JOHN SMITH
Regimental No. 2/2543
29 January 1893 - 6 October 1916
Two years after John and Helen (nee Black) SMITH married in 1891 they had their first child, a son, on 29th January 1893. His parents, with either remarkable lack of insight, or deliberate mischievousness, gave him the same first name as his father, and his mother’s maiden name as a second name, saddling him with the sobriquet John BLACK SMITH for the rest of his somewhat short life. His brother, born two years later was perhaps more fortunate, being called William Alexander. There appear to have been no further children of the union. The father was a warehouseman, and their mother was a “married” person, according to later Electoral Roll records.
The family lived in Roseneath, and the two boys attended Roseneath School. John won a scholarship and was able to attend Wellington College for two years before entering the service of the Union Steamship Company, as a clerk. By the outbreak of war the family was resident at 43 Maida Vale Road, on the slopes of Mt Victoria looking across the harbour entrance to Days Bay and Eastbourne. No. 43 is below the road, and appears to be a large property.
John signed up on 23 August 1915 at Trentham. His younger brother William had signed up already, on 19 April 1915, even though he was four months under the minimum age of 20. John was a small chap, only 5ft. 41/2 inches tall, unlike his brother who was 6 ft. tall. John’s medical record notes that he had a sallow complexion, brown hair and brown eyes. Prior to enlisting he was working as a Purser on the Monowai. Both boys stated their religion to be Presbyterian, and their residential address was noted as 43 Maida Vale Road.
John was given the regimental number 2/2543, and he was posted to the NZ Field Artillery as a Gunner. He embarked with the 8th Reinforcements, comprising the Willochra and the Tofua, on 13 November 1915. One week before Christmas they docked at Suez in Egypt, where John would have been able to catch up with William who had departed with the 5th Reinforcements on 13 July, and had arrived in Egypt in early August. The brothers were both in the Field Artillery.
After three months in Egypt John embarked for France on HMT Hungerford, leaving Alexandria on 8th April 1916. William had left for France three days earlier on the Minnewaska. The NZ Division spent the next three months on the front line around Armentieres where they learnt a great deal about trench warfare. By the time they were transferred to the Somme in August, to prepare for the major offensive planned for September, John appears to have been assigned to the Ammunition Column, which had the dangerous role of delivering ammunition to the front line troops, and seeing that they were always fully supplied with what they needed. They also had to collect the valuable empty brass cartridge cases plus any unused ammunition from where they had fallen after an Artillery unit had moved on. They were often in considerable danger when they moved ammunition forward to Brigade dumps and to the men fighting in the front line. (www.greatwarci.net/guernsey/9dac/9dac.pdf)
On 12 September the artillery started laying down a barrage, and on 15th September the NZ infantry went “over the top”.
“About 6,000 of them saw action that day, and although nothing went quite to plan, by nightfall the division had secured its immediate objectives and had helped take the village of Flers. It was an expensive victory, like so many in this war. Some 1200 men of the division were wounded or missing and about 600 were dead.” http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/battle-of-the-somme/new-zealands-somme-experience
During the next three weeks the NZ Division went into action again and again, getting the job done, but losses were high, conditions were terrible and sickness spread. In early October the NZ infantry started being withdrawn from the front line, leaving more than 2,000 dead men behind on the battlefields or in one of the many cemeteries throughout the area. The artillery remained, until they too were withdrawn from the line in the last week of October 1916, having suffered about 500 casualties.
Amongst those left behind was John Smith, shot in the leg - and penis - on 6th October. His wounds were un-survivable and he died the same day at the casualty clearing 37th field ambulance. He was buried at Dartmoor Cemetery, Becordel, which is about midway between the heavily contested towns of Albert and Fricourt. John is one of 59 New Zealanders buried in Dartmoor Cemetery.
William, who was also with the Field Artillery, and had some leadership qualities having been promoted from time to time and having been sent to the School of Instruction, continued his war service after his older brother died, fighting on until June 1917, when he too was wounded, with gunshot wounds to the hand and arm. His injuries were such that he was evacuated to England for medical treatment, and from there it was decided he would no longer be fit for service and he was returned to New Zealand in August 1917, and discharged in September. William died in Auckland in January 1973.
John’s death notice appeared in the Roll of Honour notices in the Evening Post on 17 October 1916. A small item describing his short life appeared in the same edition. John was still only 23 years old when he died, far too young to have left a significant mark of his existence on the world. The same item also noted the death of Gunner Bryan (sic) Goodbehere, another old boy of Wellington College, buried five plots along from John in Dartmoor Cemetery.
Regimental No. 2/2543
29 January 1893 - 6 October 1916
Two years after John and Helen (nee Black) SMITH married in 1891 they had their first child, a son, on 29th January 1893. His parents, with either remarkable lack of insight, or deliberate mischievousness, gave him the same first name as his father, and his mother’s maiden name as a second name, saddling him with the sobriquet John BLACK SMITH for the rest of his somewhat short life. His brother, born two years later was perhaps more fortunate, being called William Alexander. There appear to have been no further children of the union. The father was a warehouseman, and their mother was a “married” person, according to later Electoral Roll records.
The family lived in Roseneath, and the two boys attended Roseneath School. John won a scholarship and was able to attend Wellington College for two years before entering the service of the Union Steamship Company, as a clerk. By the outbreak of war the family was resident at 43 Maida Vale Road, on the slopes of Mt Victoria looking across the harbour entrance to Days Bay and Eastbourne. No. 43 is below the road, and appears to be a large property.
John signed up on 23 August 1915 at Trentham. His younger brother William had signed up already, on 19 April 1915, even though he was four months under the minimum age of 20. John was a small chap, only 5ft. 41/2 inches tall, unlike his brother who was 6 ft. tall. John’s medical record notes that he had a sallow complexion, brown hair and brown eyes. Prior to enlisting he was working as a Purser on the Monowai. Both boys stated their religion to be Presbyterian, and their residential address was noted as 43 Maida Vale Road.
John was given the regimental number 2/2543, and he was posted to the NZ Field Artillery as a Gunner. He embarked with the 8th Reinforcements, comprising the Willochra and the Tofua, on 13 November 1915. One week before Christmas they docked at Suez in Egypt, where John would have been able to catch up with William who had departed with the 5th Reinforcements on 13 July, and had arrived in Egypt in early August. The brothers were both in the Field Artillery.
After three months in Egypt John embarked for France on HMT Hungerford, leaving Alexandria on 8th April 1916. William had left for France three days earlier on the Minnewaska. The NZ Division spent the next three months on the front line around Armentieres where they learnt a great deal about trench warfare. By the time they were transferred to the Somme in August, to prepare for the major offensive planned for September, John appears to have been assigned to the Ammunition Column, which had the dangerous role of delivering ammunition to the front line troops, and seeing that they were always fully supplied with what they needed. They also had to collect the valuable empty brass cartridge cases plus any unused ammunition from where they had fallen after an Artillery unit had moved on. They were often in considerable danger when they moved ammunition forward to Brigade dumps and to the men fighting in the front line. (www.greatwarci.net/guernsey/9dac/9dac.pdf)
On 12 September the artillery started laying down a barrage, and on 15th September the NZ infantry went “over the top”.
“About 6,000 of them saw action that day, and although nothing went quite to plan, by nightfall the division had secured its immediate objectives and had helped take the village of Flers. It was an expensive victory, like so many in this war. Some 1200 men of the division were wounded or missing and about 600 were dead.” http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/battle-of-the-somme/new-zealands-somme-experience
During the next three weeks the NZ Division went into action again and again, getting the job done, but losses were high, conditions were terrible and sickness spread. In early October the NZ infantry started being withdrawn from the front line, leaving more than 2,000 dead men behind on the battlefields or in one of the many cemeteries throughout the area. The artillery remained, until they too were withdrawn from the line in the last week of October 1916, having suffered about 500 casualties.
Amongst those left behind was John Smith, shot in the leg - and penis - on 6th October. His wounds were un-survivable and he died the same day at the casualty clearing 37th field ambulance. He was buried at Dartmoor Cemetery, Becordel, which is about midway between the heavily contested towns of Albert and Fricourt. John is one of 59 New Zealanders buried in Dartmoor Cemetery.
William, who was also with the Field Artillery, and had some leadership qualities having been promoted from time to time and having been sent to the School of Instruction, continued his war service after his older brother died, fighting on until June 1917, when he too was wounded, with gunshot wounds to the hand and arm. His injuries were such that he was evacuated to England for medical treatment, and from there it was decided he would no longer be fit for service and he was returned to New Zealand in August 1917, and discharged in September. William died in Auckland in January 1973.
John’s death notice appeared in the Roll of Honour notices in the Evening Post on 17 October 1916. A small item describing his short life appeared in the same edition. John was still only 23 years old when he died, far too young to have left a significant mark of his existence on the world. The same item also noted the death of Gunner Bryan (sic) Goodbehere, another old boy of Wellington College, buried five plots along from John in Dartmoor Cemetery.