MCKINSTRY, Christopher Michael
| Service Numbers: | 129, 24420 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 17 August 1914 |
| Last Rank: | Driver |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Divisional Ammunition Column |
| Born: | Jamieson, Victoria, Australia, September 1891 |
| Home Town: | Gaffneys Creek, Mansfield, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Shunter (Victorian Railways) |
| Died: | influenza and heart failure (war service related), Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 21 May 1919 |
| Cemetery: |
Coburg Pine Ridge Cemetery, Victoria, Australia Portion Roman Catholic, Plot F, Grave No. 870 F |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 17 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 129, 7th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 30 Mar 1916: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 129, 7th Infantry Battalion, 3rd MD, medically discharged | |
| 26 Apr 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Driver, 24420, 3rd Divisional Ammunition Column, 7th Battalion, 22 months (incl Gallipoli) | |
| 27 Jun 1916: | Involvement Driver, 24420, 3rd Divisional Ammunition Column, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '22' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Barambah embarkation_ship_number: A37 public_note: '' | |
| 27 Jun 1916: | Embarked Driver, 24420, 3rd Divisional Ammunition Column, HMAT Barambah, Melbourne | |
| 30 May 1918: | Discharged AIF WW1, Driver, 24420, 3rd Divisional Ammunition Column, 3rd MD, Medically discharged |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
From How We Served
129 & 24420 Private Christopher Michael McKinstry was employed by the Victorian Railways as a shunter and had been a resident of Gaffneys Creek, Victoria when he first enlisted for War Service on the 17th of August 1914.
Taken on strength with the original 7th Battalion, 1st AIF, Christopher embarked for training in Egypt on the 18th of October 1914 with the First Australian Contingent.
With his Battalion committed to the Dardanelles campaign Christopher would be with his Unit on the 25th of April 1915 where he would be amongst those who were present at the landing on Gallipoli.
Christopher was initially cited as 'Missing in Action' but instead he had been slightly wounded and was evacuated from the Peninsular for hospitalisation.
He rejoined his Unit in the trenches on the 18th of May and remained on Gallipoli before being evacuated on the 17th of July suffering shell shock and dysentery, which would see him hospitalised on Mudros Island following which Christopher was shipped back to Australia via Egypt on the 29th of August 1915 as an invalid.
Following his return to Australia Christopher was discharged from the 1st AIF deemed to be suffering from debility on the 30th of March 1916.
On the 26th of April 1916, following the first anniversary of the Gallipoli landing, Christopher re-enlisted for a second time and was again accepted for further overseas service, being allocated to reinforcements for the 3rd Divisional Ammunition Column, 1st AIF.
Christopher departed Australia bound for England on the 27th of June 1916 for further training and following this he was embarked for France arriving to join his new Unit on the 24th of November 1916.
Following his arrival his Unit was moved to Belgium where his health broke down again and he re-entered hospital on the 19th of May 1917 suffering mumps and debility.
By the 6th of July. Christopher had rejoined his Unit in the vicinity of Messines in Belgium and on the 24th of November 1917, Christopher was granted Leave Furlough to England for a brief respite from the trenches.
Whilst away from his Unit, Chritopher's health broke down due to illness, and after further time in hospital, where he would remain until he was deemed medically unfit for service, he was returned to Australia for a second time as an invalid on the 7th of February 1918.
Following his return to Australia on the 30th of May 1918 Christopher was formally discharged from the 1st AIF for his re-entry into civilian life.
Christopher's health worsened following his formal Discharge from the 1st AIF, and he finally succumbed to illness on the 21st of May 1919, at the age of 28 with his premature death being caused by influenza and heart failure. This would be documented as having been directly caused due to his War Service.
Driver Christopher McKinstry, a wounded survivor of the landing at Gallipoli, and who had re-enlisted for further War Service in France and Belgium would be afforded an Official War Grave following his being laid to rest within Coburg General Cemetery, Victoria.
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