Sleuthing readers of the Times & Citizen newspaper and Bedford Today have been doing their own investigations, following our story about Private Thomas Davey.

On December 7 we reported on metal detecting enthusiast Tim Chittock, who found a bronze First World War medal in a field in Diss, Norfolk.

The honour had been awarded to Pte Davey, who was a part of the Bedfordshire Regiment.

And readers have been doing their own research into Pte Davey's story.
Christopher Murphy told us: "Pte Davey was a member of the 1st Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment that had been stationed in Ireland before they embarked for France in early August 1914.

"The regiment was in 15th Infantry Brigade of 5th Division of 2nd Corps who formed the reserve Brigade near Mons during the opening battle of August 23, 1914. They were also near Givenchy in France in October 1914.

"Pte Davey was also entitled to two other medals, a 1914 Star Medal of which four million were issued, and a War Medal – 6.5 million medals issued.

"He was subsequently discharged, but my preliminary research does not give a date or reason."

Pte Davey's medal was inscribed 'The great war for civilisation 1914-1919' on one side, and '10126 Pte Davey' on the reverse.

Lee Bradbury told us: "The medal shown in the article is the Victory Medal; it was awarded to all service personnel who served in war zones and could only be awarded with, at least, the British War Medal.

"Except for gallantry awards, all First World War medals were issued in about 1921; this means that Pte Davey couldn't have been in Diss with that medal during the war, but he could have been there in the 1920s."

He added: "Another thing is that Pte Davey may not have finished the war in the Bedfordshire Regiment. The rank, number and regiment engraved on the medals only relate to the man when he arrived in the war zone; if he moved on into another regiment, that wouldn't show on a medal unless it was a gallantry award won when he was in his new regiment.

"Just because a man was in a particular regiment doesn't mean he came from that particular area. For instance, my grandfather was from Middlesex but ended up in the Royal East Kent Regiment; his future brothers-in-law lived next door to him, one ended up in the Royal Fusiliers (a London regiment) and the other in the 2nd Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment."

Bedfordian Gylla Bernard looked into the Davey family of Bedford.
She wrote: "There was a family of Daveys in Bedford. Stanley Herbert was born in March 1890, and Gertrude Evelyn was born in March 1885.

"Stanley Davey owned an antiques shop in St Peter's from at least 1943, which is now Russo's hairdressers. His son John worked in Beales, which used to be Braggins. He worked there all his working life.

"There was a Thomas Harold Davey born in Bedford March 1889 and married either Gertrude Matilda Childs or Anne Louise Goddard.

"I knew both Stanley and Gertrude Davey, she was Stanley's sister, they lived in the house next to the Park Hotel in Kimbolton Road. Gertrude Davey was very rich and left £350,000 to charity years ago."

But after carrying out some more research, Mrs Bellard told us: "Thomas Davey was not in Bedford in the 1891 census, nor the 1901 census.

"There was a Thomas Davey born about 1890 in East Dereham, Norfolk. I think it is more likely that he came from Norfolk."