MALONEY, John Daniel
| Service Number: | 219 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Sapper |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Field Company Engineers |
| Born: | Not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Not yet discovered |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 2 Nov 1914: | Involvement Sapper, 219, 3rd Field Company Engineers, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '5' embarkation_place: Fremantle embarkation_ship: HMAT Medic embarkation_ship_number: A7 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Nov 1914: | Embarked Sapper, 219, 3rd Field Company Engineers, HMAT Medic, Fremantle |
Daniel John Maloney
He was born about 1885 in Carlton, Melbourne, Victoria & pre-WW1 he was working as a Bricklayer & was one of the men who built the New Norcia Monastery
He enlisted into the AIF at Blackboy Hill on 8 September 1914 & was allocated as Sapper with the 3rd Field Company Engineers
He departed Australia bound for Egypt with No.3 Section, B Company as part of the 1st Division on 2 November 1914
Whilst in Egypt undertaking further training, he was removed from his Section Tent after a delegation complained to the OC of the Company - "The men of his section have expressed a desire for the removal of this man owing to his incontinent habits in the tent" - January 1915
As with many service records, it is unknown what exact date he landed on Gallipoli, though the 3rd FCE was in the initial landings on 25 April & he was promoted to Lance Corporal on 16 May at Gallipoli
He was evacuated to Malta 'sick' on 5 September & invalided to England
He proceeded to France in October 1916 with the 5th Australian Division & re-joined the 3rd FCE in November
He was wounded with a gunshot wound in the buttocks on 25 September 1917 at the start of the 3rd Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele) & subsequently evacuated back to England, returning to France on 30 June 1918
He was awarded the Military Medal (London Gazette 17 December 1917) - The citation reading: "During the operation east of Ypres on 20th Sept 1917 this NCO was engaged on the construction of a strong point and showed most conspicuous bravery, cheerfulness and untiring energy. He personally salved material from around old German works for use in the construction of his strong point. When the point was subject to heavily shell fire, he consistently moved around repairing damage done, showing an utter disregard of personal risk throughout"
He was evacuated back to England with influenza in September 1918 & returned to Australia at the war's end for discharge on 23 April 1919
Post war he remained in Perth being involved in the building industry as a member & official of the Bricklayers Union
He became heavily involved in the Labor Party & represented Subiaco in the Legislative Assembly from 1933–36
On being defeated in the next election he became the State Organiser for the A.L.P. & during WW2 was employed as a Supervisor in the Public Works Department
Sadly, he met his death at Fremantle when struck by a train & "cut to pieces" on 14 March 1942 when he was crossing railway lines on foot during a blackout - His brother was a serving Police Inspector in Northam at the time
Submitted 17 September 2024 by James Coleman
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