KELLY, John
| Other Name: | Reick, John |
|---|---|
| Service Number: | 1665 |
| Enlisted: | 7 January 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 52nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Boonah, Queensland, Australia, date not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Boonah, Scenic Rim, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 4 September 1916, age not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Kalbar War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 7 Jan 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1665 | |
|---|---|---|
| 12 Apr 1916: | Involvement Private, 1665, 52nd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: RMS Mooltan embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
| 12 Apr 1916: | Embarked Private, 1665, 52nd Infantry Battalion, RMS Mooltan, Sydney |
Help us honour John Kelly's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Carol Berry
When John Rieck enlisted in the AIF at Enoggera on 7 Jan 1916 he gave his name as “John Kelly”, born at Boonah, Qld being 21 years 3 months old. He gave his NOK as his friend Henry Dell, Murgon. His records show he was 5ft 6 ins tall, weighed 125lbs with chest 36. On 12 Apr 1916 “John Kelly” completed a form for the Military District Pay office assigning 4/- per day of his pay to John Rieck of Boonah.
“John Kelly” was assigned to 52nd Battalion, 2nd Reinforcement and his unit embarked from Sydney, New South Wales, on board SS Hawkes Bay on 20 April 1916.
The records show he disembarked at Marseilles on 14 Jun 1916 and was reported as missing in Action, France, 4 September 1916 going up into Flearplaix.
Fleurbaix, a siding on the Amiens Branch Railway, commemorates the battle in which the 5th Division of the Australian Imperial Force (A.I.F.) was destroyed as a fighting force. It is now remembered as the Battle of Fromelles.
In Dec 1916 his Uncle Jack Brown, who had a store, Temple of Commerce, at Mount Alford, wrote to the Office in Charge, Base Records, Melbourne, seeking information about John Kelly on behalf of his parents. They knew he had been reported missing in September. It was not until 30 May 1917 that an official document was issued confirming John Kelly was Killed in Action on 4 Sep 1916.
It was not until 21 Sep 1922 that the War Medals, Memorial Plaque and War Gratuity were sent to his Father, Mr John Rieck, Mt Alford, Boonah.
John Kelly/John Rieck is remembered at Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France. He has No known grave - "Known Unto God"
The Villers-Bretonneux Memorial is an Australian National Memorial. It commemorates all of the Australian soldiers who fought in France and Flanders from 1916 to 1918 during the Great War of 1914-1918.
The Memorial serves also as a place of commemoration for those who died, and most particularly it is the place where all the names of those Australian officers and men who were killed in action in France and who have no known grave are commemorated. There are 10,982 names inscribed on the memorial.
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