C/JN 292919 & 78603 ~ “Harry” Bernard Hugh GORSUCH ~ RN & RNZAF
Chaplows is a long established and well respected business in Upper Hutt, Wellington that specialises in high quality picture and objets d’art framing. With a large military population on their doorstep at Trentham, Chaplows expanded their repertoire of services to provide replica medals and a custom framing service for both military medals and memorabilia.
Karen Chaplow and her late husband Andrew (Andy) opened their bespoke picture framing business in 1981 at 131 High Street in Upper Hutt. In due course they expanded the business to include a photographic studio (formerly Mitchell’s Photography) which they subsequently sold in 2000.
When Andy Chaplow (58) died in 2007, Karen was not well placed to continue running Chaplows alone and so made the difficult decision to sell. As well as having to deal with the loss of her husband, Karen had all the issues associated with maintaining the business’s viability until it did sell, while also readying it for sale. While preparing for the handover to a new owner, Karen came across a mounted set of Second World War medals which had been bought in for framing. The order unusually had been pre-paid however it had been more than six months since the job had been completed but never collected. Reluctant to leave the medals behind on the off chance the owner might eventually return to collect, Karen held on to the medals while clearing the shop of her s and Andy’s personal items from the shop. Instructions would be left with the new owner that should the owner return for the medals, Karen could be contacted since she lived locally. No-one however was forthcoming.
In circumstances such as Karen’s it often takes quite some time to make adjustments to your life and to carry on. The result of Karen’s bereavement understandably meant the unclaimed medals she had at home did not get much attention, however they did remain safe and in caring hands for the next 15+ years! In 2021 Karen decided to take firm steps to return the medals and in so doing, contacted MRNZ for help to find the owner.
Medals awarded
What had happened to the owners contact details is unknown, possibly Andy’s illness had inadvertently resulted in its misplacement. The only information we had to go on was Harry Gorsuch’s name on the medal frame and the fact he had served in the Royal Navy and Royal New Zealand Air Force. Harry’s medal group consisted of:
- 1939/45 Star
- Atlantic Star
- Burma Star with Clasp: PACIFIC
- War Medal 1939/45
- NZ War Service Medal
- RNZAF Long Service & Good Conduct Medal
Of interest to readers is that which makes this group unique. The campaign Stars were issued for campaign service in the Royal Navy (RN) during World War 2. The War Medal 1939/45 however could have been gained for RN service or service with the New Zealand Armed Forces, which was yet to be determined. Had there been a component of New Zealand WW2 service, there would more than likely have been a New Zealand War Service Medal with these – this pointed to Royal Navy service only, plus an RNZAF component indicated by the last medal, the RNZAF Long Service & Good Conduct Medal.
What’s in a name?
You would think that tracing a man with an uncommon surname like ‘Gorsuch’ would not be too difficult even in England, and you would be right to a point. Bernard Hugh Gorsuch was known in the navy as “Harry”, as were two of his cousins, both baptised as ‘Harry Bernard Gorsuch’ and also in the Royal Navy. His great-grandfather father Robert Herbert Gorsuch had also been a Royal Navy sailor and was widely known as “Harry”. As if that wasn’t confusing enough, added to these were a number of loosely linked Gorsuch families with members also named ‘Harry’ who were employed in regular occupations proximate to the two major naval installations in the south of England. The port city of Plymouth has been synonymous with, and the home of, the Royal Navy for more than 650 years. HM Naval Base Devonport at Plymouth remains the largest naval base in the Western world, while less than 230 kilometers to the east is the now historic, HM Naval Dockyard Portsmouth. Given the generations of Gorsuch families who grew up in the vicinity of these two establishments, is hardly surprising the RN became a source of both military and civil employment for so many of them. That so many should have been named or nicknamed with the moniker ‘Harry’ is a genealogists nightmare!
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Unlikely as it sounds, Gorsuch is a surname of English origin. The name is a “habitational name” **, named after the hamlet of Gorsuch (earlier known as Gosefordsich) in Lancashire. The name is derived from the Old English Gosford (“goose ford”) + sic (“small stream”)
Note: ** A “habitational name” means in some cultures a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one’s personal name that indicates one’s family, tribe or community.
This particular Gorsuch family can trace their ancestry in Chichester back to the 1750s with relative ease, their ancestors having previously migrated from London and Hertfordshire. Chichester and Hove were the two areas where the majority of this Gorsuch family’s ancestors have lived for the last five or more generations. Chichester is situated on the South Coast of West Sussex almost overlooking HMNB Devonport at Plymouth. It was a Roman and Anglo-Saxon settlement and a major market town from those times through Norman and medieval times to the present. Its attraction was its ease of access to and from Europe via a large harbor with a network of estuaries reaching many kilometers inland. Hove on the other hand is a stones-throw from the second largest port in the south of England and formerly the home of the Royal Navy’s ship building, maintenance and accommodation facilities, as HM Naval Dockyard Portsmouth.
My dilemma in solving this particular return of medals was not the difficulty in locating a descendant of Bernard Hugh Gorsuch to return his medals to, but it was the “Gorsuch” name itself. With so many records that referenced the names of: Harry Gorsuch, Harry B. Gorsuch, B.H. Gorsuch, H. Gorsuch, H.B. Gorsuch and Harry H. Gorsuch combined with the fact that great-grandfather, father and son, and cousins had had Royal Navy careers, researching the family became particularly tricky as I struggled to decipher exactly who was who? To complicate matters, successive generations of the Gorsuch males were recorded with the same first names, missing second names or initials, had similar names, initials only, and a combination of all of the above. Had these families not lived in the same or adjoining counties of England, the puzzle may have been considerably less complicated.
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Robert Herbert “Harry” GORSUCH
Author’s note: When “Harry” appears in parenthesis, this indicates the name (or nickname) by which that individual was generally known by. Those names not in parenthesis indicate the given name at birth ~ baptisim.
Harry Bernard Hugh Gorsuch’s great-grandfather, Robert Herbert “Harry” GORSUCH (1831-1916) appears to have started a family naming tradition for subsequent generations of male Gorsuch men, some of whom, like himself, had also sought a career in the Royal Navy. I will refer to Robert as such to eliminate any confusion further down where multiple uses of “Harry” became the norm in a number of Gorsuch families.
Portsmouth
Robert Herbert GORSUCH was born in Chichester, Hampshire in 1831. When he turned 18, Robert was indentured to the Royal Navy at Portsmouth on 9 August 1850. Classified as a Landsman (a seaman with less than a year’s experience at sea), after one year he would be rated to Ordinary Seaman. After qualifying in basic seamanship seamanship skills, so began the real sea service ‘before the mast’ of Service No. 1964, BOY 1st Class (Boy 1) Robert Herbert “Harry” Gorsuch.
Boy 1 Robert Gorsuch’s was assigned to the steam frigate HMS Arrogant which had been launched in 1848. He was re-classified in June 1851 as an Ordinary Seaman (ORD) and following a further three months sea time was promoted to Able Seaman (AB) in Sep 1853 whilst still on HMS Arrogant. Arrogant was an early wood screw frigate that had been launched in 1848. In 1854, Arrogant was part of the RN fleet deployed to the Baltic Sea on the outbreak of the Crimean War and served in that theatre until 1855. On 15 April 1854, Arrogant was one of a number of Royal Navy ships that captured the Russian brig Patrioten.
During this action, three of the ship’s company, two junior officers and a stoker, were awarded Victoria Crosses. Lieutenant By-the-Sea and Captain of the Mast Johnstone (equivalent to a Petty Officer or Sergeant) were awarded VCs after they went ashore in one of the ship’s boats on 9 August 1854, intercepted Russian soldiers carrying mailbags, and then forced the soldiers back to the ship along with the mailbags. Stoker Ingouville was awarded the Victoria Cross after heroically saving Arrogant’s second cutter under heavy enemy fire off Viborg on 13 July 1855.
Later in the Crimean War, Arrogant with three other RN ships – Cossack, Magicienne and Ruby, silenced the Russian batteries at a fort on Gogland on 21 July 1855, while the Anglo-French fleet went on to attack Sveaborg before returning home. HMS Arrogant remained in service for 19 years before being sold off in 1857.
Gunner Robert H. GORSUCH, SPO
From 1856 to 1860, Able Seaman (AB) Gorsuch was posted to HMS Brunswick which had been launched at the Pembroke Dockyard, HMD Portsmouth in 1855. AB Gorsuch served aboard Brunswick as part of the Mediterranean Fleet, in the West Indies (Nicaragua), with the Channel Fleet**, and again with the Mediterranean Fleet in 1860, before returning to Portsmouth in 1861. HMS Brunswick (1855) was sold in 1867.
During a leave break in England during 1858, Able Seaman Robert H. Gorsuch, the son of Chichester Gardener John Gorsuch, was married to Jane TEE (1836-1905) on 1st June at the Parish Church of St James in Paddington, London. Jane hailed from Havant, just a few miles away in the adjoining county of Hampshire. Over the next 18 years Robert and Jane had five children, the first born in 1861: Jane Elizabeth [Gorsuch] ANDERSON (1861-1909), Hayward Herbert “Harry” GORSUCH (1865-1941), William John GORSUCH (1871-1916), Alice Maude Mary [Gorsuch] LEGG (1874-1953), and Harry Bernard GORSUCH (1876-1957).
Later in the year of 1858 (hence the five year gap until Robert and Jane’s next child), now Leading Seaman (L.SMN) Gorsuch was posted to HMS Excellent, a “stone frigate” (a shore based establishment), the RN’s Gunnery School situated on Whaley Island which is 100 meters offshore from Portsmouth. Here Robert qualified as a L.SMN Gunner. Posted to HMS Cygnet (1860), a Philomel-class wooden screw gun-vessel, in 1861 Robert saw service in Havana and the West Indies and was promoted to 2nd Captain of the Fo’c’sle (Forecastle). This appointment carried the rank of a Petty Officer (Sergeant equivalent).
Petty Officer Robert H. Gorsuch completed his contracted 10 year period of service 01 July 1863 and had planned to leave the Navy however the introduction of a Pension Scheme in 1859, available to all seamen after 20 years continuous service, enticed him to sign-on again. In Jan 1864 he applied for “Time in Service to Complete for Pension.” Being well reported and holding two Good Conduct Badges (GCBs) he was granted an additional 10 years service in the RN. Appointed to the Cutter Boatman crew, he was temporarily appointed Coxswain of the Cutter, responsible for transporting the Captain and other senior ranks visiting and leaving Excellent to and from their moored ships.** After 12 months at HMS Excellent he was promoted to Bosun’s Mate (equates to Petty Officer 2nd Class). Petty officers were seamen who had been “rated” to fill a particular specialist trade on board ship. This rating set the petty officers apart from the common seaman by virtue of technical skill and slightly higher education. The Bo’sun is the senior of all deck sailors, i.e. all tradesmen below the rank of chief Petty Officer who are responsible for maintaining the surfaces and functions on the exterior opf a ship (except the guns), e.g. riggers, painters, carpenters, deck hands etc.)
Note: ** Cutters as referenced here, were clinker-built open boats, optimised for sailing but capable under oars, and similar in appearance to the early shape of lifeboats. A distinctive feature was that the washstrake had cut-outs (called rowlocks) in which the oars were worked, unlike most boats of the period, that used hole pins as the pivot point for the oars. This allowed a higher freeboard, which was helpful if sailing – when the cut-outs were filled with wooden shutters to keep the water out.
In 1865, Bo’sun’s Mate Gorsuch was posted to HMS Firm for four years, an Albacore-class Gunboat (4 guns) built for the Crimean War service in China. While on Firm, Robert trained as a Cutter Helmsman and in 1866 was again promoted to Specialist Petty Officer (SPO). Normally there were only three SPO positions to aspire to on a ship – Boatswain (Bo’sun), Carpenter and Gunner. Robert was appointed SPO Gunner on HMS Firm in 1867, a position he held until he retired.
Returning to HMS Excellent in 1870, SPO Gorsuch retired from the Royal Navy on 4 Nov 1870 at 39 years of age, having served a total of 21 years and 192 days ‘before the mast’ thus qualifying him for a full pension.
Retirement to Hove
Robert and Jane Gorsuch said farewell to No.38 Prospect Road on Portsea Island which is near the entrance to Portsmouth Harbour, and crossed the county border into Sussex where they intended to live. The family took up residence at No.13 Upper Market Street in the centre of the picturesque seaside town of Hove. Robert took a job as a Cellarman for the next few years and by the age of 49, the Gorsuch’s had moved to No.3 Goldstone Road (1881). Robert had fully retired from work by this time, he and Jane living quite comfortably off Robert’s reasonably healthy Royal Navy pension.
Robert and Jane Gorsuch’s five children all grew up and were schooled at Hove in Sussex. Hove began as a fishing village but the growth of its neighbouring town of Brighton as a resort led to its great expansion and growth during the 19th century. Hove has a character and a history all its own and is known for its wide, tree-lined avenues and Regency architecture, much of which is arranged around sedate town squares.
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‘The sea is not for me’
Despite their father’s influence, Robert and Jane’s three sons, Hayward Herbert “Harry”, William John and Harry Bernard Gorsuch were not interested in careers at sea, although they had cousins and other distant relative who had joined the Royal Navy and the Mercantile Marine Service.
Brothers Hayward Herbert (ka “Harry”) Gorsuch and William John Gorsuch both started their working lives at around twelve years of age, Hayward as a Page Boy and William as an Errand Boy for a Tailor. Hayward started full time work as a Clerk in an insurance office and progressed to be an Insurance Agent. He and his brother William joined forces in the insurance business however, after ten years or so as a successful Agent, Hayward sold out to his brother and began an apprenticeship as a House Painter, a trade he built a business around in the neighbouring counties for most of his working life. William chose to stay with insurance and became a very successful Assurance Agent and Manager.
“Harry” Hayward Gorsuch married and had a family of 12 children – six boys and six girls however one of each did not survive beyond infancy. His eldest child, Robert Herbert Talbot GORSUCH (1891-1958), a Grocer known as “Bob”, served in France during World War 1 as, D/2368 Private RHT Gorsuch, 8th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regt.
To confuse the identity issues I faced with this family in particular, “Harry” Hayward’s 5th child was named after himself, Hayward “Harry” GORSUCH (1901-1957), and his 6th child named Harry Bernard GORSUCH (1904-1985)** followed in the footsteps of his grandfather Robert by joining the Royal Navy.
Note: ** K61963 Able Seaman Stoker H. B. Gorsuch (1904-1985) served on HMS Malaya from Jun 1937 to Apr 1941.
Finally in a break with tradition, “Harry” Hayward named his last two sons John Nelson Gorsuch and Jack Gorsuch (after his grandfather, John Gorsuch [Robert’s father]). John Nelson Gorsuch however did not survive beyond a few months of life.
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Fleet Street
Robert and Jane Gorsuch’s youngest son, Harry Bernard Gorsuch (1876-1957) – Harry B – was born in Steyning, Sussex and began work in 1891 as a Junior Clerk. Harry initially joined his brother Haywood and John’s insurance business and became an insurance agent. Harry B. soon tired of the insurance game and began a newspaper career working first as a clerk for the local newspaper in Hove. In the 1910s Harry B. moved to London, securing a job in Fleet Street (the British newspaper capital) first as a Clerk and then as a Telegraph Operator, while also working on his writing skills for career advancement.
In 1905, Harry B. (30) married Rose (1879-1954), a 27 year old woman from Ladywood, Warwickshire whom had been living in Marleybone. Harry at that time was a Telegraphist for a Fleet Street newspaper. The couple established their home at No.16 Great Quebec Street, Marleybone where Harry went on to become an accredited journalist for the greater part of his professional working life. Unfortunately it seems the First World War and its aftermath contributed to Harry and Rose parting company in the mid 1920s; no children had eventuated from the marriage.
In May 1923, Harry B. (47) re-married a 33 year old widow Nellie Olwyn HUGHES (1890-1955) formerly Nellie Olwyn SPROULE, at St George’s in Hanover Square, Croydon in London. Nellie had lived and worked on the east coast of Canada. While there she had wartime romance and hurriedly married a Canadian airman, Edward Alan SPROULE of British Columbia. Shortly after Edward left for England he was killed on a night bombing operation over Europe. In determining Nellie’s marital status for her re-marriage to Harry, the authorities permitted Edward and Nellie’s marriage to be annulled on the basis they had so little time together before he departed and that it had 9allegedly) not been consummated before his death.
Harry and Nellie lived predominantly in and around the Westminster and Knightsbridge areas of London right through the war years while raising their two children, Barbara Olivia Catherine GORSUCH born in Oct 1923 at Southwark, Greater London, and a son Bernard Hugh GORSUCH born at Pimlico, St George London in 1925.
After the war concluded, following an extended post-war break at Hove Harry B. and Nellie returned to London and continued with his journalism in Fleet Street. Nellie and Harry’s daughter Barbara also returned to live with her mother parents for five years. Nellie Gorsuch who was 65, died on Christmas Eve 1955. Her husband Harry Bernard Gorsuch died less than two years later at Bridge, Kent on 13 October 1957, aged 81.
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C/JN 292919 “Harry” Bernard Hugh GORSUCH – Royal Navy
Bernard Hugh Gorsuch, born on 12 April 1925 at Hove, Sussex was also to be known as “Harry” whom I shall refer to hereafter as “Harry” or “Harry” BH.
It was 10 September 1941, two years after the beginning of WW2, when 16 year old “Harry” Gorsuch enlisted in the Royal Navy at Portsmouth. “Harry” enlisted with the Chatham Port Division as a Seaman Cadet Telegraphist. A Royal Navy career inspired by his grandfather Robert Gorsuch, and that of his cousin who was currently serving on HMS Malaya, had fuelled “Harry’s” ambition to follow in their footsteps by joining what was at the time, one of the largest and most powerful navies in the world. The RN’s vast array of vessels that went to and from Portsmouth as they prepared for war, no doubt had also been the catalyst for many young lads to ‘join up’ for a career at sea.
Following his basic seamanship training at Chatham, “Harry” began trade training as a Wireless Telegraphist. This was conducted on the ‘stone ship’ HMS St George, a newly commissioned Royal Navy training facility that was located at Douglas on the Isle of Man. Here the RN trained all of its Wireless Telegraphists and similarly aligned technical trades.
HMS St George was the Royal Navy’s only continuous service training establishment. Opened in September 1939, HMS St George was divided in various component parts, classroom training taking place at the newly opened Ballakermeen High School with the cadets billeted at Cunningham’s Holiday Camp, both of which had been requisitioned for the duration. The holiday camp was situated in the Little Switzerland area of Douglas, and previously had been used as a Prisoner of War camp during the First World War. The facility occupied approximately five acres (two hectares) and had a staff of over 300 officers to provide the cadets with practical and technical training.
Classroom work at Ballakermeen was supplemented by instructional films and technical experiments. Separate classrooms were allocated for cadets of different branches of the service, each class consisting of approximately 25–30 cadets. During the course of the war, 8,677 cadets passed their training at HMS St George. HMS St George was paid off on December 20, 1945, with the officers and ratings leaving the Isle of Man and relocating to HMS Ganges, Shotley.
World War II service
“Harry” BH Gorsuch’s sea service began as Ordinary Wireless Telegraphist (Trained Operator), the lowest naval rating, on the warship HMS Suffolk (55). Suffolk was a County-class heavy cruiser, and part of the Kent sub-class. She was built by Portsmouth Dockyard, Portsmouth, UK, with the keel being laid down on 30 September 1924. She was launched on 16 February 1926, and commissioned on 31 May 1928. During the Second World War, Suffolk took part in the Norwegian Campaign in 1940 and then the Battle of the Denmark Strait in 1941, before serving in the Arctic throughout the following year. After a refit that concluded in April 1943, the cruiser served in the Far East until the end of the war. In the immediate post-war period, Suffolk undertook transport duties between the Far East, Australia and the United Kingdom before being placed in reserve in mid-1946.
From Suffolk, Able Seaman (AB) Wireless Telegraphist, 3rd Class (WT3Cl) “Harry” BH. was posted to HMS Virago (R75), a V-class destroyer of the Royal Navy.
Arctic convoys
In addition to escorting the perilous Arctic convoys during 1943–44, HMS Virago participated with other British destroyers in the Battle of North Cape on 26 December 1943, where her torpedoes helped sink the badly beaten German battleship Scharnhorst, following a fierce fight between the Germans and the battleship Duke of York. On 30 January 1944, while escorting Convoy JW 56B to Murmansk, Virago rescued 78 men from the stricken HMS Hardy, whose stern had been blown off by an acoustic torpedo (resulting in 35 casualties). Following a bow collision between the two ships, Virago disengaged and HMS Venus rescued the rest of the crew and her officers (and then scuttled Hardy).
On 3 April 1944 Virago escorted the carrier HMS Searcher during Operation ‘Tungsten’ which was an inconclusive air attack on the German battleship Tirpitz at her base in Kaafjord in the far north of Norway. WT3 Harry Gorsuch AB was promoted to Leading Seaman (L.S – L/Cpl equivalent) in his trade and re-classified to Wireless Telegraphist, 2nd Class (WT2).
Normandy landings
During the invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944. HMS Virago fired on German positions behind Lion-sur-Mer on Sword Beach, and later gave cover fire for troops advancing inland. Virago remained off the coast of Normandy at various stations providing support for the invasion force until 6 July, when she departed and resumed operations off Norway and with the Arctic convoys through the end of September.
Far East
In January 1945, Virago was transferred to the Eastern Fleet. She, along with the destroyers Saumarez, Volage, and Vigilant, intercepted a Japanese supply convoy on 26 March 1945, east of Khota Andaman in the Andaman Islands where she and HMS Vigilant sank the Japanese submarine chaser CH-34.
HMS Virago patrolled the Malacca Strait and supported Operation ‘Dracula’ off the coast of Burma in late April 1945 as part of the 21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron. Virago subsequently participated in the Battle of the Malacca Strait with Suumarez, Verulam, Venus and Vigilant which culminated in the sinking of the Japanese heavy cruiser Haguro in the early morning of 16 May 1945. This was a textbook destroyer night action, and was the last naval gun battle of the Second World War. Later in the afternoon of 16 May, Virago was ordered to refuel from the carrier HMS Hunter. As the two ships closed, they were suddenly bombed by Japanese aircraft in a surprise attack and splinters from a near miss killed five of Virago’s crew (Hunter was unscathed).
These were the only casualties on board Virago during the entire war. Virago subsequently participated in preparations for Operation Zipper (the invasion of Malaya) in July/August 1945, and its eventual execution as a reoccupation manoeuvre in September 1945 following the surrender of Japan. Based in Hong Kong with the British Pacific Fleet after VJ day, Virago returned to Chatham, Kent in December 1945. Harry Gorsuch ended the war with the rank of Petty Officer, Telegraphist 2nd Class (TPO – equivalent to Sergeant) before he was demobilised in 1945, and returned to regular peacetime service in the Royal Navy for a further 10 years.
Post-war service
Between 1946 and 1949, HMS Virago was part of the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla, based in the Mediterranean. On 2 August 1946 the British oil tanker Empire Cross exploded, burned and sank in Haifa Roads, Palestine, killing 25 people. Virago and Venus took part in the rescue of survivors. Venus and Virago had been dropping depth charges in the area to deter Haganah frogmen from planting limpet mines. A depth charge dropped by Virago was suspected of having caused the explosion. An inquest was held, at which the page in Virago‘s logbook for that day was found to be missing. However, the Admiralty dismissed the idea that a depth charge could have caused the explosion.
On 19 September 1946, gunfire from Virago was used to scuttle the forward half of the wreck of Ohio, the tanker which had played a pivotal role in the Siege of Malta. Between 1949 and 1951 she was held in reserve at Chatham Dockyard. Between 1951 and 1953 she was converted to a Type 15 frigate at Chatham Dockyard. On re-commissioning in 1953 she became part of the 6th Frigate Squadron and in that year took part in the Fleet Review to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Between 1955 and 1960 she was held in reserve at the Chatham Dockyard. Between 1962 and 1963 she was part of the Dartmouth Training Squadron. HMS Virago was decommissioned in 1963 and held in reserve at Devonport before being broken up in 1965.
Source: Wikipedia
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HM Dockyard – South Africa
Around the end of 1947 “Harry” H.B. Gorsuch, TPO was posted overseas to HM Naval Dockyard at Simons Town near Cape Town, South Africa for a period of four years. The dockyard served those ships assigned to the West African Station. Officially established in August 1942 as part of the Admiralty’s reorganisation of commands, this Station became necessary due to the growing importance of Freetown as a major base for convoy escorts. Initially consisting of two Corvettes and a few Free French ships, the Station existed until 1945 when its assets and role were absorbed into the Cape of Good Hope Station.
Originally named HM Cape of Good Hope Dockyard, at various periods of time it served as the primary shore establishment for both the Cape of Good Hope Station and the Cape of Good Hope and West Coast of Africa Station. The dockyard was managed and controlled by the Navy Board through its Resident Commissioner, Cape of Good Hope from 1814 to 1820, when the navy board was abolished in 1832 responsibility for the management of HM Dockyards at home and overseas passed to the Board of Admiralty. Until 1859 no single officer with overall responsibility for the yard was appointed instead it was divided between the remaining senior officers of the yard namely the Clerk of the Cheque, the Master Attendant, and the Naval Storekeeper. From 1859 until 1898 a Naval Officer-in-Charge Cape of Good Hope Dockyard was appointed. He was superseded by a Commander, Cape of Good Hope Dockyard until 1913.
On 30 June 1955, a naval co-operation agreement was signed between the United Kingdom and the then Union of South Africa. The “Simonstown Agreement” marked the end of the British control over the naval base and formally transferred the command of the South African Navy to the Government of South Africa. However, the Agreement also determined that the British Royal Navy would retain access to its former naval facilities.
In July 1952, TPO “Harry” B.H. Gorsuch (27) was nearing the end of his overseas posting when he married 28 year old Irish Londoner, Moira Bridget O’DONNELL (1925-1994) at Wood Green in Middlesex. Moira joined Harry in South Africa for the last six months of his service at the Dockyard, in a temporary home they rented at Fish Hoek in Cape Town. In Dec 1952, the Gorsuch’s left Durban aboard the SS Pretoria Castle and returned home to Southampton. Arriving on 19 December, Harry and Moira re-established themselves at 29 Westwood Hill, Lewisham. It was while in Lewisham that their first child, Paul Hugh Gorsuch (who was NOT named “Harry”) was born in 1954.
Petty Officer Telegraphist “Harry” B.H. Gorsuch completed his contract with the Royal Navy and was officially discharged on 11 April 1955, however that was not the end of his military service.
Emigration – 1957
Six months prior to the death of his father Harry Bernard Gorsuch in Oct 1957 “Harry” reported to New Zealand House in London to sign the dotted line, enlisting him as a Sergeant Wireless/Radio Operator in the Royal New Zealand Air Force on 18 March 1957. The NZ Government was still in a post war re-building phase of the armed forces following the dramatic wartime losses and subsequent outflow of trained men and women after the war ended. The reduced strength of each arm of service had left the NZ military lacking in capability and therefore, potentially vulnerable. The government’s plan was to recruit serving and former Commonwealth military personnel to make up the shortfall with attractive contract packages for emigrating recruits, the majority coming from the UK. Harry’s trade being universally applicable to all three services allowed him the flexibility to select which arm of the service he wished to join. His selection of the RNZAF was also most likely influenced by his having a young family, and therefore the need for stability with the RNZAF offering better options than if he were to join the Royal New Zealand Navy.
Harry was 31 years of age when he and his family emigrated from Glasgow on the TSS Captain Cook, arriving in Wellington on 28 April 1957. The ship had carried 1031 passengers, 925 of whom were an ex-UK draft of service men and women recruited for service in the RNZN, NZ Army, RNZAF and Women’s RNZAF.
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Royal New Zealand Air Force
78603 Sergeant Communications Operator “Harry” Bernard Hugh Gorsuch began his service in the RNZAF two days after his arrival. On 30 April 1957, harry was sent to the Taieri Transmitting Station, south of Dunedin, for one month. He returned to RNZAF Station Wigram where he had a married quarter on the Base, the Gorsuch’s first home in NZ. Harry remained at Wigram until October 1959 when he was posted overseas to the Communications Centre at the Headquarters of RNZAF Station Laucala Bay, a flying boat squadron base in Fiji that had been established in 1939.
While in Fiji, Harry’s accumulated (Commonwealth) service both the RN and RNZAF reached the point of his qualifying for a long service medal. Having met the 18 year time qualification and irreproachable service criteria, “Harry” was awarded the RNZAF Long Service and Good Conduct Medal on 16 August 1961. An accompanied posting, the Gorsuch’s returned to Wellington two and a half years later in April 1959. After a month at RNZAF Base Whenuapai, “Harry” returned to Wellington and was posted to the NZ Defence Communications Unit (DCU) in Wellington from May 1962 until May 1969, his administering unit being the small harbour-side RNZAF base at Shelly Bay. NZDCU had facilities in both Wellington City and at Porirua.
The Gorsuch’s first Wellington home was at Porirua and by 1969 Harry and family had relocated to Karori while working at the DCU until retirement. F/S Harry Gorsuch, Senior Telecommunications Operator (STC OP) as his trade was then titled, ended his military communications career with the RNZAF on 2nd May 1973, having reached the retiring age (48) for rank. Harry continued to work as a teleprinter operator in a civilian capacity for a number of years until retiring due to ill health.
Regrettably the move to NZ had not been without cost for Harry and Moira, no doubt the strain of shift work in the communications field also taking its toll which resulted in Harry and Moira parting ways. Both remained in Wellington where their two children were educated, Hugh entering the public sector as a Personnel Manager and Jane the education stream becoming a School Teacher specialising in children with special needs.
“Harry” Bernard Hugh Gorsuch, former Petty Officer Telegraphist – RN, and Flight Sergeant STC OP – RNZAF, died in Wellington on 2nd August, 1994 at 68 years of age.
Awards: 1939/45 Star, Atlantic Star, Burma Star (Clasp: Pacific**), War Medal 1939/45, RNZAF Long Service & Good Conduct Medal (18 yrs) – see also the Postscript below
Royal Navy Service: 10 Sep 1941 – 11 Apr 1955 (13 yrs 7 mths)
High Rank RN: Petty Officer (PO) Telegraphist, 2nd Class
RNZAF Service: 18 Mar 1957 – 02 May 1973 (16 yrs 2 mths)
High Rank RNZAF: Flight Sergeant (F/S), Wireless/Telegraphist ~ Senior Telecommunications Operator (STC OP)
Total Service: 29 yrs 9 mths
Note: ** Persons who qualified for both the Burma and Pacific Stars were permitted to wear only the first Star awarded, a clasp of the second award Star to be attached to the ribbon of the first denoting the subsequent award.
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Finding the GORSUCH family
A flip through the Wellington phonebook confirmed that the Gorsuch name still existed in Wellington. After a little more digging, I progressively ruled out other Gorsuch names by a process of location, cemetery records and age elimination. That left very few options in the Wellington area and even fewer in the Hutt Valley. Having determined that Jane Gorsuch was one of Harry and Moira’s two children, with no records on Ancestry post 1981, I had noted one of the last entries Jane had been a student teacher. Guessing she might still be in the Wellington teaching circuit, I searched the internet and was lucky enough to find her name associated with a Hutt Valley school. I sent a message to the school requesting Jane to make contact with me.
In due course I was pleasantly rewarded with contact from Jane confirming she was the daughter of the “Harry” H.B. Gorsuch I was seeking, her brother Hugh having left NZ to live in Australia some years ago. What I wasn’t prepared for was Jane’s response when I broached the subject of her father’s medals being found at Chaplows … Tt must have suddenly dawned upon her what had happened and said … “it was me who took them in to be framed; I completely forgot all about them!”
Shortly after Jane had taken the medals to Chaplows she had been confronted with personal circumstances that had completely distracted her from the medals which over time, were forgotten about. That no advice had been received from Chaplows when the job had been completed was also considered a contributing factor, due in no small part to Andy Chaplow’s passing and the misplacement of Jane’s contact details.
It was pleasure to be able to advise Karen that the owner of the medals (and her former client) had been found. After putting Jane in touch with Karen, the two ladies have since met and the medals personally returned by Karen.
Postscript
Having reviewed Harry’s service in the RNZAF, a check with Lt Cdr Rick of NZDF PAM confirmed an entitlement existed for a medal for Harry’s NZDF service, that had been instituted after his death in 1994. I was pleased to advise Jane that her father had qualified for the NZ Defence Service Medal (Clasp: REGULAR) which Jane has now applied for.
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My thanks to Karen Chaplow for getting in touch with MRNZ, it was pleasure to see these medals returned to “Harry” Gorsuch’s daughter Jane. Our thanks also to the always helpful staff at NZD Personnel Archives & Medals (PAM – Lt.Cdr Rick), and to current owner Mike of Chaplows ~ Custom Picture Framers & Medal Mounters for allowing us to include several images from their product range on this website.
The reunited medal tally is now 445.