GITTOES, Gordon Keith
| Service Numbers: | V325704, VX86359 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 20 February 1942 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | Not yet discovered |
| Born: | West Wyalong, New South Wales, Australia, 9 January 1924 |
| Home Town: | Canberra, Australian Capital Territory |
| Schooling: | Canberra Grammar School, Australian Capital Territory |
| Occupation: | Junior Bank Clerk |
| Died: | Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia , 26 December 2014, aged 90 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Woden (Canberra) Public Cemetery, ACT |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 20 Feb 1942: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, V325704 | |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Aug 1942: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, V325704 | |
| 6 Aug 1942: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, VX86359 | |
| 12 Apr 1945: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, VX86359, embarked Cairns for Morotai on board the Sea Barb | |
| 18 Mar 1946: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, VX86359, embarked Labuan for Sydney | |
| 21 Jun 1946: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, VX86359 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
Private Gordon Keith Gittoes (Service Nos:V325704/VX86359) initially served in the ACMF (20 February 1942 - 5 August 1942) with Light Ordnance Workshop, enlisting in the AIF on 6 August 1942 - graded Clerk, later Driver. Private Gittoes served with 2/142 Australian General Transport (AGT) Coy in the Northern Territory (30 October 1942 - 28 February 1943) and Borneo (Labuan and Morotai; 12 April 1945 - 18 March 1946). Private Gittoes was attached to 2/48 Transport Platoon at Discharge on 21 June 1946.
Only child of Reginald (Reg) D'Arcy Gittoes (b1893 in Nangus via Gundagai, New South Wales) and Lily Myra Todd (b1899 in Adelong, New South Wales), Gordon was born in West Wyalong, New South Walse in 1924. Reg was a Farmer in Tumblong via Gundagai before serving in WWI (Private; Service No:6810) - he was WiA in France in 1917, suffering a GSW to his forehead and eye and losing one eye. Following his Discharge from the Army, Reg purchased land at Tarrabandra Soldier Settlement via Gundagai, and in 1922 he and Lily married in Adelong. Following destruction of his wheat crop, grassland and fencing in bush fires in January 1925, Reg and Lily moved to Sydney, where Reg was a Butcher when he died in 1926. Lily returned to Adelong with Gordon, later living in Canberra, Forbes and Sydney where she worked as a Hairdresser and Shop Assistant.
Gordon was a Junior Bank Officer (Commercial Banking Coy of Sydney Ltd) in Canberra in 1942 when he enlisted in the Army. Following his Discharge, Gordon worked as Clerk in Cumnock via Orange and in Newcastle, and in Sydney in 1952 married Helen Laing Hill (b1929 in Goulburn, New South Wales). Gordon and Helen lived in Yass (Gordon worked as an Assistant), before settling in Goulburn in the late 1950s, where they raised their family and Gordon was a Newsagent. Gordon served on a number of Boards - appointed Trustee - including the Preservation of Graves and with the Department of Conservation and Land Management. Gordon and Helen died in Canberra - Helen in 2005 and Gordon in 2014.