A family history project reflecting the losses of a generation in the First World War is looking for help from Courier readers.
Scott Wishart was inspired to research the deeds of people who shared his surname after he dug into his own family’s history.
A conference on religious reformer George Wishart was held in Fife last year, drawing together dozens of strands of kinship across the world, and Mr Wishart hopes to add local family histories to the hundreds he has already found.
In an attempt to create a record of a surname at war, the photojournalist has spent four years writing the biographies of those who served overseas from 1914-19.
He said: “To date I have identified almost 460 individuals and have compiled details of more than half of them. Statistically around 25% of Wisharts from all corners of the British Commonwealth and the USA never returned.”
Mr Wishart, whose family originates from Kirkcaldy and Leith, is compiling details atwww.wishart1418.org and hopes to publish a hard copy when he has a more complete record.
“I am, of course, interested in anyone named Wishart who served in uniform, whether they were killed or survived the war,” he added.
“A very respectable number of the men came from the Tayside area.
“I would be especially keen to hear from anyone related to a George Greig Wishart, who has the unhappy distinction of being the first person of my surname to lose his life in World War One.
“George was originally from Arbroath and following the loss of his mother ended up on the wrong side of the law when his father had clearly become unable to look after his family.
“After several years in the Baldovan Industrial School, George enlisted in the military and went to France in August 1914 with some of the first units of the British Expeditionary Force, and saw action at the Battle of Mons.
“Of all the Wisharts I have researched, George is the only one not to be commemorated on any local war memorials, which I think is rather sad.”
Another entry in the Wishart history books is that of Burntisland man Andrew Wishart, who served as a piper with the 1st Battalion, The Black Watch, and gained fame across Europe after he piped his battalion into battle at Richebourg, and kept playing despite being riddled with bullets.
The project is part of the Great War Centenary Partnership Network and is archived by the British Library Web Archive as part of their war centenary collection.
Anyone who can help Mr Wishart can email mail@wishart1418.org or search for “wishartconnections” on Facebook.