RYAN, John Michael Francis
| Service Number: | 2490 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 2 May 1916, Bundaberg, Queensland |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 47th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Broadwater, New South Wales, Australia, 30 August 1884 |
| Home Town: | Apple Tree Creek, Bundaberg, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Mill Overseer |
| Died: | Natural causes, Rozelle Psychiatric Hospital, New South Wales, Australia, 22 June 1974, aged 89 years |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Apple Tree Creek War Memorial (Digger), Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, Bundaberg Fairymead Sugar Company WW1 Honour Roll, Childers C.S.R. Co`s Childers Mill Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 2 May 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2490, Bundaberg, Queensland | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Sep 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2490, 49th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Seang Choon embarkation_ship_number: A49 public_note: '' | |
| 19 Sep 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 2490, 49th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Seang Choon, Brisbane | |
| 23 Mar 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 47th Infantry Battalion | |
| 24 May 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 47th Infantry Battalion | |
| 19 Jun 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 47th Infantry Battalion | |
| 23 Jun 1917: | Honoured Military Medal, Battle of Messines, "For devotion to duty and gallantry under fire during attack and capture of the final objective..." | |
| 22 Aug 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant, 47th Infantry Battalion | |
| 12 Oct 1917: | Wounded Sergeant, 2490, 47th Infantry Battalion, 1st Passchendaele, GSW (right jaw and face) | |
| 16 Oct 1917: | Honoured Military Medal and bar, 1st Passchendaele, "..this N.C.O took charge of his Company when all Officers became casualties...he quickly grasped the situation placing his men cleverly...walking along his front cheering his men and dressing wounded, although severely wounded.." | |
| 9 Mar 1918: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 2490, 47th Infantry Battalion, German Spring Offensive 1918 | |
| 5 Apr 1918: | Imprisoned Dernancourt/Ancre, Sgt. J. M. Ryan was captured and now in German hands. He was transferred to Germany and interned in Meschede and Giessen POW Camp | |
| 17 Mar 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Sergeant, 2490, 47th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour John Michael Francis Ryan's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Paul Trevor
Sgt. John M. F. Ryan's brother-in-law was 1735 Pte. Percy William Page (/explore/people/296841) who died of wounds during the Battle of Pozieres on the 5th August 1916 and is buried at the Wimereux Communal Cemetery.
Awarded the Military Medal (www.awm.gov.au)
"For devotion to duty and gallantry under heavy fire during attack and capture of the final objective East of MESSINES Ridge on June 7th. to 11th. 1917. He handled his section admirably throughout the attack, inspiring them by a splendid example of fearlessness and maintaining them throughout the action as a fighting Unit. When the platoon Officer was wounded he carried him to a place of safety under heavy fire and returned to his Unit and did a great work in consolidating after Capture." Source:'Commonwealth Gazette' No. 219 Date: 20 December 1917
Awarded Bar to the Military Medal (www.awm.gov.au)
"Near PASSCHENDAELE RIDGE, N.E. of Zonnebeke, on 12th October 1917 this N.C.O. took charge of his Company when all Officers became casualties under heavy Machine Gun. His Flanks were in the air and he quickly grasped the situation placing his men cleverly. He constantly walked along his front cheering his men and dressing wounded. Although severley wounded he would not leave his line until satisified the position was secure." Source: 'Commonwealth Gazette' No. 110 Date: 25 July 1918
Sergeant John Ryan was initially reported as Killed in Action on the 5 April 1918 and this message was relayed to his wife Ethel Ryan on the 25 April 1918. This information was later contradicted and family members notified when a self-dated Notification Card was received by the Red Cross informing of his capture.
Upon the end of the First World War Sgt. John M. Ryan was repatriated back to England. On the 11 December 1918 he was admitted to King George Hospital with a fistula to his face due to the earlier GSW he received at the Front.
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