of Joseph Barrett Bird and Ada Bird (nee King) was a native of Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, where he was born on, 23 June 1893. Samuel volunteered for service in the Royal Navy on, 14 August 1914. Prior to joining the Royal Navy, Samuel had been employed as a 'Timber Yard Labourer'. During the Great War, Samuel served aboard several ships, including, H.M.S. Foxglove between 5 May 1915 to 31 March 1916. Samuel transferred to the Royal Fleet Reserve on, 4 December 1919. By the time of the compilation of The 1939 National Register for England & Wales, Samule is recorded employed as a Ships Painters Foreman, and residing with his wife Sara E. Bird (nee Richardson) at, 169 Rustenburg Street, Kingston-upon-Hull, East Yorkshire. Samuel Hotham Bird is recorded as having died at, Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, sometime during the fourth quarter of 1978

HMS Foxglove: A 'Minesweeper Sloop' Foxglove was delivered to the Royal Navy on 14 May 1915, the first of her class to enter service. Foxglove was deployed to Scapa Flow, and on 5 June 1915 - with Samuel in the crew - was ordered with sister ship Acacia to search for the German submarine U-19 which had sunk two British steamers, ten fishing vessels and a Danish sailing vessel east of Fair Isle and the Orkney Islands between 2 and 4 June. The two sloops did not find U-19, which was well to the south of their search line, but did rescue the survivors of one the trawlers sunk by the submarine.

Condition: Toned about GVF

Code: 22303