SCOUTS AND LEADERS (1939-1946)
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A reasonable indication of Scouts present in the troop can be gleaned for the period up to May 1943. The period after May 1943 is covered by the Peewit Patrol Log which makes little mention of Scouts in other Patrols. Therefore, information is extremely sketchy for this period
Alder (or Halder?), Jim
A Jim Alder (Halder?) helped out at the troop for a month from 8th May 1942. He instructed on semaphore, morse and mapping along with Jim Glass. No other information is known, but it is likely that he was a serviceman, based temporarily on the Clyde.
Autin (Auton?), Mr.
Mr. Autin's Christian name and background are unknown. He was an RAF man who helped out at the troop from October 1943 to May 1944, and ran the troop meetings on four occasions in the absence of Wilson Hill. Nothing else is known about him. He might have been associated with the flying boats based at the Battery Park. An entry in the Greenock Telegraph reported that a Corporal Auton of the RAF was transferred from Greenock on the 7th November 1944 and that he had provided valuable services to the Greenock Scouting. The spelling is different, but the spelling may have been wrong in the Patrol Log. He was working with the 80th and/ or the 4th at the time of his transfer. There is also mention of a Corporal Hautton who was involved in the organisation of the Greenock Gang Show of 1943 and one wonders whether this was the same man and his name had been misspelt again.
Blake, Arthur (Jock)
Arthur Hepburn Blake was born in Greenock in 1933. His father (also called Arthur) was a dentist who owned premises in George Square (Crewar and Blake). The family lived in 9 Fort Matilda Place until 1936, then moved to 119 Newark Street. The son, Arthur, is mentioned as early as 16th February 1945 in the Peewit Patrol log, and it is likely that he joined that patrol at the start of the year. Arthur was a regular attender at troop meetings and passed his Tenderfoot in the 1st June 1945. He also attended the Chief Scout’s visit to Greenock on the 1st March 1945 along with Maurice Offord.
Arthur moved to France and had several recollections of his time in the 70th. Alan Jubber was his PL in the Peewit Patrol, followed by Maurice Offord. At troop meetings, British Bulldog was popular and there were numerous wide games. Arthur recalled one wide game where he was lying behind a whin bush on the Lyle Hill with Lamont McKay on the other side; each pretending that they had not spotted the other. He remembered cycling to Everton with Alan Jubber and Maurice Offord to check the campsite. On that occasion, he was taught how to cool down by immersing his wrist and ankles in cold running water. A Bob-a-Job day was held in 1945 when he washed windows for the parents of Annette Robertson near Glenpark Cricket Club, and cut grass for the Rev Stewart. He also remembered a church service, attended by all Boy Scouts, Wolf Cubs and Girl Guides in the region, and singing lustily in his treble voice, "Onward Christian Soldiers", facing an array of Scout flags and Union Jacks. This was probably the District St. George’s Day parade and Founder’s Day Service. Another recollection was of sitting up in a rowan tree in his garden while Maurice taught him how to tie knots blindfold and behind his back. This was to come in useful in years to come when he used timber hitches to lower heavy branches safely from trees behind his house in France. Alan Jubber, who was Arthur’s PL, recalled giving Arthur lifts home from Scouts on the cross bar of his bike - until a policeman intervened, that is!
Arthur spent about a year with the 70th Scouts then resigned when he moved to Gordonstoun boarding school for four years. After school, he followed his father into dentistry and studied for his BDS (dentistry) at Glasgow University, qualifying in 1957. He spent a year in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada at Dalhousie University DDS in 1958. Two years of National Service followed where he was in the RAF as a dentist. Back in civvy street, he had a dental practice in Greenock then moved to Dunoon for 18 years where his former Scout Master Wilson Hill was one of his patients. This was followed by a 12 year period in Birmingham and Wolverhampton, then the Seychelles for 2 years. In 1993, he retired to rural Normandy where he has restored and rebuilt stone houses and barns. Arthur's sister (Joan) married Ian Conn and settled in Johnstone. Arthur recalls being in the same class as John Slater who was in the troop when it restarted, but he does not recall John being in the 70th when he was there.
Brown, George - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Buchanan, Jim (James) - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Campbell, Hugh
Hugh Campbell was born in Greenock in 1930. He attended Greenock Academy and it is reported that he came second in the junior one class of 1935-36. He joined the troop in March 1943 at the age of 13 and the following week was taking part on a Saturday hike to Everton. He is mentioned as working towards his Tenderfoot badge during April 1943, and in May he was helping Eric Phillips scrape and paint all the metal parts of the trek cart. He took part on a hike over the Right of Way in May, and was invested along with Norman Tosh on 21st May 1943. A boy called Campbell is mentioned as belonging to
the Peewit Patrol during November 1944, but it is not clear whether this is Hugh or Robin Campbell. Hugh Campbell was certainly still in the troop in 1944 since he encouraged the Neilson twins to join that year. Ian Wallace also remembered Hugh being in the Troop for a brief period after he joined, which implies that he probably left in 1944 or 1945. When he left school, Hugh took up an apprenticeship with Fyfe, Gerard and Paton, then either entered the building trade or became a civil engineer and moved to work in Edinburgh. When he retired, he settled in Kilcreggan.
Campbell, Robin
According to Matt Neilson, there was a Robin Campbell who was in the 70th, but not much is known about him. Ian Wallace stated that he was Hugh Campbell's younger brother and was in the year below Ian at school. This would indicate that he was born in 1934 and probably joined the troop in 1944.
Campbell, Sandy - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Caw, James
James Joseph Caw was a fair-haired boy who was born in 1930 in the east of Greenock. He attended Greenock Academy and won a Handwork prize in 1939 when he was in primary school. He is also reported as coming second in the 100 yards sprint when he was in the Beginners class of 1935-36.
James is named in the Peewit Patrol log for the 1944-45 Scout session. He probably joined the Troop after the summer of 1943 when he would have been aged about 13, and he was certainly in The Fox Patrol when he won the GSM's cup for Kim's game in February 1944. It is also recorded that he was taught his Second Class signalling by Maurice Offord in October 1944. He became the head boy at Greenock Academy in 1947, then possibly went on to do law in Edinburgh. It is possible that his father was William Caw who was a chemist living at 44 Brisbane Street.
Chalmers, Mr. Ronald
Ronald Chalmers first appeared as an acting ASM on the 8th September 1942 and took charge of the second half of the meeting. For whatever reason, Wilson Hill attended very few meetings for the rest of that year, and so Mr. Chalmers (as he was always called in the log books) effectively ran the troop during that period. His application for a warrant as ASM was approved in April 1943, and although Wilson was present more frequently during the first half of 1943, Mr. Chalmers was still in charge of most meetings. He also organised activities outwith troop nights. For example, he took the troop to
Edinburgh for a long weekend at a Scout hostel called Spylaw in Edinburgh during the 10th-12th April 1943. Bill Smyth and Alan Jubber vividly remembered the long strip of tickets which was churned out from the ticket machine whenever they took the Edinburgh trams. Mr. Chalmers also organised a Thursday night's visit to Renfrew swimming pool in April 1943 for 3 Scouts. He joined Wilson in leading a hike over the Right of Way in May of that year and also took the Scouts to Everton for a weekend camp at the end of May. In the Peewit Patrol log, he was described as a lover of 'genteel games', which almost certainly meant the opposite, especially since there was an occasion when one Scout was injured (though not seriously!). At the beginning of June, the Peewit Patrol log states that Wilson ticked Mr. Chalmers off about something or other, but there are no details. Mr Chalmers attended the Troop’s only week-long wartime summer camp held between 26th June - 3rd July 1943, and this was described in the log book as 'his last acquaintance with the troop'. There may well have been some disagreement because it does not appear as if he left the area. A year later in September 1944, he appeared back at the troop on his bicycle to 'collect the rest of his gear'. Alan Jubber recalled that he was very big man and that his bicycle had double cross bars.
Bill Smyth thought that Mr. Chalmers came from Edinburgh during the war and that his father might have had something to do with Symington grocers. It is not known for sure why Ronald was drafted to Greenock or what work he was doing, although Alan Jubber thought that he might have been a draughtsman at Scotts Shipyard. He lived in single digs and it is believed that he may have been a bit lonely. He used to visit the houses of Scout parents out of the blue and would be offered meals. Both Bill and Alan got the impression that he made these visits to cadge meals although he never openly asked for them. The log books sometimes give the impression that he was not fully in control of the Scouts and may have left them to their own devices at times; however that might be being unfair.
It is possible that Ronald may have switched allegiance from the 70th to the 75th after the summer of 1943. District records reveal that there was an R. H. Chalmers of the 75th attending District Scouter meetings in the latter half of 1943. If it is the same person, he had moved to the 45th by the start of 1945.
'Cheesie'
There is a reference to somebody with the nickname 'Cheesie' instructing 1st Class ambulance at a troop meeting in January 1944. There is no other information. It is possible that this might have been ‘Cheesie’ Dunlop - Ian Dunlop's father and the principal maths teacher at Greenock Academy. However, there is no way of establishing this. Cheesie Dunlop was said to be a wonderful teacher.
Close, Michael ('Pussy')
Michael Close and his family moved up to Greenock from England during the war, since his father was working at the torpedo factory. The family stayed at 141 Finnart Street. Michael joined the 70th Scouts in February 1942 and was placed in the Fox patrol with John Menzies as PL and Alan Mackay as SPL. He must have been a Scout in England since he was wearing a khaki uniform in the 1942 photo, rather than a green shirt and kilt. He was also wearing a different neckerchief and wore his lanyard differently from the 70th Scouts. Michael was on the Glen Masson cycle trip of April 1942, passed 2nd Class pioneering in May 1942, and was on the Edinburgh hostel weekend during April 1943. He clearly had a wicked sense of humour, for in February 1944, he lit a bag of sulfur at a troop meeting and forced an evacuation of the hall. This cost his patrol (the Woodpigeons) all their points for the night. It is not known when he left the troop or what he did after the war.
Conn, Campbell
Duncan Campbell Conn was born on the 21st October 1928. His mother came from Mull, and his father was an engineering manager at Scotts Shipbuilders. He had an elder brother (Arthur) who was 8 years older and served as a Lieutenant at an Ack Ack gun battery stationed on the Greenock Golf course during the war. Campbell grew up at 27 Bank Street until 1941 and remembered sheltering in the close at the bottom of the tenement during the Greenock blitz. He recalled a bomb landing about a block away in Armadale Place(?). The explosion caused a whistle of air through the close. Fortunately, like most tenements, the entrance was protected by a baffle wall made of brick and metal supports, which had been fitted into the close by Campbell's father. Immediately after the blitz, Campbell's father sent the family to Lochbuie in Mull for a couple of weeks until it was deemed safe to return. Not long after that, the family moved house to 64 South Street.
Campbell attended Greenock Academy and was in the same class as Gordon Graham, Alan Jubber and Bill Smyth. He was not in the Wolf Cubs and joined the troop on 20th March 1942 at the age of 13 along with Ian Conn, Paul Pryce and Andrew MacMillan. He was placed in the Fox Patrol with John Menzies as PL and Ian Mackay as SPL. His investiture took place at the end of March 1942 and he was present on the troop hike to Everton that same month, passing his firelighting test. In April, he was on Right of Way hike and was present in the 1942 troop photo, wearing school uniform. On a cycle trip in May, he passed his axemanship test. The logs also show that he was at an Everton Patrol Camp in August 1942, the hostel weekend in Edinburgh during April 1943, and the Right of Way hike during May 1943. The Troop Log ends at that point. However, the Peewit Patrol Log suggests that Campbell may have transferred to the Peewit Patrol in October 1944. Campbell, himself, did not remember when he left the troop.
Campbell was particularly friendly with Gordon Graham and used to play football in McCauleys field with Gordon, Jock Kerr and a few others. Campbell preferred football to rugby, but the former sport was frowned upon in the Academy. Apparantly, there was one school football match between the Academy and a Dunoon school, but it was an unofficial affair.
On leaving school, Campbell did his national service from 1947-49 with the Royal Artillery. After initial training as a vehicle mechanic, he was posted to Palestine, which was not the nicest of postings since the area was in turmoil. Several British soldiers were killed by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. As a result, Campbell stayed putwithin the relative safety of the barracks. He recalled night guard duty in a look out post where he was expected to identify intruders, armed with a vehicle head lamp attached to a battery. After Palestine, he was posted to a place called Garian, which was about 60 miles south of Tripoli. In contrast to Palestine, his time there was uneventful. Despite his preference for football over rugby, Campbell spent a lot of time playing the latter when he was in the services.
After his National Service, Campbell took up an apprenticeship with Scotts Engineering works, then joined the Engine drawing office for 6-7 years. He became an assistant manager at Lamonts Shipbuilders from 1957-59, and was then asked back to Scotts to be an assistant engineering manager on the construction of submarines. By 1969, the writing was on the wall for Clyde shipbuilding and he was invited to become a partner in a new firm called Rapid Road Transports that was situated near Chapel Street. This was where the Morrisons supermarket is now built. He retired in 1995 at the age of 67.
Campbell married in October 1953, with Gordon Graham as his best man. He lived in Gourock and was a keen sailor at the Royal Gourock yacht club and used to take part in many races. Campbell and Ian Conn were cousins on Campbell's father's side.
Conn, Ian G.
Ian Gordon Conn was born in October or November 1928, and lived in Trafalgar Street in the same part of town as Gordon Graham. It is not known what his parents did. He attended Greenock Academy and was in the same class as Drew MacMillan and Eric Phillips. At the school’s Sports Day of 1935, he was first in the 100 yards sprint and egg and spoon race when he was in the junior 1 class. The next year he was second in the 100 yards race. In 1937, he won the egg and spoon race and tied for first place in the 100 yard sprint. The following year he won the sprint and was second in the egg and spoon race. On the academic side of things, he was first in his class in 1936 and 1937. In 1938, he won the English and Art prizes, then won the Arithmetic and Art prizes in 1939. During the war, the telegraph did not report results from prizegivings and Sports Days in order to save paper, so it is not known how he did in secondary school.
Ian joined the troop on the 20th March 1942 along with Campbell Conn, Paul Pryce and Andrew MacMillan, and was put into the Curlew Patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL. The following week, he was invested, then took part on the troop outing to Everton twhere he passed his firelighting test. In April, he took part on a 'Right of Way' hike, where he passed his axemanship test, and he was also present in the 1942 troop photo. He must have been a good Scout because he was a finalist for the GSM's cup held in May 1942. The cup was on first aid and, although he did not win it, he passed the first aid test. He continued to pass tests and badges gaining his cyclists badge in May and his civil defence badge in June. He also passed Second Class signalling before the summer. During the summer of 1942, he took part in a patrol camp at Everton where he passed First Class cooking, which suggests that he had passed his Second Class badge by that time. In December 1942, he joined A. MacMillan, Jim Morton and Wilson Hill to cycle down to Everton farm to do a kit check of camping equipment. By April 1943, he had been promoted to SPL and attended a hostel weekend in Edinburgh. It is not known what he did after 1943, but it is possible that he remained in the troop until it closed in 1945 or 1946. Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing whether he got promoted to PL, although it seems likely.
Ian was friendly with Bill Smyth and occasionally played tennis at Fort Matilda. Bill Smyth remembered that Ian was desperate to become a doctor and so it was no surprise that he went on to achieve that ambition. Presumably he went to Glasgow University because Ian once tried to shock Bill by taking him to Glasgow University to show him various gruesome specimens in bottles. Ian qualified as a doctor and became a GP in Johnstone. Later, he held government posts dealing with medical matters such as the vetting of claimants or disability benefits.
He married Joan Blake (Arthur Blake's sister). Bill Smyth rememembered Ian as a keen Scout, and described him as a 'true gentleman'.
Craigie, Austin
Austin Craigie used to live in Finnart Street, but nothing else is known about his background. It is possible that his family moved up from England during the war. On the other hand, a John Austin Craigie was born in 1929 in Old or West Kilpatrick, Dumbarton. It has not been established whether this was the same person though. Austin joined the troop at some point after October 1941, and attended the annual Scout party in January 1942. On 13th February 1942, he was last Scout in the Woodpigeon patrol with Robin MacDougall as PL and Jim Morton as SPL. He passed his Tenderfoot badge and was invested along with Duncan Kerr in February 1942. At the beginning of March 1942, he passed his Second Class compass, and at the end of the month he took part in a troop outing to Everton where he passed his firelighting and cooking tests. He was present in the troop photo taken on 17th April 1942 and it is interesting to note that he was not wearing a 70th neckerchief. This implies that he had come from a
At the end of April, he passed 2nd Class pioneering and at the beginning of May he passed 2nd Class first aid. During a hike over the Right of Way in May, he got an unexpected mud bath whilst descending from 'The Tree' to the Cloch Road. Austin must have been a keen Scout with good Scouting skills, because he won the GSM's cup on first aid that same month. At the end of May, he passed his cyclists badge and his Second Class signalling test. Also towards the end of May, he took part on a cycle trip to Duchal Castle and the Gryffe reservoirs where he passed his axemanship, which meant that he completed his Second Class badge in only three months, which was very fast work indeed! He did not stop there and passed his civil defence badge in July. That same month, he was examined on his cooking at a patrol camp at Everton. It was not stated whether he passed or not, but it would be surprising if he did not, given his progress so far. The log book next mentions him taking part in a hike to Everton in March 1943. In April, he took part in a District Gang Show held in Lady Alice School hall, along with Andrew Webster. According to the records, only two 70th Scouts are known to have participated in Gang shows prior to 1947. He was at the hostel weekend in Edinburgh during April 1943, but got left behind at Glasgow Central on the way back home! That same month, he was one of only three Scouts who went swimming at the Renfrew pool one Thursday evening. At the end of April, he was at another weekend camp at Everton. This was a particularly wet camp and Austin went home early on Sunday morning, although it is not said whether he had to return home in any case. Unfortunately, the troop log stops at this stage. Austin Craigie comes across as an extremely keen Scout and it would be interesting to find out whether he remained in Scouts and got promoted or whether this camp dampened his enthusiasm! It is not known what he did after the war.
Crawford, James (Jim) - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Curtis, J (Ian) - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Dally, Mr. William
A Scoutmaster called William Dally tested Andrew MacMillan and Ian Conn on their 1st Class cooking tests at a weekend camp at Everton in August 1942. A Mr. Dally was also reported as being present when the troop was camping for a week at Everton at the end of June 1943. He was not a 70th leader. This may well be Mr. Dally (junior) who was instrumental in pushing forward many of the improvements that were carried out on the Everton campsite during the early 1930s. He was Scout Master of the 10th Scouts in 1937 and attended the 1937 World Jamboree in Holland. It is likely that his father was J. A. Dally of 122 Old Inverkip Road, who was the secretary for the local Boy Scout Association.
Davies, Jack - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
James Eric Duncan was born in the west end of Greenock in 1929, but nothing is known about his background. He joined the troop on the 14th February 1941 along with Hugh Kerr, and was at a weekend camp at Everton during 1941. It is not known which patrol he joined, but in September 1941 he was in the Woodpigeon patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Sandy McKechnie as SPL. Although he joined in February, he was only invested in October. The records show that he was at the troop's annual party in January 1942, and in February 1942 he joined the newly created Peewit patrol with Stewart Tosh as PL and Alan Jubber as SPL. This suggests that he lived in the Cardwell Bay area since the Patrol was intended to be for Scouts living in that area. However, he moved to the Fox patrol at the end of March with John Menzies as
Duncan, Eric
PL and Alan Mackay as SPL. Towards the end of March, he was on a troop outing to Everton where he passed firelighting & cooking, and he was present in the 1942 group photo. In April, he was on the cycle trip to Glen Masson. Despite the length of time he took to get his Tenderfoot, he must have had pretty good Scouting skills, for he was a finalist for the GSMs cup held during May 1942. He did not win, but he passed his first aid. Later in the month, he passed pioneering and was also on the cycle trip to Kilmacolm. During the summer, he was at the Fox patrol camp at Everton, then at the end of October, he passed his compass test. Finally, he was at a hostel weekend in Edinburgh during April 1943. Since the Troop Log ends at that point, it is not known what else he did in Scouts. It is also not known or what he did after leaving Scouts.
Dunlop, A. Ian - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Ellis, John
John Swan Ellis was born in 1929 in the west end of Greenock, and was in the same year as Alan Jubber at Greenock Academy. He lived in Fort Matilda Place behind the railway station and is remembered by May Ogilvie as a wee boy with red hair and sticking out ears. John joined the troop from the Wolf Cubs on 12th September 1941 at the age of 13 along with Alan Jubber, Stewart Tosh, Roy Farling and James McIntyre. He was put into the Wolf patrol with Robin McDougall as PL and Ronald Herbert as SPL. The next month, he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested on the 24th of October. The Troop Log shows that he was at the troop's annual party in January 1942, and he joined the Peewit patrol in February, with Stewart Tosh as PL and Alan Jubber as SPL. He took an active part in troop activities and was on the troop outing to Everton in March 1942, where he passed firelighting and cooking. In April, he passed his compass test and was present for the group photo. At the end of April, he took part on a cycle trip to Glen Masson, and passed his semaphore at
the start of May. In June, he camped at Everton with his patrol, where he passed his axemanship and First Class swimming. Considering his progress, it seems likely that he gained his Second Class Badge. Not everything went his way though. At a troop meeting in January 1943, he was kicked in the eye during a particularly rough game and had to retire from the hall to recover. He was later found amusing himself with SM Hill's 'oscillator', which caused much interest (the log did not explain what this oscillator was). He finally left the Peewit Patrol on the 12th February 1943.
It is thought that he stayed in Greenock after the war. He joined the merchant navy where he rose to be a chief officer and gained his masters ticket. He then joined Caledonia MacBrayne and was a captain on the ferries. It is said that he had a fiery temper in his younger days to match the colour of his hair. Some feel that he may have had a mild form of ME in his later years since he was prone to falling asleep on the bridge. Unfortunately, he was in charge of the Pioneer when it ran aground off Dunoon, and he retired not long after that episode. He lived in Gourock.
Matt Neilson recalled that Jimmy Ewart was an ADC in Greenock about 1946, and that he came along to the troop on one or two occasions once Tony Williams had resigned as Scoutmaster and moved back south. This was supposed to be a stop-gap measure until another leader was found, but in the end the Scouts had to join with the 59th. He was a bank manager in Glasgow.
Ewart, Jimmy
Farling, Roy
Roy Farling’s family came up from Portsmouth early in the war. His father was an Admiralty Inspector, presumably in Scotts shipyards. The family lived opposite the Jubbers in Park Avenue and both families found that they had several shared social and friendly connections in Portsmouth.
Roy must have joined the 70th Wolf Cubs when he first arrived because he joined the 70th Troop from the Wolf Cub Pack on 12th September 1941 along with Alan Jubber, Stewart Tosh, John Ellis and James McIntyre. He was allocated to the Curlew patrol with John Menzies as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL, and the following month he was invested. The records show that he was at the troop's annual party in January 1942, then, in February, he joined the Peewit patrol with Stewart Tosh as PL and Alan Jubber as SPL. He was on a troop outing to Everton during March 1942 where he passed his firelighting, then passed compass work
later in the month. He is also present in the group photo taken in April. He must have been a keen Scout, because he was a finalist for the GSM's cup on first aid during May. Although he did not won, he passed the first aid test. Later in May, he was on a cycle run to Kilmacolm where he passed axemanship. The next month, he camped with his patrol at Everton where he passed cooking, then towards the end of June, he passed the civil defence badge. Not much is known about him over the next 6 months, but in February, he was promoted to SPL of the Peewits with Alan Jubber as his PL, demonstrating that he was still making good progress. Further evidence of his Scout credentials comes from the fact that he was part of the escort for the flag party at the district parade held during February 1943. In April, he attended a hostel weekend in Edinburgh and in May, he attended part of an Everton weekend camp. The troop log stops at this point, but the Peewit Patrol log stated that he put his name forward for the signallers badge in December 1943, but it is not stated whether he gained it or not. In March 1944, he passed his First Class mapping at Wilson Hill's house, which implies that he had gained his Second Class by that time. In May 1944, he attended the Salute the Soldier parade, then in November 1944, he took part in a practice for a mock trial as described in Scouting for Boys. He was still with the troop in March 1945 and may have been present when the troop eventually closed in 1946 or 1947. Matt Neilson remembered him being a big lad. The family moved back to Portsmouth after the war. Some time later, his father died, whereupon Roy and his mother moved to Northern Ireland. Alan Jubber believed that he joined the Fire Service there.
Fraser, Ronald
Ronald Fraser's background is not known. He was not born locally, and identifying where he was born or where he lived has not been established. There was a Fraser living at 30 Forsyth St who had a Morrison table shelter built for them by the troop in October 1941, but there is no evidence of any relationship. In any case, the troop built these shelters for the elderly or infirm.
Ronald joined the Peewit patrol on 27th February 1942 from the Wolf Cubs and was invested a month later along with Edward Pearce, Alan Nicol, Maurice Offord, Paul Pryce, Campbell Conn and Ian Conn. He was present in the troop photo of April 1942, and was wearing a different style of Scout shirt from the normal 70th shirt. This suggests
that the family moved into Greenock during the war years. Over the next two months, he proceeded to pass his Second Class compass, observation, first aid, and pioneering, so he was not hanging about. Moreover, he was at the Everton weekend camp in June where he passed his Second Class firelighting, cooking and axemanship, as well as his First Class swimming. Later in June, he proceeded to pass his Second Class semaphore. This all suggests that he gained his Second Class badge pretty quickly. Unfortunately, that is not recorded in the log. During April of 1943 he was present on the Spring holiday visit to Edinburgh at Spylaw Scout Hostel. Unfortunately the troop log ends at that stage and there is no further information about how he progressed in the troop. It is possible that he left the Troop during the Summer of 1943 as he he is not mentioned in the Peewit Patrol Log during the 1943-44 session. It is not known what he did after the war.
Forsyth, Thomas
There is virtually no information regarding Thomas Forsyth, other than that he joined on the 2nd May 1941. He was not born locall, but without more information, it is not possible to identify where or when he was born. It is not known what patrol he joined initially, but he was in the Wolf patrol in September 1941 with Robin MacDougall as PL and Ronald Herbert as his SPL. No other information is known.
Glass (or Lass), Jim
It is uncertain from the written entry in the troop log whether this is Jim Glass or Jim Lass. He was reported to be a Rover Scout who helped out with the troop during the month of May 1942. He instructed on semaphore, morse and mapping. No other information is known. It is possible that he may have been a serviceman who had been drafted to Greenock from another part of the country.
Graham, David
David Graham was Scoutmaster of the 59th troop at Trinity Church when the 70th closed in 1946 or 1947, and accepted those 70th Scouts still wanting to continue in Scouts. He was a director of the Greenock Telegraph and had a son called David and a daughter who married Ian Banks. Matt Neilson remembered him as being a very good Scout Master despite the fact that he was more often out of uniform than in. He was a church elder and may have had his arm twisted to run the troop.
Graham, Gordon
Gordon MacMillan Graham was born in 1929 in the east of Greenock, and was in the same year as Alan Jubber and Campbell Conn at Greenock Academy. He is thought to have grown up in Mearns Street, and his father worked in an office doing work that was related to the railways. At the school sports day of 1935, Gordon won the 100 yards sprint, then came second in 1936 and 1937. Nothing else is known of his background. However, he joined the troop on the 27th March 1942 at the age of 12 or 13 along with Fraser Miller and William Smyth, and was placed in the Fox patrol with John Menzies as his PL and Alan Mackay as his SPL. He was on the Right of Way hike in April 1942 and was present in the troop photo of that month wearing school uniform. He passed his Tenderfoot and was invested in May
In July he walked down to Everton with Jock Kerr to a patrol camp that was on that weekend, and also attended the Fox patrol camp in August 1942. He was present on a hike to Everton in March 1943, a hostel weekend at Edinburgh in April, and a Right of Way hike in May. The troop log stops at this point and there is no information of what he did in Scouts after that.
Gordon was very friendly with Campbell Conn and was best man at his wedding. According to Campbell, Gordon had a chequered career with various jobs. He started off as a chiropodist and was later the landlord of a pub in the Borders. His last job was back in Greenock where he worked at a computer store that existed where the current Tesco’s store in now situated. He finally moved to Dumfries.
Halder, Jim- see Alder Jim
Hastie, Harold - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Herbert, Ronald
Ronald Stewart Herbert was born in Glasgow in 1927. He was big for his age and was very good friends with Robin McDougall. He stayed at Inverkip or Wemyss Bay at the time, which must have been quite a distance to travel for Scout meetings. His father ran GMS buses (Greenock Motor Services), which was probably useful in getting Ronald to the meetings! In June 1941, a Mr. Herbert took Scouts aged over 13 to a miniature rifle range at Cornhaddock (the Home Guard rifle range) for 0.22 rifle shooting. It is possible that this might have been Ronald's father.
Ronald joined the troop on 17th November 1939. Although it is not known which patrol he joined initially, he was a member of the Curlew patrol in November 1940 with Ian Munro as PL and John Menzies as SPL. He was on a hike to Everton during March 1940 where he passed his firelighting, and he was invested in May 1940. He passed his axemanship in May and his compass in October. In March 1941, he was on a Right of Way hike, then in July 1941, he was on a cycle trip where he passed his Second Class cooking. In August, he was at a weekend camp at Everton, and his father helped with transport back. On the 12th September 1941, he was promoted to SPL of the Wolf patrol with Robin MacDougall as his PL. Other log book entries show that he was at the troop's annual party in January 1942, and moved to the Curlew patrol in February 1942. It is possible that he left not long after this, since the March listing of the Curlew patrol does not include his name. It is believed he remained in Inverkip or Wemyss Bay for several years, but there is no more information about what he did.
Hill, Wilson - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Hodgson, Brian -
Matt Neilson recalled a boy with a name sounding like Hodgson who was in the 70th Scouts until it closed in 1946 or 47. He transferred to the 59th, then back to the 70th when it restarted. No other information is known about him. There was a Brian Hodgson who was in the same year in school as Ian Wallace, and who eventually became the Scout Master of the 70th. However, Ian does not recall him being a 70th Scout.
'John'....
The Peewit patrol refers to a 'John' who was helping out at the troop from September 1943 to March 1945. However, his surname is not given, and it is not even certain that it is the same John throughout the period. This particular John usually attended with ‘Robin’ who could well be Robin MacDougall. If so, it is possible that this might be John Menzies. Having said that, a John Young is mentioned in March 1945. Whichever John it is, the records suggest that he was very much into running games at Troop meetings rather than any training bases. It is also clear that he was still at school studying for highers during March 1944, along with Robin.
Jubber, Alan
Alan Jubber was born in 1928 and was in the same class at Greenock Academy as Bill Smyth, Fraser Miller, Neil Robertson, John Ellis, Paul Pryce, Campbell Conn, Alan Nicol, Jock Kerr and Andrew MacMillan. He was born in England and his family moved to Gourock in January 1936, when his father (George) took on a position as designer at the Royal Navy Torpedo Factory. The family originally stayed in Hunter villa at Cardwell Bay (the last house in Gourock), then in 1937 they moved to Park Avenue. Alan possibly went to Mrs. Carney's infant school at the foot of Newark Street, then Greenock Academy. He may have joined the 70th Wolf Cub Pack in 1936 and is certainly present as a Wolf Cub in the 1937 group photograph. One memory he has as a Wolf Cub was leaving the Pack meeting just as the Scout meeting was about to start. The Scouts had brought the Trek Cart parts up from the cellar and had assembled it before their meeting. The Wolf Cubs proceeded to take it all apart again before promptly disappearing home!
Alan joined the troop on the 12th September 1941 at the age of 12 or 13 along with John Ellis, Stewart Tosh, Roy Farling and James MacIntyre, and was placed in the Woodpigeon patrol with PL Alan MacFadyen and SPL Sandy McKechnie. He was present in the troop photo of April 1942.
The Troop Log states that he was present at the troop's annual party in January 1942 where he won a copy of a Scouting book called 'Boy Scout Tests' as a prize for being the all round winner for the various competitions that took place on the night. In February 1942, he was promoted to SPL of the new Peewit Patrol only 5 months after he had joined. In March, he passed firelighting, axemanship and compass, and was also on the troop outing to Everton, where he passed his cooking. In May, he passed his Second Class first aid and pioneering which resulted in him gaining his Second Class badge in only 8 months from joining. He attended two Everton weekend camps in June, and also passed his civil defence badge. In December, he attended a Christmas Church parade to Finnart Church, where he and Stewart Tosh read the lessons. It is clear from the evidence available that Alan was a keen, enthusiastic Scout, and he was promoted in February 1943 to PL of the Peewits with Roy Farling as his SPL. Towards the end of the month, there was a district parade to the town hall where the 70th had the honour of carrying the union flag for the whole parade. Alan was one of the escorts for the flagbearing party. Further entries indicate that he was a day visitor at an Everton camp in May, and that he put his name in for the signallers badge. There is no record of whether he succeeded or not. In March 1944, he passed his First Class mapping at Wilson Hill's house, and in May, he is reported as saving the day at a troop meeting since he had the key for the hall when no officers turned up. This was a period when leaders were sometimes late or did not turn up at all, possibly because of war duties. On such nights, it was up to the PLs to take responsibility and Alan is reported as taking charge on at least one occasion on the 26th May 1944. In June 1944,
the Peewit Patrol Log reports that Alan and Maurice Offord did a good turn on their way to Scouts by helping to get a car out of a ditch. At a troop night in November 1944, Alan participated in an activity where he was acting the role of a defender in a mock trial. In December 1944, he and Maurice Offord brought books and toys that they had made for the post war fund sale to be held on the 9th of that month. The Peewit patrol log continues to June 1945 and shows that Alan attended regularly and was a conscientious PL. This period appears to be one where there was a lack of leadership in the troop with little training and testing taking place. At times, it is stated that Alan and his patrol were the only Scouts attempting to do Scouting activities, whilst the rest of the troop played games. Alan remained as PL of the Peewits until the summer of 1945. At that point, there was a disagreement about how the troop should be run and he resigned to concentrate on his highers.
After the war, Alan remained in Gourock and left school in 1947. He was called up for National Service and served in the RAF until 1949. When he was demobbed, he went to college, then worked for IBM for 32 years. He lived in Craigmuschat Road, Gourock across the road from the HQ for the 1st Gourock (CDO) Scouts. His two sons both became members of the Gourock Troop and Alan became involved as a parent, helping with fund raising and some badge work. Alan attended the 150th celebration for Greenock Academy. He also recalled meeting Wilson Hill several years after the war when both happened to be on holiday at Fionnhport in Mull.
Matt Neilson recalled that much fun was to be had with Alan's surname since it was so unusual for the area. Ian Wallace remembered Alan as a pretty solid citizen, and that he was particularly friendly with Maurice Offord. As a postscript. Alan lent the Peewit patrol log to the 70th so that it could be displayed at the Group’s 50th anniversary celebrations. They failed to return it but the log book has proved invaluable in filling out a period of the 70th’s history which is not covered by other records. The log book itself has an impressive embroidered cover on it which includes the shape of a peewit in red. This was done by Alan’s mother who must have spent a lot of time on it. It is fortunate that the log book survived because many people did not believe that it had anything to do with the 70th and it could well have been binned during several clear outs. After all, the Peewit patrol only existed during the second half of the war and is only remembered by those that were in the troop at that time.
Kerr, Duncan
There are no background details concerning Duncan Kerr and it is probable that he was born in another part of the country. He joined on the 30th January 1942 and was placed in the Peewit patrol with Stewart Tosh as PL and Andrew Jubber as SPL on 13th February 1942. A week later, he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested along with Austin Craigie. He was on a troop outing to Everton in March and passed his Second Class firelighting. In April he passed his compass test on the day that the troop photo was taken. In May, he passed pioneering and first aid, then in June, he was at a couple of weekend camps at Everton where he passed cooking and axemanship. This progress continued into July when he passed semaphore. After this, there is no further mention of Duncan and it is possible that he left over the summer of 1942. This is rather surprising considering the progress he was making. It is not known what he did after Scouts.
Kerr, Hugh
Hugh Kerr joined the troop on 14th February 1941 along with Eric Duncan, but there are no other references to him in the log book. He must have been in the troop for less than a year since he is not present on the roll for February 1942. A Hugh Kerr was born in Greenock in 1925, which would make him aged 15 or 16 on joining. However, there is no way of knowing if this is the same person. It is just as likely that he was not born locally and moved into the district.
Kerr, Jock
Jock Kerr was in the same year as Alan Jubber at Greenock Academy, which suggests that he was born in 1928 or 1929. Jock was the son of Willie Kerr who owned a plumbing business and lived in Newton Street. Jock probably joined the 70th Wolf Cub pack in 1936 and he can be seen as a Wolf Cub in the 1937 Group photograph. The records show that John Kerr joined on 15th May 1942 and this is presumably Jock. He attended part an Everton camp in July 1942, having walked down with Gordon Graham, and attended another Everton camp held in August. Other references in the log to J. Kerr presumably refer to Jock. If so, he was present on a hike to Everton in March 1943, a hostel weekend to the Spylaw hostel, Edinburgh in April, and a visit to Renfrew swimming pool, which was also held in April. He certainly walked the Right of Way during May
1943 and was at an Everton camp that same month. After that, the troop log stops and it is not known how long Jock remained in the troop or how far he progressed with badgework or promotion.
After the war, Jock took over his father's plumbing business in Chapel Street where the current Morrison’s supermarket is situated. There was some kind of link with Mitchell's pipe merchants. Unfortunately, the business eventually closed.
Kinnell, George - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Leggett, Dick - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
McGill, Neill
Neill MacGill was born in the west end of Greenock in 1926, but nothing much else is known about him or his background. There is some uncertainty about where he lived. He may have lived in Johnston Street, but Avril Brown believed that he lived in Glen Street. Neill joined the troop at the age of 13 or 14, along with Collin Reid, J. Patterson, Alexander McKechnie and Alasdair Maclaine on the 18th October 1940, and almost certainly came up from the 70th Wolf Cubs since there was a large intake that month. He joined the Curlew Patrol with Ian Munro as PL and John Menzies as SPL. In December, he was invested along with James Morton, Alasdair Maclaine, Alan Mackay and Alex McKechnie, although no badges could be given out as the badge secretary did not have any. At the end of December, he passed Kim's game and was at a weekend camp at Everton in August 1941. In September 1941, his PL became John Menzies and his SPL was Andrew Webster. In October, he passed his Scouts pace during the black out. After that, there is no further mention of him, and he must have left the troop at some point later in the year or in January 1942. It is not known what he did after the war. A Robin McGill was a member of the 70th Scouts several years later and one wonders whether there was any relationship. Avril Brown believed that Neill became a draughtsman for Hasties.
MacKay, Alan (Stourie)
Alan Forsyth MacKay was born during 1930 in Broughty Ferry, where his father was the minister of Broughty Ferry West. In 1934, the family moved to Greenock where the Rev MacKay became minister of St. Columba's Gaelic church (the Gaelic 'wee free' church). This church is no more and some of the stones were used towards the building of the West Church. There were four brothers - Alistair, Hamish, Ronald, and Alan. There is great confusion as to which is which when it comes to troop records, especially since most or all of them were nicknamed 'Stourie' at one point or another! The Rev. Mackay lived at 39 Fox Street from 1936 or 1937. This may have been a manse since a minister lived there before him. Alan was the youngest of the four Mackay brothers and was in primary 3 of Greenock Academy during 1936-37, when he gained second prize in his class.
He joined the 70th troop at the age of 10 on the 25th October 1940, just as his elder brother Ronald was departing. Jim Morton joined at the same time which might suggest that they were in the same class at school. Alan was put into the Curlew patrol with Ian Munro as PL and John Menzies as SPL. He was still in the Curlew patrol in September 1941, this time with John Menzies as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL. In February 1942, he was transferred to the Woodpigeons with Robin MacDougall as PL and Jim Morton as SPL. The Woodpigeons were made up chiefly of boys who joined as a batch in the autumn of 1940, and included Robin MacDougall, Jim Morton, Alasdair Maclaine, Alan Mackay, Neil Robertson, Colin Reid, and Austin Craigie. On 8th May 1942, he was appointed SPL of the Fox patrol with John Menzies as his PL.
Alan passed his Tenderfoot in November 1940 and was invested in December along with Jim Morton, Neil McGill, Alasdair Maclaine and Alexander McKechnie. He then worked steadily towards his Second Class, passing his compass, signalling, ambulance, pioneering, firelighting and axemanship. Although it is not mentioned in the log, it is reasonable to assume that he did since he passed his First Class pioneering in October 1941. He passed his cyclists badge in May 1942 and his civil defence badge in June 1942.
Alan was very active and participated in many of the activities that took place. In March 1941, he took part in two hikes, one along the Right of Way and the other to Everton. In August, he was at a weekend camp at Everton, and in October, he joined Andrew Webster, Alasdair Maclaine and Wilson Hill at Everton to dismantle and store the trek cart at Everton farm. At the troop's annual party in January 1942, he won a prize called the 'Scouts How To Do ItBbook' for being third overall in the various competitions that were held. During April 1942, he joined Andrew Webster on a cycle trip to meet the rest of the Scouts on the Right of Way hike, and he is present in the troop photo of 17th April 1942. Also in April, he took part in a cycle trip to Glen Masson and was in a small group of Scouts who took a trek cart load of bricks down to Everton by train. He was at the Everton camp of June 1942, and attended a hostel weekend in Edinburgh during April 1943. At that point, the troop log stops and it is not known whether Alan became a PL, or what else he did in the Scouts.
There is not much information about what he did after school. However, it is believed that he became involved with the Forestry Commission in Edinburgh, Dingwall and / or Inverness. He married Margaret McNeil, who was a younger sister of James McNeil (a 70th Scout in the 1930s).
MacKay, D. Lamont
Arthur Blake, Ian Wallace and Matt Neilson all remembered Lamont MacKay being in the 70th troop during 1945. Indeed Lamont was good friends with Matt Neilson and Ian Wallace who were in the same year at school. A Duncan Lamont MacKay was born in Greenock East during 1932 and would have been 13 in 1945, so this may well be the same person. It is known that his father was a bank manager and the family may have moved away from Greenock at some point. They lived in Robertson Street at the red sandstone tenements which used to house a veterinary practice, and which now houses a solicitor. Lamont's father was a very amusing man and could do party tricks. Matt Neilson thought that Lamont may have been one of the Scouts who took up an invitation to the 70th Scouts from Scout Master Tony Williams to join a summer camp in the south of England during 1946 and/or 1947.
MacKay, Ronald - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
MacLean, Alastair / Maclaine, Alasdair.
Alastair Maclean is often referred to as Alasdair Maclaine in the troop log. He was in Bill Smyth's year at Greenock Academy and apparently won a Spanish prize in 1944. His father was an official in the local Authority - possibly a Justice of the Poor. He may have lived in Finnart Street. On the other hand, Campbell Conn, thought that he lived at the corner of Brougham Street and Margaret Street. An Alastair MacLean was born in Greenock during 1927, although one might have expected it to be 1928 or 1929 for him to be in Bill Smyth's class. Alastair joined the troop on the 18th October 1940, along with Collin Reid, J. Patterson, Neil McGill, and Alexander McKechnie, and was placed in the Curlew Patrol with Ian Munro as PL and John Menzies as SPL. After the
summer of 1941, he had a new PL in John Menzies, with Andrew Webster as his SPL. In February 1942, there was a reshuffle of the patrols and he ended up in the Woodpigeons with Robin MacDougall as PL and Jim Morton as SPL. On the badge front, Alastair passed his Tenderfoot in November 1940 and was invested in December. Later that month, he passed his Kim's game, and over the next couple of months, he passed his compass and ambulance tests. In March 1941, he hiked to Everton where he passed firelighting.
Alastair was quite an active Scout according to the Troop log. His first weekend camp appears to have been at Everton during August 1941, then in October, he joined Andrew Webster, Alan MacKay and Wilson Hill at Everton to dismantle and store the trek cart. The next mention in the log is of him attending the annual troop Scout party in January 1942, where he won a book entitled 'Scouting Round the World' for coming second overall in the various competitions held during the night, and also a book entitled 'First Class Tests and How to Pass Them' for winning a game on adverts. During April 1942, he was on the Right of Way hike and a cycle trip to Glen Masson. In March 1943, he was on a hike to Everton, then in April he was on a hostel weekend to Edinburgh, as well as an evening's trip up to Renfrew swimming pool. Finally, he was at an Everton weekend camp held in May 1943. After that, the records are less reliable, and it is not known what else he did in Scouts or when he left.
Bill Smyth believed that Alasdair may have left school early and attended Paisley Technical College to obtain a degree in engineering. He had various jobs in Scotland, and was apparently credited with designing some of the street lighting standards in Greenock! No further information is known however.
Macleod, Fraser
There is no information regarding Fraser Macleod's background other than that his parents were Quakers. An Alan Fraser Macleod was born in 1929 in the West End of Greenock, but it is not known for certain whether it is the same person. Fraser joined the troop from the Wolf Cubs on the 27th September 1940 along with Andrew Webster, and was invested the following month. He was put into the Woodpigeon patrol with Jim Crawford as PL and Robin MacDougall as SPL. Over the next couple of months, he passed his compass and Kim's game, then in March 1941, he took part in a Right of Way Hike where he passed firelighting. He also hiked to Everton that month and passed axemanship. The troop photo taken in April 1942 showed him in school uniform. Later that month, he took part in a cycle trip to Glen Masson. It is not known how long he stayed in Scouts or what he did following Scouts.
MacMillan, Andrew (Drew)
Andrew MacMillan was an only son who was born in Greenock in late1928. His father (Andrew) was a member of Finnart Church and worked at the Greenock Telegraph for 49 years where he was part owner and a director on the commercial side of the business. The family lived at 79 Newton Street and it is thought that he lived next door to Brian Hodgson who was to become a future 70th Scout Master. Andrew was in the same year at Greenock Academy as Alan Jubber and Bill Smyth and gained some mentions in the Greenock Telegraph for sporting and academic prizes. In the school's 1936 Sports Day, he came second in the egg and spoon race, then went one better in 1938. Academically, he came third in primary 3 in 1937, and in 1939, he was first in English and Handwork. He won the Burns Federation Prize in 1941 and 1942, and the Scripture Prize in 1944.
Andrew was present as a Wolf Cub in the 1937 Group photo, which suggests that he would have been old enough to join the troop earlier than he did. In fact, it was not until the 20th March 1942 that he finally joined, along with Paul Pryce, Campbell Conn and Ian Conn. By that time, he was 13 or 14. He was placed in the Curlew Patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL. There is no record of when he was invested, but he was participating in troop events very quickly. The week after joining, he was on a troop outing to Everton where he passed firelighting, then in April he was on a hike over the Right of Way where he passed axemanship. He was present in the Troop photo of April 1942. In May, he was on another hike over the Right of Way, where he passed cooking, then made further progress at troop nights over the next two months passing first aid and morse to gain his Second Class Badge. He also gained the cyclist proficiency badge and the civil defence badge. In August, he was present at a weekend camp at Everton, by which time he had been promoted to SPL. At that camp, he passed his First Class cooking. In October, he was part of a small group of Scouts who went down to Everton farm to bring the trek cart and camping gear back by train. That same month, he was promoted to PL of the Curlews, but it is not known who his SPL was. He passed First Class mapping in October, and in November, he participated in a joint meeting with the 1st Gourock held at their HQ. At that meeting, the Gourock Scoutmaster praised Andrew, and stated that he ran a model patrol. In December, he was part of a small group who cycled to Everton farm to complete a kit list of what was in the camping chest. In February 1943, he took part in a District parade to the town hall where he was one of the escorts for the flag party leading the parade. In April 1943, he attended a hostelling weekend in Edinburgh where he accidently let off the fire alarm! After that, the records are very sketchy. The Peewit Patrol log suggests that he organised the flying of model aeroplanes towards the end of April. However, since he was not in the Peewit Patrol, there is very little else mentioned about him. Alan Jubber remembered Drew and Ian Conn putting on a shadowgraph at the troop's Christmas party that was very funny.
Andrew was still connected with the group in May 1944, although it sounds as if he was attending irregularly as a result of an amorous affair! To quote the log, 'Flag was about to be broken when in walked Andrew McMillan who was cheered and cheered because for once he wasn't out with Miss.....!!' This was probably Nessie Roxburgh whom he eventually married.
On the 18th September 1945, Andrew’s father died at the age of 66 and the 16 year old Andrew was one of the pall bearers at the funeral, which was taken by the Rev. Stewart at the MacMillan’s home. Not long after this, Andrew suffered another cruel blow. When he was about 17, he was incapacitated with some form of osteoarthritis, which it is believed was brought on by a knock from rugby. This affected him about the time he was in his 5th year of school (probably 1946) and he ended up housebound. He saw an endless stream of consultants and showed a tremendous spirit and determination. Unfortunately, nothing could be done about the problem and he was left with an infirmity that required him to use two walking sticks for the rest of his life. Nevertheless, he bore his infirmity courageously and did not allow it to hold him back.
After leaving school, he married Nessie (who became a teacher) and bought a house in Gourock. Bill Smyth and Alan Jubber recalled that Andrew owned a Wolseley car which was his pride and joy, so it says something for his generosity of spirit that he was prepared to lend it to Bill so that the latter could take his driving test. Alan Jubber also recalled that he had a special extension made to the gear lever to allow him to drive more easily. He later owned a Volkswagon.
Eventually Andrew moved to Millport and bought two shops, which Nessie and he ran for a while. He then decided to study for a degree and commuted to University, eventually qualifying as a teacher. However, it was not long before he moved to Aberdeen in 1963 or 1964 where he studied medicine at Aberdeen University. He proved himself an outstanding student and Bill Smyth thought that there might be some award named after him at the University. Either that or he won some award. After Andrew qualified, he became an anaesthetist in operating theatres. He eventually moved to Hull where he became the medical officer for Hull University. It has been said that Andrew’s life was an inspiration to everyone who knew him.
Maloy or Malloy, Mr.
Mr. Maloy was one of the many temporary leaders that appeared briefly to help out the troop during the war. Therefore, it is likely that he was in one of the services. It is uncertain whether Mr. Vaughan or Wilson Hill was the one to coax him along, but he first appeared at a troop meeting with Mr. Vaughan on the 3rd November 1944. It is highly likely that he had Scouting experience himself, since he instructed the troop on pioneering, splicing, and various methods of carrying casualties. It also sounds as if he was Canadian since he gave a talk on Canadian Scouting. He attended regularly for a month until the 16th December 1944, then nothing more was heard of him.
McCreery, Murray - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
McDougall, Colin D.
An application by Colin D. McDougall for an ASM’s warrant with the 70th was approved by the District in August 1943. However, there is no reference to such a person in the Peewit Patrol log and one wonders whether the scribe made an error and meant Robin McDougall, who certainly became an ASM at this time.
McDougall, Neil (or Neill)
Neil McDougall was Robin McDougall's elder brother and was born on the 2nd June 1923. He attended Greenock Academy, and the Greenock Telegraph reported that he came second in the sack race during the school’s sports days of 1932 and 1933 when he was in primary school. In 1936, he came second in English and third in Latin.
Neil joined the 70th at the same time as Robin on the 20th October 1939, when the troop had just restarted recruiting for new members. Neil had no Scouting experience when he joined, but was invested the following week. Immediately, he and Robin launched themselves into collecting wastepaper as part of the troop's contribution for the war effort. This caused the Court of Honour to ask why nobody else in the troop had helped them. Both brothers continued to be heavily involved in later paper collections, and there is a written record by Neil of the addresses visited during the week of 18th-24th November 1939.
In November, Neil passed his Second Class signalling, and in January 1940, he passed his observation and compass tests. Further progress over the next four months saw him passing his pioneering, first aid, and axemanship, resulting in him gaining his Second Class on 17th May 1940. At the end of May 1940, both Neil and Robin were entered for the GSM's cup, but this was won by Duncan McKenzie. Neil does not exactly come across as introverted; the Court of Honour minutes for June 1940 records, 'At this moment, Scout N. MacDougall burst noisily into the Courtroom for the third or fourth time and the Court registered disapproval at these frequent interruptions'. There is no record of which patrol Neil initially joined, but in November 1940, he was in the Wolf patrol with Ian Munro as PL and John Menzies as SPL. It is not known exactly when Neil left the troop, but it was probably at some point in 1941. He joined the Rover Scouts and helped out at the troop during February 1942. It is not known when he left the Rovers and the Group.
In 1941, he started medical studies at Glasgow University where he graduated in 1946. He then did National Service as a pathologist in the RAMC - first in the canal zone and then in Greece. He finished his National Service as a Captain and moved into general practice. After a short spell in England, he set up in practice in the newly built Milton housing estate in Glasgow. As a community doctor, he believed that it was important to live close to his patients and he only moved away from the area when he retired in 1962 or 1963.
He married Jean Weir Roberts - the daughter of Dame Jean Roberts who had been provost of Glasgow. Robin (his brother) always wondered how Neil, who was extremely conservative in his political views, managed to get on with Jean, who was very much on the left side of the political spectrum. Nevertheless, they lived very happily together in Bishopriggs. Robin also stated that Neil was always more smartly turned out than he ever was. Neil was generally a quiet man, but he was not slow to speak his mind. He had a keen interest in classical music and attended many performances, and he was known to make loud disparaging comments after a performance should it not meet the required standard. Bill Smyth also remembered Neil as a very clever man.
McDougall, Robin
Robin McDougall was born in Greenock on the 23rd May 1926. His father (James Fleming MacDougall) was an accountant who lived at 69 Nicholson Street, but moved to 25 Denholm Terrace not long after Robin's birth. This was where the family stayed during the war years. Robin had an older brother called Neil (see above). Robin went to Greenock Academy and was good friends with George Brown, although they were in different years at school. In 1933, Robin won the 100 yards sprint at the school sports day when he was in the junior 2 class. In 1937, he was second in the 100 yards.
Robin initially joined the 23rd Sea Scouts as a Wolf Cub and Sea Scout. The 23rd met at St. Andrews Church in Ardgowan Street, while the pack met in the basement of a house in Margaret Street called Silwood. This may have been owned by Tommy and Ruth Kirkwood who ran the Wolf Cub Pack. Although one of the 23rd
Scout Masters owned a ketch at Cardwell Bay, the Scouts did not do an awful lot of sailing and, with the onset of war, sailing restrictions were brought in which further reduced sailing opportunities. Robin also remembers going for an unexpected swim when he and his pal (Robin Harley) tried to get into a sailing dinghy at the same time. This led to his father concluding that Robin might be better placed in a land-based Scout Troop. Robin subsequently joined the 70th along with his brother Neil on the 20th October 1939. Within a week of joining, Robin and his brother were collecting wastepaper as part of the troop's contribution to the war effort. This caused some discussion at the Court of Honour since their initiative and had rather put the rest of the troop to shame! Following this, the troop became more organized in their waste paper collections with the McDougall brothers remaining heavily involved.
It is not recorded when Robin was invested or which patrol he joined initially, but at the beginning of November 1940, he was in the Woodpigeon patrol with Jim Crawford as PL and George Brown as SPL. On the 6th June 1941, he was promoted to SPL at the age of 15 for the Woodpigeon patrol with George Brown as his PL. Very soon afterwards in September 1941, he was promoted to patrol leader of the Wolf Patrol with Ronald Herbert as his SPL. In November 1941, Wilson Hill fell ill, meaning that Robin and the other PLs had to run the troop for the next month. Robin took over the writing of the Troop Log for that period and, along with A. MacFadyen, organised the Scout's church parade and Christmas service at Finnart Church. In February 1942, the Wolf Patrol was disbanded and there was a radical reshuffling of the patrols, which left Robin as patrol leader of the Woodpigeons with Jim Morton as his SPL.
As far as badgework is concerned, Robin had passed several Second Class tests in the Sea Scouts. After joining the 70th, he passed his Second Class signalling and pioneering, and gained his Second Class Badge on 3rd May 1940. At the end of May, both Neil and Robin were entered for the GSM's cup, but this was won by Duncan McKenzie. In June 1942, he passed his civil defence badge. It is not known whether he went on to gain his First Class Badge.
Robin was a keen Scout who took part in many of the troop’s activities. For example, he took part on a hike to Everton in March 1940, then in August 1941, he cycled down to Everton with George Brown and Wilson Hill to pack up the camping gear at Everton farm. At the start of January 1942, Robin, Neil and George Brown travelled down to Everton and brought back the trek cart by train so that they could collect waste paper that same day. He was also at a weekend camp at Everton at the start of June. After that, the troop log becomes less detailed and the next mention of Robin is on Sunday 21st February 1943, where he was given the honour of being Union flagbearer at the head of the District Parade to the town hall.
There is circumstantial evidence that points to Robin resigning as PL of the WoodPigeon Patrol during May 1943 to be replaced by Fraser Millar. Robin turned 17 on the 23rd May 1943 and probably stayed on as an acting ASM as he is mentioned running games on the 11th June 1943. On the 10th September 1943, he appeared for his first night as an ASM. He continued to attend meetings throughout the next couple of years, although exams sometimes interfered. The Peewit Patrol Log records him looking in at a troop meeting at the end of April 1945. Matt Neilson remembered him being good fun and a good piano player, but not that interested in training the Scouts in testwork. Ian Wallace recalled that he was a great comedian and was heavily into the music of the day. Robin’s character is probably captured quite well in the Troop photograph of the 17th April 1942.
At some point in 1945, Robin left Greenock to join the armed forces. Originally, he had wanted to volunteer for the RAF, but his father was adamant that he should join the army. Robin joined as a private in a training platoon that was filled with the toughest characters imaginable. Most, if not all, had been in Borstal or equivalent institutions. When Robin was promoted to lance corporal, he returned to the barracks with his stripes only to have a lump of coal thrown at him. Robin immediately threw it back, breaking a couple of his assailant's ribs. It was not an action that Robin took much pride in, but it meant that he had no further trouble! By the time his training was complete, the war was over. Nevertheless, he was required to stay in the army due to a 'last in, last out' policy, and he was commissioned into the Black Watch in Banglalore, India as an officer cadet before being made up to second lieutenant. He recalled that all the other trainee officers had been to schools like Eton and Harrow and he was the only one who had not. Once his spell in India was complete, he returned home where he got an 'ignaminious posting' to an ack ack battery near Blantyre. He was greatly relieved when he could finally leave the forces in 1948 at the age of 22. He then studied medicine at Glasgow University, graduating in 1954. After hospital jobs at the Royal Infirmary and Larkfield, he went into general practice with Dr. John Telfer. When Dr Telfer departed, Robin moved to work in Rothesay, then the east end of Glasgow. Before long, he moved back to Greenock to join the casualty department under contract to Alexander Lyle. In 1959, Dr. Lawrie offered him a post in his GP practice, and he remained there for the rest of his career, apart from a year's sojourn with Sandoz in Switzerland in 1968. He lived in Newark Street and in the 1960s, he was responsible for the planting of the trees at the new 70th Scout HQ at the corner of Finnart Street and Madeira Street. They have now grown to a monstrous size and require regular cutting back! Robin's son Jim was was the Cub Scout who cut the tape at the opening of the new 70th Scout hall in 1968.
George Brown claimed credit for Robin’s retiral. George had known of two people who died very soon after late retirement, so he told Robin not to leave it too late. That appeared to play on Robin’s mind, for that same night, he talked it over with Neil who had been saying the same thing to him for ages. Robin retired within 6 months of that conversation, but took on locums to keep his hand in. Robin was very keen on music - especially jazz. He was also an active member of the local community and may have been on the local community group for the West End and Cardwell Bay. He featured in the Greenock Telegraph regarding several clear up campaigns.
McFadyen, Alan - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
George McGeown appears briefly in the records as a Rover Scout and ASM from a London troop. He was serving in the RAF during his posting in Greenock - possibly the flying boat base at the Battery Park. He helped out at the troop from February to March 1942 when he ran one of the meetings. He also took part on the Troop outing to Everton on the 28th March. However, that is the last mention of him and nothing is else is known.
McGeown, George
McKechnie, Alexander (Sandy)
Sandy McKechnie was born about 1927. The birth records show that a James Alexander McKechnie was born in Greenock West in 1928, so this may well be him. His father owned a coppersmiths or brass works in the east end. At Greenock Academy, Sandy was first in English when he was in primary 5 for the year 1936-37. The following year he came first in Maths, then in 1944 he won the Burns Federation Prize and Classics prize.
Sandy joined the troop on the 18th October 1940, along with Collin Reid, J. Patterson, Neil McGill, and Alasdair Maclaine. It is not known whether he was in the 70th Wolf Cubs or not. It is possible that he was, and was one of several boys that moved up to the troop rather late on. Sandy was probably 13 when he joined and he was put into the Wolf patrol with Ian Mitchell as PL and Alan MacFadyen as SPL. In December, he got invested along with James Morton, Neil McGill, Alasdair Maclaine, and Alan Mackay. No badges could be given out, though, as the badge secretary had not sent any. He passed his compass test in February 1941 and was promoted to SPL of the Woodpigeon patrol under Robin McDougall in September 1941, when he was probably 14. In October 1941, he passed Kim's game and Scouts pace, and was present at the troop's annual party in January 1942. In February, new patrols were organised and he ended up in the Curlew patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and John Menzies as SPL. This patrol was mainly for older Scouts, which suggests that he was close to 15 by that time. He must have left the troop soon after this, since he was no longer a member of the Curlew patrol by the end of March 1942.
Sandy had a brother called John, and the pair of them joined the Clyde River Patrol during the war. After the war, he qualified as a CA and was secretary to Rankin and Blackmore Engineers, and Financial Director of the family firm William Hume and Co (Brash finishers and founders). Later, he ran a hotel at Sandhead and eventually retired to Inverkip.
McKenzie, Duncan - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
McIntyre, James
Nothing is known about James McIntyre's background, but it is likely that he lived in the Cardwell Bay area. He joined the troop from the Wolf Cubs on the 12th September 1941, along with Alan Jubber, John Ellis, Stewart Tosh, and Roy Farling. He was put into the Woodpigeon Patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Sandy McKechnie as SPL. The next month, he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested. In February 1942, he was put into the new Peewit patrol which was chiefly for boys from the Cardwell Bay district who had come up from Wolf Cubs together. He was in the Troop photo of April 1942, took part in the cycle trip to Glen Masson that same month, and attended a Patrol camp to Everton in June where he passed firelighting. There are no further references to him in the log book and so it is not known when he left Scouts or what else he achieved. It is also not known what he did after the war.
Menzies, John D. - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s)
Millar, Fraser (Fifi)
Fraser Miller was born in 1928 in the west end of Greenock. He used to live at 57 Margaret Street, but nothing else is known about his background. He was in the same year as Alan Jubber at Greenock Academy, and the Greenock Telegraph reported that F. Millar won the egg and spoon race at the school sports day of 1935, when he was in the junior II class.
Fraser joined the troop on 27th March 1942 at the age of 13 or 14 along with Gordon Graham and William Smyth, but it is not known whether he had been in the Wolf Cubs or not. He was put into the Fox patrol with John Menzies as PL, and Alan Mackay as SPL. The next day he took part in the troop outing to where he passed firelighting, then in April, he hiked the Right of Way and passed axemanship. He is present in the 1942 troop photo. In May, he made
rapid progress and passed tests in pioneering, first aid and semaphore, gaining his Second Class badge in only 2 months from joining. This might suggest that he already had some Scout experience. Also in May, he passed his cyclists badge and took part on a cycle trip to the Gryffe reservoir the day afterwards. A month later, he passed his civil defence badge, and in August, he attended an Everton patrol camp. On the 18th August, he came third in the diving competition held at a Scout swimming competition held at Gourock pool. In October, he passed his First Class mapping test. The log book after that date lacks details, but it is known that he was at the hostel weekend at Edinburgh in April 1943 and on the Right of Way hike the following month. He gained his PLs stripes on the 21st May 1943. It was not stated which patrol he was in charge of, but it was probably the Woodpigeon Patrol as Robin McDougall nay have resigned as PL during May 1943. The last mention of Fraser in the log is of him attending an Everton weekend camp for a day during May 1943.
Fraser was a big burly fellow as can be seen from a later school photograph. Clearly, his physique would have made him an effective forward at rugby, and it is known that he was in the Greenock Academy’s first XV rugby team. It is not known when Fraser left the troop and what he did afterwards, but Bill Smyth believed that he might have become a water engineer and moved to England.
Miller, Hugo; Lieutenant
Hugo Miller was another one of the temporary leaders who appeared at the troop during the war, but was present a bit longer than many of his compatriots. Obviously, he was in the services but it is not known which one. He first appeared on 29th November 1940 and gave mapping instruction, then told a ghost story in the dark. He was present at troop meetings during February and March 1941, and took some of the older Scouts to a quarry to fire a 0.22 rifle. No more is known about him.
Mitchell, Ian - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Morton, Jim
Not a great deal is known about Jim Morton's background, other than his father was a tax inspector. He must have been born in 1928 or 1929, which means that he was born in some other part of the country as no relevant births are registered in Greenock or Gourock. Jim joined the troop on the 25th October 1940, along with Alan Mackay, and was put into the Wolf patrol with Ian Mitchell as PL and Alan MacFadyen as SPL. The next month, he gained his Tenderfoot and was invested at the start of December. Also in that month, he passed his compass and observation tests. In February and March 1941, he passed signalling, ambulance, and pioneering, then took part in a Right of Way Hike and a trip to Everton
where he passed firelighting and axemanship. His first weekend camp was to Everton in August 1941. In September, he got a new PL in the shape of Robin MacDougall with Ronald Herbert as SPL. Jim played an active part at the troop's annual party in January 1942 where he won a competition on plane recognition and received a Scouting book entitled 'First Class Tests and How to Pass Them'. He must have impressed the leaders and PLs, because he was promoted to SPL of the Woodpigeons in February 1942, with Robin MacDougall as his PL. In May, he passed his cyclist badge, then later in the month he took charge of a small group of Scouts who took a cartload of bricks down to Everton farm. It is not known why! In June, he attended two weekend camps at Everton and passed his civil defence badge, then in October he passed 1st Class mapping, which indicates that he must have passed his Second Class badge. In December 1942, he cycled to Everton farm with a small group of Scouts to complete a kit list for the camping chest. The final reference to him in the troop log states that he was at the hostel weekend at Edinburgh in April 1943. At that point, the troop log stops and it is not known what else he did in the troop or when he left.
Jim was a bright guy, but it is not known what he did after school, other than that he remained in Greenock. Sadly he died very young in 1962 at the age of 33.
Munro, Ian - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Neilson, James and Matthew
James and Matthew Neilson were born as twins in Greenock during 1932. Their father was a research chemist who worked at Coates in Paisley, and was on the Clyde River Patrol during the war. Both brothers caught measles in 1941 and moved to a rented house in Millport in order to recover. This was fortunate since it meant that they missed the Greenock blitz. On the other hand, their house at 32 Ardgowan Street was now half empty, and so a family from the east end was billeted with their father who was allowed to keep one room into which he put all the good furniture. This meant that the rest of the family had to remain in Millport, with James and Matthew attending Millport primary school along with hundreds of Glasgow children who had been evacuated to the island. Because the school roll had expanded so much, classes were split between various church halls, the town hall and the school itself. After primary school, both brothers had done sufficiently well to get a scholarship funded by the Education authority to go to Keil Secondary School, but they chose to go to Greenock Academy instead, returning to Greenock in 1944. An article in the Greenock Telegraph of 22nd June 1946 describes a school performance of Bernard Shaw’s 'Androcles and the Lion’ with Matt identified as being in the cast.
Matt and James attended St. Marks Church and were encouraged by Hugh Campbell to join Finnart Scouts, which they did at some point during 1944. This must have been before October since Tony Treadwell was still in the troop when they joined. Matt believed that he joined the Woodpecker patrol, but it was probably the Woodpigeon patrol unless there was a change of name during the previous year. He also recalled Maurice Offord being PL of the Woodpecker/Woodpigeon patrol, but this could not have been until the summer of 1945 since Maurice was SPL up until then. Matt passed his Tenderfoot badge at Wilson Hill's house and testified to the fact that all the Scouts thought the world of Wilson. He also camped with the 70th and recalled going down to Inverkip on his own to join the Scouts at Everton one weekend; he may have been playing rugby in the morning. Unfortunately, he had no idea where the camp was and so he ended up camping in some woods along the coast near Lunderston Bay. Since it was raining, he was unable to start a fire and so he ate his pound of sausages raw. He had just enough money left the next morning to get the bus back home. He also recalled pushing/pulling a trek cart up to the Gryffe reservoir for a camp there. This may well have been organised by Wilson Hill since he had relatives living at the farm there (Garshangan). Wilson at that time was not well enough to sleep in a tent so he may have stayed at the farm.
In the summer of 1946 (possibly), James and Matthew were two of the three Scouts who were taken by the then acting Scout Master Mr. Williams to a camp at Corfe Castle near Weymouth on the south coast. The following year, James and his brother returned with another Scout on the invitation of Mr. Williams to join a troop of English Sea Scouts led by Mr. Williams who were camping on the Isle of Wight. This cost each Scout the princely sum of £12. When the 70th troop stopped in late 1946 or early 1947, Matt transferred to the 59th with several other 70th Scouts. The move was ideal for Matt since the church backed on to the garden of number 32 Ardgowan Street. After a few months, DC J.J. Swan informed the 59th that Victor Clark would be restarting the 70th and that any ex 70th Scouts could transfer back if they wished. Matt, who was 15 or 16 by that time, opted to stay with the 59th out of loyalty to the 59th Scout Master David Graham. He became a PL and led a patrol to win the Drummond Vase. They were trained by a Mr. Allan who was a fireman and very enthusiastic about first aid. Mr. Allan came to be known as 'Fur to be' since he used the phrase in virtually every sentence. Matt was also in a 59th patrol that came second in the Shannon Cup.
Matt left school in 1950 and trained to be an architect at Dundee, qualifying in 1956. He then did his National Service with the Army Royal Engineers, before working as an architect in Glasgow where he rose to become chairman of the firm. In 1992, his firm merged with an English firm, and he remained as a consultant until he retired. Matt was also a Baillie and JP, as well as a Councillor with the Greenock Corporation for the 8th ward. He served for 12 years but stopped in 1975 after the re-organisation (or disorganisation as he calls it) of local government. As a result of councillors getting paid, meetings took place during the day and it proved impossible for councillors with full time jobs to attend.
In 2005, Matt attended the 150th anniversary celebrations for Greenock Academy.
At school, James was told by his teachers that he was not bright enough to study science. As a result, he was barred from going to university. He joined the RAF instead at the age of 18 and served for three years. During this period, he continued his studies and gained the necessary qualifications to get into university where he gained a first class honours degree and a PhD in Physics! He went on to teach at the University of Edinburgh and was a consultant in medical physics. Alan Jubber’s son worked with James at Heriot Watt University.
Nicol, W. Alan
William Alan Nicol was born in Gourock during 1928 and was in the same year as Alan Jubber at Greenock Academy. The Greenock Telegraph had several reports of him winning prizes during his time at school. In 1935, he was second in the egg and spoon race when he was in the junior 1 class, then went one better in 1936. That year he also won the 100 yards race, and came second in that event in 1938. In 1939, he won the 100 yards race again, and was second in the hurdles and three-legged race. In 1942, he won the 100 yards race again. On the academic side of things, he was second in his class in 1936, and third in 1937. In 1938, he won the Fraser Writing Prize and was second in English. In 1939, he was second in Arithmetic and English.
Alan’s father was Dr. John Nicol who was a GP in Gourock and may have lived opposite the swimming pool. However, Campbell Conn thought that he lived in Ardgowan Street, west of Campbell Street. During the war, Dr. Nicol was the medical officer at the Ardgowan Auxiliary Hospital, which was requisitioned from Sir Guy Shaw Stewart in September 1939 and dealt with war casualties. It came close to being bombed during the war.
Alan joined the troop on 13th March 1942 at the age of 13 or 14 along with Maurice Offord, and was placed in the Curlew patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL. The following week he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested the week after that. He took part on a day trip to Everton in March 1942, where he passed firelighting, and he was in the troop photo taken in April 1942. However, there are no other mentions of him and it is not known how long he stayed in the troop. After he left school, he qualified as a doctor and took over the practice in Gourock when his father retired. He may have moved at a later date to Ayr or to England.
Offord, Maurice
Maurice Offord was born in 1929 in Portsmouth, England. His father was an electrical engineer who worked for the Admiralty in Portsmouth and Hong Kong, before moving to Greenock to work at the torpedo factory as an Admiralty Electrical Inspector. The family lived at 5 Lyle Road up from Fort Matilda station. Maurice went to school in Gourock then Greenock Academy, and attended the Gourock Baptist church. He had an older brother called Roland who was in George Brown's class at Greenock Academy, but did not join the Scouts.
Maurice joined the troop on the 13th March 1942 at the age of 13 along with Alan Nicol, and a week later he passed his Tenderfoot and was presumably invested soon afterwards. It is not known which patrol he originally joined, but it is possible that he was in the Peewit Patrol with Stewart Tosh as his PL and Alan Jubber as his SPL.
Maurice is in the troop photo of April 1942 and can be seen wearing a school uniform. It may not have been easy to purchase Scout uniforms during the war and he had only been in the troop for a month at that point. Over the next two months, he passed a regular series of tests in compass, first aid, observation and semaphore. In November, he passed pioneering. Although one cannot be certain that he initially joined the Peewit Patrol, he was certainly in that patrol in January 1943. There are several references to him in the Peewit Patrol log and the last part of the Troop Log. In March 1943, he was 'used' as a victim for a first aid demo, then in April, he attended a hostel weekend in Edinburgh. At the end of May, he attended a rather wet Everton camp, but left on Sunday to go home for breakfast! Maurice was the scribe for the Peewit patrol log and this demonstrates that he attended regularly at troop nights. Curiously, Maurice always made a point of writing up the log entries in green ink. This seemed rather odd until Alan Jubber revealed that this was a deliberate policy of Maurice’s since it was one of the patrol colours. In May 1944, Maurice and Roy Farland attended the Salute the Soldier Parade, then in June he gained his artists badge. Later that same month, Maurice and Alan Jubber did a good turn before going to Scouts by helping to get a car out of a ditch. In October 1944, he taught James Caw signaling, then in November, the Peewit patrol tried out a mock trial with Maurice playing the 'clerk'. In December, he and Alan Jubber brought books and toys, which they had been making for the post war fund sale. In that same month, Maurice passed his First Class pioneering, implying that he had gained his Second Class Badge by that time. In February 1945, he was testing Ian Wallace on something or other, which is the only reference in the log of a Scout testing another Scout. That might also suggest that Maurice had gained promotion to PL by that time. In March 1945, Maurice and 'Arthur' went to see the new Chief Scout during his visit to Greenock on 1st March 1945.
The months of March and April were a frustrating time for the Peewit Patrol since the troop programme seemed to involve games and little else. Maurice comes across as somebody who was genuinely interested in Scouting and wanted to do Scouting activities. At one point, the Peewits opted to train on signalling rather than play games. Maurice was definitely present in the troop up to the 8th June 1945. However, personal testimonies indicate that he remained in the 70th beyond that date. Arthur Blake, Ian Wallace and Matt Neilson recalled that Maurice was a Patrol Leader, which must have been in 1945 when Alan Jubber left, so it seems likely that Maurice was one of the last PLs before the troop closed. Matt Neilson and Ian Wallace also recalled Maurice being their patrol leader, but Matt believed it was the woodpecker patrol (this may in fact be the woodpigeon patrol, although it is not impossible that the name was changed), whereas Ian thought it was the Peewits. This would make more sense, but it is also possible that the Peewit patrol was discontinued in the summer of 1945, since Tony Williams (the Scoutmaster) was proposing changes to the Patrols.
Maurice and Alan Jubber were particularly friendly with each other when they were in the Scouts. Robin McDougall was also friendly with Maurice both at school and Scouts, and described him as a super bloke. He remembered him as having a strong religious faith and running the Scripture Union Club at school. There are one or two references to Maurice in the Greenock Telegraphs of the era. In June 1946, Maurice played the part of a beggar in a drama production of Bernard Shaw’s 'Androcles and the Lion’ by the Greenock Academy drama club. He also won a prize for a poster during the war.
Maurice went on to become a quantity surveyor with Fyffe, Gerrard and Paton. In 1959, he was planning to go to the Belgian Congo as a missionary and spent a year in Belgium learning French, but civil war broke out in the Congo and he could not go. He stayed in Greenock instead, married Doreen in 1960 and had six children. As well as his family duties and day-time job, he was the minister of Larkfield Church and was renowned for his pastoral care and preaching. Robin McDougall stated that a better living guy you could not imagine. Therefore, his relatively early death from liver disease when he was in his fifties was quite unexpected. Robin McDougall believed that this might have resulted from Maurice suffering jaundice as a teenager, leading to long term liver damage. If so, it was not picked up at the time, although there were some indications that all might not have been well. For example, Maurice was never keen on sports or hard physical exercise since he was easily tired. Despite that, he did a lot of cycling with his family when he was growing up, as well as a lot of hiking and hillwalking with his own children. He was also a good pianist and possessed a number of practical skills. For example, he did his own double glazing in the 1960s when few people had double glazing. He also found activities such as embroidery and marquetry very relaxing.
Parker (Lance Corporal)
A Lance Corporal Parker visited the troop on 14th February 1941. He had been a Scout Master before the war and was in Greenock on military duties. There is no other information about him.
Paterson, Johnson
Not much is known about Johnson Paterson and his background. He lived in Johnstone Street and was probably in the same class at Greenock Academy as George Brown, which would mean that he was born about 1927. Johnson joined the troop on the 11th October 1940 and was put into the Woodpigeon patrol with Jim Crawford as PL and George Brown as SPL. In September 1941, he was still in the Woodpigeons, this time with Alan MacFadyen as PL, and Sandy McKechnie as SPL. Johnson is only mentioned once in the troop log as taking part on a hike over the Right of Way in May 1942. It is not known how long he stayed in the troop, or what he achieved as a Scout.
George Brown was very friendly with Johnson and recalled going on on holiday to Carradale with him during the war. They had just got off the bus at Campbeltown and Johnson was taking a photo of George when the pair of them were suddenly 'landed upon' by large naval ratings, and taken to a guard room to account for themselves. Taking photos during the war was an offence!
Johnson caught TB about the time he left school. At that time, he was working with Rapidex who were a dry cleaners in West Blackhall Street and this may have had something to do with his TB, or at least contributed to it. He suffered recurring episodes of TB for years afterwards. There is no record of a Johnson Paterson born in Greenock in 1927, but an Alan Johnston Paterson was born in Greenock East during 1926 and died in 1955 at the age of 28. It has not been confirmed if this is the same person though.
Pearce, Edward
There is no background information regarding Edward Pearce, but it is almost certain that his family moved to Greenock during the war, especially as he had a pronounced English accent, which may have led to some mickey-taking. He was present in the troop photograph of 1942 and was wearing a different coloured shirt from the normal 70th shirt, implying that Edward had been a Scout in England. He joined the 70th troop on the 27th February 1942 and was invested the following month after gaining his Tenderfoot. It is not known which patrol he joined initially, but by the end of March he was in the newly recreated Fox patrol with John Menzies as PL and Alan Mackay as SPL.
In 1942, he took part in a hike over the Right of Way during April and a cycle trip to Duchal Castle and the Gryffe reservoirs in May, where he passed axemanship. He also passed observation in May and camped at Everton during July. The last reference to him shows that he was at a hostel weekend in Edinburgh during April 1943. Since the Troop Log finishes at that point, it is not known when he left the troop or what else he did, but he must still have been in the troop during 1944 since Matt Neilson remembered him. Matt also believed that he might have been a PL. It is not known what happened to Edward after the war.
Phillips, Eric F.
Eric Frederick Phillips was the only son of Frederick and Rachel Phillips, and was born on the 9th June 1928 at 27 or 29 Esplanade. Eric’s father worked for sugar associates who were responsible for the unloading of sugar cargos and sending the cargoes on to the refineries. Eric attended Greenock Academy and was in the same class as Avril Henderson. Eric was quite artistic when he was in school and sat in the art class beside Avril. He may also have been in the same class as Andrew MacMillan and Ian Conn. By the time he joined Scouts, he was living at 130 Newton Street.
Eric was a Wolf Cub in the 1937 group photo, and would have been aged 9 at that time. Like many of the Wolf Cubs in that photo, it appears that he may not have been able to get into the troop when he turned 10 or 11,
since the troop was probably full. It is not actually specified when Eric joined the troop, but a likely date is at some point during September 1942, since he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested in October of that year. This would have meant that he joined at the age of 14. Eric was quite sure that he moved directly from the Cubs to the Scouts, which implies that the Wolf Cub pack held on to their boys until they were 12 or 13. Over the next seven months, he passed compass, pioneering, first aid, and observation. He also attended a hostelling weekend in Edinburgh during April 1943. The last mention of him in the troop log states that he spent a Saturday in May 1943 scraping and painting all the metal parts of the trek cart, helped by Hugh Campbell. Since the troop log stops at that point, there is no record of what else Eric did in the troop or when he left. Eric himself recalled gaining his Second Class Badge but not his First Class Badge. He also gained proficiency badges including first aid and the cyclists. There was also an occasion when he had to cross on the ferry to Dunoon in order to get assessed for rowing for another proficiency badge. Eric was promoted to PL of the Curlew, possibly in 1943, and it is likely that he left the troop in 1945 when he was 17.
Eric remembered camping at Everton although camping was a bit restricted because of the war. One of his strongest memories was having to haul that 'damn trek cart' to Everton. This involved pulling it from the Scout hall to Upper Greenock Station which is near Westburn. En route, there were two narrow gates to negotiate, which meant having to unload the cart and dismantle it of its wheels so that it could be passed through the gates side on. Then, of course, it had to be reassembled. The train took them to Inverkip, then they had to haul the cart up the hill to the campsite. Despite the hard work involved, Eric said it was part of the fun and challenge of going camping.
There were a lot of cycling trips in the troop when Eric was a Scout. The longest trip he recalls took place at some point between 1943-45, and involved catching the steamer over to Dunoon and cycling along the Holy Loch to Sandbank, up the side of Loch Eck and on from there to St. Catherines' at Loch Fyne. They had to cycle all the way there and back again on the same day.
After school, Eric went into the army to do his National Service with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, and then the Royal Artillery where he reached the rank of Captain. He spent all of his National Service in the UK and did not serve abroad. After two years in the services, he returned to Greenock and was taken on as an apprentice at a firm of architects called Stuart, Tuff and Alexander, working there during the day and travelling up to Glasgow School of Art in the evenings for his studies. He may also have had one full day off for study as well. The firm's name was eventually changed to Crawford and Neil and he worked there as an assistant. When he qualified as an architect, he remained as a qualified assistant and eventually became a partner in the firm along with Mr. McCready of Brisbane Street. He worked into the 1990s and before he retired.
Eric lived in a small terrace behind the ENT hospital, before moving to Newton Street. Eventually, he moved to Alt-na-Craig just along from the house he grew up in. His son Guy also became a 70th Scout.
'Pooh'
The scribe of the Peewit Patrol log wrote that somebody called 'Pooh’ brought a naval officer to charge of the troop meeting on the 5th March 1943. This is the only time this nickname is used and so it is not known to whom it referred. Presumably, it was a Rover Scout who was helping out at the troop. On the other hand, 'Pooh' might have been a nickname for one of the Scouts who happened to know the naval officer concerned.
Pryce, Paul
Paul Pryce was in the same year as Alan Jubber at Greenock Academy, which suggests that he was born in 1928. There is no other background knowledge about him. In the troop photo of April 1942, he appeared to be wearing a different coloured Scout shirt from the normal 70th shirt, implying that he was one of the Scouts that moved up from England with his family during the war. Paul joined the troop on the 20th March 1942 at the age of 13 or 14 along with Andrew MacMillan, Campbell Conn and Ian Conn, and was put into the Curlew Patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL. He was invested the following week, which again suggests that he was already a Scout. Later in the month, he was on a troop outing to Everton where he passed firelighting. At the
end of April, he took part in a cycle trip to Glen Masson, and in March 1943, he was on a hike to Everton. Unfortunately, there is no further information. It is not known how long he remained in the troop or what he did after leaving the troop.
Reid, Colin (also spelt Collin in the log books)
Nothing is known regarding Colin Reid's background. A Colin Guthrie Reid was born in locally in 1930 and this might be the same person. Colin joined on 18th October 1940 along with Johnson Paterson, Neil McGill, Alexander McKechnie and Alasdair MacLaine, and was placed in the Woodpigeon patrol with Jim Crawford as PL and George Brown as SPL. He had to leave on 6th December 1940, since he was moving house, but he rejoined in April 1941 and took part on a troop visit to Everton. He passed his Tenderfoot tests at the beginning of May 1941 and in July, he took part on a cycle trip to the Wemyss Bay area, where he passed Second Class axemanship and firelighting. At a weekend camp in August 1941, his knife fell into the porridge dixie and the plastic handle melted, making the
Robertson, Neil
porridge inedible. He was still in the Woodpigeon patrol in September 1941, this time with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Sandy MacKechnie as SPL. He passed Scouts pace in October, and was at the troop's annual party in January 1942. In February, he passed Second Class morse. On the 13th February 1942, he was still in the Woodpigeon patrol with Robin MacDougall as PL and Jim Morton as SPL. The last reference to him is attending a weekend camp at Everton during July 1942. It is not known when he left the troop or what happened to him afterwards.
Neil Robertson was in the same year as Alan Jubber at Greenock Academy, which suggests that he was born in 1928. There is no other background information on him and there are no records of him being born in Greenock or Renfrewshire, so his family may have moved into the town during the war.
Neil joined the troop on the 27th December 1940 at the age of 12, and gained his Tenderfoot in January 1941. He also passed his compass work that month, then, in February, he was on a Right of Way Hike where he passed firelighting. The next month he was on a troop outing to Everton. It is not known which patrol he joined originally, but in September 1941, he was in the Wolf Patrol with Robin MacDougall as PL and Ronald Herbert as SPL. There are several references to him in the troop log during 1942 and 1943, which suggest that he was an enthusiastic
Scout. He was present at the troop's annual party in January 1942, then in February 1942, he was transferred to the Woodpigeon patrol with Robin MacDougall as PL and Jim Morton as SPL. In March, he was on a troop outing to Everton, where he passed cooking, and he is present in the troop photo of April 1942. Also in April, he participated on a cycle trip to Glen Masson. In May, he passed tests on pioneering and signalling, and completed his Second Class Badge. He also gained his cyclists proficiency badge. The troop log is less detailed after the summer and the next mention is of him taking part on a hike to Everton during April 1943, then the hostelling weekend to Edinburgh at the end of the month. In May, he took part on a Right of Way hike, then attended a weekend camp at Everton for a day. It is not known how long he stayed in the troop or what he did after leaving school, but it is believed that he settled in Arran.
Scullion/Scullian, Ian
Ian Scullion was another of the temporary helpers who appeared briefly at the troop as an assistant. He was an airman and so may have been connected with the seaplane base at the Battery Park. He helped out at the troop between 29th May and 19th June 1942.
Smith, J. Nicol - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Smith, Rodney
There is virtually no information regarding Rodney Smith, other than his family moved up to Greenock from Portsmouth during the war, possibly to work at the torpedo factory. He joined on the 15th May 1942 and passed Tenderfoot tests during June. After that, there is no other reference to him and it is not known how long he stayed or what he did when he left.
Smyth, William (Bill)
along with Fraser Miller and Gordon Graham. He was put into the Curlew Patrol with Alan MacFadyen as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL.
In April 1942, he took part in a hike over the Right of Way, then a cycle trip to Glen Masson. In May, he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested. At the end of the month, he took part on a cycle trip to Duchal Castle and Gryffe reservoirs, where he passed axemanship. He also passed observation at the last troop meeting of the month. In November 1942, he passed pioneering, and was present on a hostel weekend in Edinburgh during April 1943. Since the Troop Log finishes at that point, it is not known when he left the troop, but Bill felt that it was in 1945. He had no recollection of being promoted to SPL or PL. Bill was particularly friendly with Ian Conn and Andrew MacMillan and continued to keep in touch with them after he left Scouts.
He left school in 1947 and spent a couple of years doing National Service before training as an accountant in Glasgow with a firm called Moores, Carson and Watson. This meant working for five years as an apprentice audit clerk while sitting a series of four professional examinations. He worked for 2-3 years with the John Mitchell Garage in Greenock, then moved to Polemount in 1961 to join BP chemicals. He remained in Polemount once he retired.
Bill Smyth was born in 1929 in Greenock, and was in the same year as Alan Jubber at Greenock Academy. The Greenock Telegraph reports that he was second in Art in 1939 when he was in the senior 1 class. Bill’s father (Andrew) was a commercial manager at the Ardgowan Distillery, which distilled Pure British Spirit (ethanol) for industrial purposes. The distillery was at the top of Baker Street and went up during the blitz along with the sugar refinery. Bill was an only child and lived at 128 Newton Street opposite McCauleys field and next door to Eric Phillips.
Bill appeared as a Wolf Cub in the 1937 group photograph and as a Scout in the Troop photo of April 1942 where he was wearing school uniform. Like many of the Wolf Cubs who appeared in the 1937 photo, it was a long time before he joined the troop and he must have been at least 13 when he joined on the 27th March 1942
Steel, Eoin - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Steel, Hamish - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Stewart, Reverend - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Taylor, Norman
There is not much background information on Norman Taylor, but it is known that his family moved up from Portsmouth during the war. This suggests that his father was employed at the torpedo factory or some other war industry based in Greenock. Norman was already a Scout having been a member of the 36th Portsmouth troop. He joined the troop on the 21st June 1941 along with his brother Roy. It is not known which patrol he joined initially, but in September 1941, he was a member of the Curlew Patrol with John Menzies as PL and Andrew Webster as SPL. He passed his Tenderfoot and was invested in October 1941. There are no other references to him and he may have left the troop before the end of the year, since he is not on the roll for February 1942. No other information is known about him.
Taylor, Roy
Roy Taylor was Norman Taylor's brother (see above) and joined the troop on the same date (21st June 1941). There is no mention of him after that date and he must have left soon after, since he was not on the roll for September 1941.
Tosh, Jim - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Tosh, Norman
Norman Tosh was the youngest of three brothers and lived at Fort Matilda Place. He was born Norman Neil Tosh in 1932 in Port Glasgow, where his father (Neil) owned a family butchers. His older brothers were Jim and Stuart, who both joined the Scouts and are present in the 1937 group photo. Norman was in the Wolf Cubs and joined the Scouts on the 12th March 1943 along with Hugh Campbell. In April 1943, he passed some Tenderfoot tests and was invested in May 1943. He was still in the troop during June 1943. However, he was a keen gymnast in the Greenock Academy gymnastics team and he eventually left the Scouts to join the 1st Greenock BB, since they did gymnastics. It is not known when exactly this was but it was probably during the summer of 1943 as there is no mention of him in the Peewit Patrol Log for the 1943-44 session. Norman apparently hero-worshipped his eldest brother Jim and was very proud that he was in the army. He even memorised Jim's identity number (144966224). It is not known what Norman did after leaving school.
Tosh, Stewart
Duncan Stewart Tosh was born in Port Glasgow in 1928 and had an older brother (Jim) and a younger brother (Norman) who were both members of the 70th. Stewart was a Wolf Cub in the 1937 group photo and joined the troop on 12th September 1941 at the age of 12 or 13, along with Alan Jubber, John Ellis, Roy Farling and James MacIntyre. He was placed in the Wolf patrol with Robin McDougall as PL and Ronald Herbert as SPL. In October, he passed various Tenderfoot tests and was invested. He is mentioned as being present at the troop's annual party in January 1942. Presumably, he had a musical talent because he is reported to have played the piano at a campfire later that month. On 13th February 1942, he was promoted to Patrol Leader of the new Peewit patrol with Alan Jubber as his
SPL. In March, he passed Second Class firelighting, axemanship, signalling, and compass. He also attended a day's hike to Everton, where he passed cooking. In May, he continued the Scouting trail and passed first aid and pioneering, thus gaining his Second Class Badge. In June, he was at a weekend camp at Everton camp in charge of the Peewit patrol, and passed his First Class swimming. The log becomes less detailed after the summer, but in December, he and Alan Jubber read lessons at the Scout Christmas service at Finnart Church.
Stewart left the troop on the 15th January 1943, although he dropped in at a meeting on 9th April 1943. At the age of 15, he joined a navy training ship called HMS Conway in the Menai Straits in Wales. From there, he went into the merchant navy and joined the Clan line as a cadet officer. He rose through the ranks until he became master of a Canadian cable ship called the John Cabot, and remained master until he retired in the 1980s to live in Beckshill on Sea.
It is said that he was red haired and fiery tempered when he was in Scouts. He and Andrew Webster were the best of friends when they weren't fighting, which was fairly frequently. On one occasion, they battled on the roof of the church hall. They would frequently refer to each other as 'THAT Stewart Tosh' or 'THAT Andrew Webster' Stewart’s elder brother Jim was a much more placid character in comparison.
Treadwell, Anthony (Tony)
Not much is known about Anthony Treadwell, although he was in Avril Brown's class at Greenock Academy. His father was in the navy and came up from Portsmouth to Greenock during the war, presumably to work at the torpedo factory or the shipbuilding industry. Later, Tony and his mother moved up as well.
It is not known precisely when Tony joined the troop, but it is likely to have been September 1942 since he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested in October 1942, along with Eric Philips. Later that month, he passed his mapping and next month he passed pioneering. It is not known which patrol he joined originally, but at the start of January 1943, he was a member of the Peewit Patrol. In February, he passed his first aid.
He also took part in a couple of outdoor activities leading up to the summer of 1943, namely a hike to Everton in
April, and a very wet Everton camp in May (although he went home on Sunday morning for breakfast). In September 1943, he took part in a wide game where the objective was to find a nugget in the Gourock woods and bring it back to the hall. The only successful Scouts were Tony and Robin MacDougall. In April 1944, he passed First Class mapping which implies that he had passed his Second Class Badge by that time. In June, he passed his First Class estimation. Tony left the troop on the 11th October 1944 because he was moving back to Portsmouth. Nothing else is known about him or what he did after the war.
Vaughan, Mr. T.
On the 4th October 1944, Mr. Vaughan appeared at the troop for the first time and proceeded to run most of the meetings until 19th January 1945. He must have been a Rover, ASM or SM and it is reported that he previously belonged to the 1st Throckly Scout Group, Northumberland. He brought along a Mr. Maloy to help out. Mr. Vaughan appeared to be quite knowledgeable in Scouting skills. After a session on mapping, the scribe for the Peewit Patrol log stated 'We felt we had learned something afterwards'. Unfortunately, nothing else is known about Mr. Vaughan, not even his Christian name. He did not remain with the troop for very long and the District records of January 1945 state that he had come from another part of the country and had left the District that month. It is likely that he was a serviceman who was stationed in Greenock during the war, then transferred. The District records also reveal that he had been helping out with local Scouting for some time and had done a lot of good work, so it is possible that he helped out at other Greenock Troops before working with the 70th. Minutes from District Scouter Council records reveal that a Mr. Vaughan was to meet Scouts coming off the train at Inverkip for a Wide Game during Scout Week in October 1944. It also appears that he was on the editorial team for the District's Scout magazine called ‘The Woodsmoke’, which started in late 1944. Alan Jubber remembered getting on well with him.
Veitch, James
Ian Wallace and Matt Neilson both recalled James Veitch as a 70th Scout when they were members, in which case he was one of the few Scouts to have been in the 70th Troop during both the Wilson Hill and Victor Clerk eras. He was certainly a member of the troop in 1949 and is present in a troop photograph of that year. Ian had a strong memory of James jumping fully clothed into the swimming pool at Everton in order to get away from clouds of midges. It probably made little difference as it was pouring with rain at the time. It is thought that James might have lived in Forsyth Street near Wilson Hill. Unfortunately, little else has been found out about his Scouting career or what he did when he left the Scouts.
Wallace, Ian (Ginger and Sausie)
Ian W. K. K. Wallace was born in Greenock on the 14th August 1933 as the youngest son of William and Elizabeth Wallace. His father was a primary school teacher who taught at Glebe school, then Chapeltown school in Port Glasgow, before becoming headmaster of Kilbarchan primary school. The family lived in Inverkip Road. However, by the time Ian joined the troop, they had moved to 90 Forsyth Street.
Ian initially joined the Trinity Wolf Cubs, but soon left to join the Lifeboys at the Church in Patrick Street (now used as a carpet store) as he was hoping to play football there - a game which was frowned upon at Greenock Academy. However, he did not stay long when he learnt that he would have to wait until he was in the BB before playing football. In the end, he achieved an outlet for his football talents with a local junior team and street team called the 'South Street Strollers' which played at MacAuleys field. He recalls being in a team organised by a Rangers player called Joe Johnston. Apparently a lot of the teams they played professed fear and trepidation before playing Ian and his Greenock Academy team mates since Greenock Academy pupils were known to be tough rugby players. However, Ian’s team was regularly trounced and Ian described their many defeats as character building!
Ian was 10.5 when he joined the Peewit patrol in May 1944 with Alan Jubber as his PL and Roy Farling as Second. He passed his tenderfoot badge at Wilson Hill's house that month, then passed his pioneering at the start of June. The next mention of him in the patrol log is taking part in a mock trial during November 1944, where he took on the role of a jury member. In February 1945, he passed Kim's game and compass. He may also have got his Second Class Badge at this stage, but Ian had no recollection of it. There was not a lot of camping at the time Ian was in the troop, but he did recall two miserable camps in terms of the weather and the midges - one near Loch Thom and one at Everton. Those experiences put the Scouts concerned off camping for good. Better experiences were the frequent visits to HMS Pretoria which was berthed in the Clyde. Several of the crew on board were involved in training the 70th Scouts in skills such as knots and signalling. Indeed, Ian recalled passing the signallers badge with ease as a result of this training. He also gained his first aid badge but could not recall what other badges he gained.
It is believed that Ian remained with the 70th until it amalgamated with the 59th, then rejoined the 70th when it was restarted by Victor Clark. However, he left the troop not long afterwards, suggesting that he may have left the troop in 1947 or 1948 at the age of 13 or 14. Ian believed that he may have become PL of the Peewit patrol once Maurice Offord left the troop. Ian's nickname in 1944 was ‘Ginger’ due to the colour of his hair, but he became better known as ‘Sausie’, since there was a well known brand of Wallace's sausages which was probably a staple diet for Scouting activities.
Ian was a pupil of Greenock Academy from 1938 to 1950 in the same year as Arthur Blake, Lamont MacKay and Norman Tosh. He was one of the youngest boys in his year and much the same age as John Slater (a 70th Scout in the late 1940s) who was in the year below. Another boy who was in the same year as Ian was a personality who was to have a big impact in the regenerated Troop under Victor Clark, and that was Brian Hodgson who eventually became Scout Master.
On leaving school, Ian took up an apprenticeship as a surveyor at Fyfe, Gerard and Paton. He qualified in 1956 and was then called up to do his National Service with the RAF. Despite applying for all kinds of exotic posts abroad, he ended up being posted to Cambridge! By contrast, a pal of his was desperate to stay in the UK, but ended up being posted to some far off part of the world in the Indian Ocean. It appears that the forces took some perverse pride in posting you to the place where you least wished to go. Although Ian was classed as a flying officer, he never learnt to fly. Instead, he was seconded as a surveyor to the air ministry, and was stationed at squadron 5003, which was concerned with building and civil engineering projects related to airfields. Ian was one of the last people to serve a two year stint of National Service, since the period was reduced to 18 months not long after he left. Ian recalled running a drill session for the 70th Wolf Cubs when he was on leave - an event which seemed to leave some boys rather traumatised!
Once Ian finished his National Service in 1958, he returned to Fyffe, Gerrard and Paton and became a partner, soon to be joined by Maurice Offord. In 1988, he left Fyffe, Gerrard and Paton to set up on his own and worked mainly for a Glasgow engineering firm before finally retiring in late 1992 or early 1993.
Webster, Andrew A. (Webfoot)
Andrew Archibald Webster was born in Greenock about 1929 and lived in Newton Terrace when he was at school. His father (Jimmy) owned a garage that was at the corner of Union St and Forsyth Street. Before the war, the garage specialised in servicing Daimlers and Rolls Royces. Andrew's grandfather owned the garage before that and was reputed to be the only person in Scotland to own a Rolls Royce ambulance, which he would hire out.
Andrew attended Greenock Academy and is mentioned in the Greenock Telegraph as winning prizes at the school’s sports days. In 1935, he was second in the 100 yards race in primary 1. In 1937, he was first in the 100 yards race and the egg and spoon race, and second in the cycle race. In 1938, he was third in the 100 yards, and in 1939 he was second in the sack race.
Andrew was a Wolf Cub in September 1937 and joined the Scouts on the 27th September 1940 along with Fraser Macleod. The following month, he passed his Tenderfoot and was invested. It is not known which patrol he joined initially, but he was in the Wolf patrol at the start of November 1940 with Ian Mitchell as PL and Alan MacFadyen as SPL. In September 1941, he was promoted to SPL of the Curlew Patrol with John Menzies as his PL. At the beginning of February 1942, he joined the Curlew Patrol, which was made up of former PLs, SPLs and older Scouts. Alan MacFadyen was PL with John Menzies as SPL, but presumably Andrew retained his rank. Whether he did or not, he was SPL of the Curlew by the end of March with the departure of John Menzies.
On the badge front, he passed his compass test in November 1940, then pioneering in March 1941. Later that month, he took part in a Right of Way Hike where he passed firelighting. This was followed by an outing to Everton where he passed axemanship. In July, he took part on a cycle trip to a wood near Inverkip where he passed cooking and axemanship. In October 1941, he passed Kim's game and morse code, then passed his first aid in March 1942 to finally gain his Second Class Badge. In August, he was at a camp at Everton and passed his First Class swimming test. In May 1943, he passed his cooking at a rather wet camp at Everton. Andrew is in the troop photo taken in April 1942.
Andrew comes across as an enthusiastic Scout. As well as the activities mentioned above, he attended a weekend camp to Everton in August 1941, then joined A. Mackay, A. Maclaine and Wilson Hill at Everton during October 1941 to dismantle the trek cart and stow it at Everton farm. He was at the annual troop party in January 1942 and won a prize for being the best at Kim's game. His prize was a Scouting book called 'First Class Tests and How to Pass Them'. In April, he cycled with Alan MacKay to the Right of Way to meet other Scouts who were hiking the route. He was also on a cycle trip to Glen Masson and another cycle trip to Duchal Castle and the Gryffe reservoirs, so it is not too surprising that he gained his cyclists badge in May. The troop log becomes less detailed after the summer, but it is reported by Mr. Chalmers that games at a troop night in November were taken by the 'self appointed acting PL Andrew Webster'. What they played, Mr. Chalmers does not know but they were unusually quiet! In December, Andrew took part in the Christmas parade to Finnart Church despite suffering from a cracked tibia. In April 1943, Andrew and Austin Craigie took part in a District Gang Show held in Lady Alice School hall - the only record of 70th Scouts taking part in this activity during the thirties or forties. Also in April, he took part on a hostelling weekend to Spylaw Scout Hostel, Colinton, Edinburgh, then in May he was at a rather wet Everton camp as a day tripper. Unfortunately, the troop log ends in the summer of 1943, and so no further information is available. It is not known when Andrew left the troop or whether he was promoted to PL.
After leaving school, Andrew was called up in 1947 for the REME and was attached to the parachute regiment. He served in the south of England until he was demobbed in 1949. He then did an apprenticeship in motor engineering, after which he joined Davy United who made sugar manufacturing equipment in Glasgow. From there, he joined British Oil and Cape Mills in Renfrew, then in Greenock. In 1960, he entered the family business of Webster Motors. Unfortunately, the garage had to close following the collapse of British Leyland and Andrew retired. He was at the group's 1992 reunion and met up with various ex Scouts from the era such as Jim Crawford, Bill Smyth, Jim Tosh, Robin McDougall and Neil McDougall. He stayed in Newark Street.
There are several personal memories of Andrew as a Scout and it is clear that he was considered 'lively'! He and Stuart Tosh were very friendly when they weren't fighting with each other, which was fairly often if truth be told. On one occasion, they even battled on the roof of the church hall. They would frequently refer to each other as 'THAT Stuart Tosh' or 'THAT Andrew Webster'.
George Brown has a rueful memory of Andrew. At one of the Everton weekend camps, George received a rocket from an inspecting DC because Andrew had failed to clean a porridge dixie properly. Memories linger on! According to George, Andrew was given the nickname ‘webfoot’ although he did not explain why. Bill Smyth remembered Andrew as being good fun in Scouts and a bit ‘harum scarum’.
After he left school, Andrew married and had a daughter (Shiena) who married Gordon McTavish (Haggis) - another 70th Scout. His Grandsons Andrew, Stuart and Jamie also 'served' in the 70th Scouts.
Williams, Lieutenant Anthony
On the 4th May 1945, Wilson Hill brought along a naval officer called Lieutenant Anthony Williams RNVS to run the troop. This was in response to a letter which Tony had written to the acting DC J.J. Swan offering his services along with some of his fellow Scouters serving on the Pretoria Castle to help with any short handed groups while they were in port. He got to know the Scouts, gave some instruction, then he spun several yarns. His arrival was timely since the previous two months appeared to lack direction with only games being played at troop nights. The Peewit patrol log mentions that plans were being made at the beginning of June 1945 on how the troop would move forward. Matt Neilson was able to provide further information. Tony Williams had been a leader in England before the war and was in his twenties. He ran the troop from 1945 for at least a year, which implies that it was still going well into 1946.
Tony served on a liner called HMS Pretoria Castle, which had been converted to an aircraft carrier and was berthed in the Clyde. It was used off Arran to practice landing and take offs for navy pilots. Matt remembered Tony as a very enthusiastic leader, especially when it came to water activities. Indeed, he became the Scoutmaster of a Sea Scout troop when he returned to Banstead, Surrey after the war. Matt thought that he may have returned south in late 1946 or early 1947. In the summer of 1946 (possibly) Tony Williams took three Scouts to a camp at Corfe Castle near Weymouth, then repeated the invitation the following year. As a result, three 70th Scouts joined his Sea Scout troop camping on the Isle of Wight. It is not known what Tony Williams did after 1947, but it is possible that he may have had a family business in Banstead.
Tony's full name is likely to have been Anthony John Williams, who is recorded as becoming Scout Master of the 6th Banstead Scout group on the 15th March 1946. He remained as Scout Master until 17th April 1947.
Williamson, Donald
Donald Williamson joined on the 1st May 1942. During June, he was doing Tenderfoot tests and he was invested in July 1942. There is no other reference to him and it is not known whether he stayed in the troop or not. There is no background information on him either. There was a Donald Williamson who was a Latin teacher at Greenock Academy, and a Venture Scout Leader of the Cloch Unit during the late sixties. It might be the same person, but there is no clear evidence for this. No Donald Williamson was born in Greenock or Gourock during the relevant time period and so his family must have moved into the area.
Woodward, Dennis - click here for Scouts and Leaders (1930s).
Young, John
There is only one reference to John Young and that is of him dismissing the troop on the 23rd March 1945. There are various mentions of a 'John' prior to this, but it is not known for certain whether it is the same person. Robin MacDougall remembered a John Young who was in the same year as him in school, but did not recall him being in the Scouts. Nevertheless, he may well have helped out. He lived up the lane opposite St. Paul’s Church. District records state that an application for an ASM's warrant for the 70th was approved for a William J. C. Young in August 1943. The John in the Peewit Log had a reputation for running endless games and was mentioned on several occasions between January 1944 and March 1945.