John Johnson CROCKER

Badge Number: S8436, Sub Branch: Novar Gardens
S8436

CROCKER, John Johnson

Service Number: 2273
Enlisted: Not yet discovered
Last Rank: Sergeant
Last Unit: 32nd Infantry Battalion
Born: Glenelg, South Australia, Australia, 9 December 1872
Home Town: Glenelg, Holdfast Bay, South Australia
Schooling: Pulteney Grammar High School
Occupation: Civil Servent
Died: 1935, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered
Cemetery: Not yet discovered
Memorials: Adelaide Crown Lands Department WW1 Honour Board, Glenelg and District WW1 & WW2 Honour Board
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World War 1 Service

9 Mar 1916: Involvement Private, 2273, 32nd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '17' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: RMS Mongolia embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: ''
9 Mar 1916: Embarked Private, 2273, 32nd Infantry Battalion, RMS Mongolia, Adelaide
11 Nov 1918: Involvement Sergeant, 2273, 32nd Infantry Battalion

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Biography contributed by Glenunga International High School

World War 1 was the first major war that involved most of the world. It began on the 28th of July in 1914 and ended on the 11th of November in 1918. During the war 17 million people died with an addition of another 20 million injured in the process. In the war there were two alliances that split Europe in half, the Triple Entente who consisted of Britain, France, Italy and Russia and the Triple Alliance, which consisted of Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. However other countries around the world were part of these alliances because some countries were joined with one of the countries either in the Triple Entente or the Triple Alliance. Such as Australia who were with Britain so they fought with the Triple Entente.

John Johnson Crocker was born in Adelaide, South Australia on the 9th of December 1872 and lived in Glenelg as a child and teen. Where he attended Pulteney Grammar High School. He married Lucie Crocker and lived with her on 8 Durham Street Glenelg. He joined the military in 1915 so he had no previous experience. He was a civil servant, so he worked for the government. John was a religious man he was a follower of the Church of England so he was a Christian man.

John Crocker was enlisted in the australian army on the 27th of September 1915. His service number was 2273 and he was a private ranked soldier (the lowest military rank), he was part of the first imperial force in WW1 in the 32nd Australian Infantry Battalion who embarked in Adelaide on the 9th of March 1916 on board the RMS Mongolia. The Mongolia sailed to Egypt where the team was first used as backup. They were the fourth reinforcement sent to Egypt during the battle.

After that they moved on to fight the battle the Battalion was most well known for, the battle of Fromelles, on the Western Front on July 19th 1916 where John was one of the few soldiers of the battalion that survived. 75% of the battalion was killed with an addition of another 15% injured resulting in 90% of the ballations strength was gone. After the Fromelles the reinforcement did not play any major part in the war. During his service he earned the British War Medal, which was a medal awarded to soldiers who fought in places overseas from their residence. He also was awarded a medal awarded to australian soldiers who just in general fought in the war. It was called the Victory Medal.

After the war at Fromelles, John was issued as effective abroad (still overseas) and was officially discharged on June 9 1920. Until he died in 1935 assumed he stayed overseas and died there.

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