PLUNKETT, John
| Service Number: | 1127 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 2 December 1915, Place of enlistment - Blackboy Hill, Western Australia |
| Last Rank: | Sapper |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Tunnelling Company (inc. 6th Tunnelling Company) |
| Born: | Landsborough, Victoria, Australia, 1882 |
| Home Town: | Kalgoorlie, Kalgoorlie/Boulder, Western Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Miner |
| Died: | Died of effects of shell gas poisioning, France, 30 April 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
Fosse No.10 Communal Cemetery Extension, Sains-En-Gohelle Plot I, Row C, Grave 22 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Kings Park Western Australia State War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 2 Dec 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Sapper, 1127, Mining Corps, Place of enlistment - Blackboy Hill, Western Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Apr 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Sapper, 1127, Mining Corps, Embarked on HMAT 'A38' Ulysses from Fremantle on 1st April 1916, The Ulysses had sailed from Sydney on 20th February, stopping at Melbourne on 22nd February before leaving for Fremantle on 1st March. Ulysses hit a reef when leaving Fremantle harbour and the soldiers were being off-loaded to Blackboy Hill whilst repairs were made. Ulysses finally sailed on 1st April 1916 arriving at Suez, Egypt on 22 April, departing for Port Said the next day; then on to Alexandria. Because the Captain of the ship was reluctant to take Ulysses out of the Suez Canal because he felt the weight of the ship made it impossible to manoeuvre in the situation of a submarine attack, The Mining Corps was transhipped to B1 Ansonia for the final legs to Marseilles, France via Valetta, Malta. Arriving at Marseilles on 5 May, most of the men entrained for Hazebrouck where they arrived to set up their first camp on 8 May 1916 Sydney | |
| 18 Dec 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Sapper, 3rd Tunnelling Company (inc. 6th Tunnelling Company) | |
| 29 Apr 1917: | Wounded AIF WW1, Sapper, 1127, 3rd Tunnelling Company (inc. 6th Tunnelling Company), Shell gas poisioning | |
| 30 Apr 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sapper, 1127, 3rd Tunnelling Company (inc. 6th Tunnelling Company), --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 1127 awm_unit: 3rd Australian Tunnelling Company awm_rank: Sapper awm_died_date: 1917-04-30 |
Honouring Great Uncle John Plunkett
My Dad, Raymond Harold Francis Plunkett, talked about his two Uncles (john and James Plunkett) who fought and died in France during WW1. He always wished he knew where they rest, but he passed in 2000 without any answers. Thanks to the records retained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and the AWM, the questions were answered. My son (Damion Lepp) and myself (Sherill Lepp nee Plunkett) made the pilgrimage to both resting sites to pay our respects to my Great Uncles.
John is buried at Fosse No 10 Communal Cemetery Extension in a small village called Sains-en-Gohelle, and is the ONLY Australian soldier buried there. We arrived on 12 November 23 (we were in Villers-Bretonneux on Armistice Day, 11 November 23) - a very emotional time for me in particular as I wished my Dad was alive to know we could set his mind at rest. It was humbling and an honour to pay our respects and to leave our personal message in the CWGC visitor book at the site. Rest in Peace John. Lest We Forget!
Thank you to the CWGC for the beautiful, pristine care of his gravesite.
Submitted 26 December 2023 by Sherill Lepp
Biography contributed by Daryl Jones
John was the eldest son of John and Matilda (nee Morris) PLUNKETT. His siblings also born in Victoria were: Ann, born 1880; William Frank, born 1885; Edward, 1887; Geoffrey Alfred, 889 (died Victoria in 1974 aged 84); Henry Arthur, 1891; James, 1894; Alfred Roy, 1895; Florence Matilda, 1898 (m. George Frazer) and Ellen, born 1900 (married 1921 Werner H Karlsen at Wellington WA).
A Soldier And A Man He Died Honoured By All His Country's Pride
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