MCPHERSON, George
| Service Numbers: | 1528a, 6396 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 12 April 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 14th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Sunbury, Victoria, Australia, 1893 |
| Home Town: | Sunbury, Hume, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Bolinda State School, St Josephs, South Yarra |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 11 April 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Bolinda State School Honour Roll, Riddells Creek Riddell District Honour Roll Plaque, Romsey Soldiers Honor Roll, Sunbury War Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 12 Apr 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1528a | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 Nov 1915: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 1528a, 8th Light Horse Regiment, Discharged medically unfit. | |
| 1 Sep 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 6396, 14th Infantry Battalion | |
| 7 Sep 1916: | Involvement Private, 6396, 14th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '11' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Port Sydney embarkation_ship_number: A15 public_note: '' | |
| 7 Sep 1916: | Embarked Private, 6396, 14th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Port Sydney, Melbourne | |
| 11 Apr 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 6396, 14th Infantry Battalion, Bullecourt (First), Killed on this day. |
Help us honour George McPherson's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Ross Martin
George McPherson was born in Sunbury, Victoria and was working on the family farm at Lancefield Junction when he enlisted on 12/8/1915. He was 25 years old.
He started training with the 8th Light Horse at the Ascot Vale Camp, but was found to be suffering with varicose veins for which he declined an operation to remedy. He was discharged on 10/11/1915 as medically unfit.
He reenlisted on 1/9/1916 at Broadmeadows, was allotted to the 14th Battalion reinforcements and left Melbourne on 7/9/1916. He joined the 14th Battalion in France on 13/2/1917.
The Battalion went into battle at Bullecourt (Hindenberg Line) on 11/4/1917 and George was killed during the day. His body was never recovered and he is remembered on the Australian Memorial at Villers Bretonneux.
Biography contributed by Ross Martin
George's next of kin where his parents, Hughie and Elizabeth McPherson (nee Millett) of Lancefield Junction.
Elizabeth died on 10/12/1917 and is buried in Sunbury.
After the war and the death of his wife, Hughie moved th 33 Motherwell Street, Hawksburn.
Hughie died on 1/7/1926 and is also buried in Sunbury.
George had two sisters, Ethel May (born 1885) and Susan Helena (born 1888)
Biography contributed by Peter Sneddon
George McPherson was born in 1889 in Sunbury to Hugh McPherson and Elizabeth Millett (married in 1883). He was one of six children: Ethel Florence (b. 1884), Francis Hamilton (b. 1886), Christina (b. 1888), George (b. 1889) and Annie Flor (1891). George attended Bolinda School sometime between 1895 and 1898. George was working as a farmhand and living in Lancefield Junction when he enlisted in September 1916. He had previously served in the Home Service in 1915 but had been suffering from varicocele for several years which had been aggravated by military training. He was offered surgery but declined, and was therefore discharged as being medically unfit after 101 days.
Shortly after re-enlisting in 1916, George embarked for England aboard the “Port Sydney” and was later transferred to France to fight. Within six months of arriving overseas he was reported missing and was later found to have been killed in action on 11 April 1917. Regrettably, his last resting place could not be determined. To commemorate George’s service, his father received his medals and Memorial scroll, plaque and pamphlet.