COLGAN, James Francis
| Service Number: | 846 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Lance Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 20th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Beachwood, New South Wales, Australia, 25 May 1897 |
| Home Town: | Beechwood, Port Macquarie-Hastings, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Railway Level Crossing Gatekeeper |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 7 April 1918, aged 20 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 25 Jun 1915: | Involvement Private, 846, 20th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '13' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Berrima embarkation_ship_number: A35 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 25 Jun 1915: | Embarked Private, 846, 20th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Berrima, Sydney | |
| 7 Apr 1918: | Involvement Lance Corporal, 846, 20th Infantry Battalion, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 846 awm_unit: 20 Battalion awm_rank: Lance Corporal awm_died_date: 1918-04-07 |
Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board
James Francis COLGAN (Service Number 846) was born 25 May 1897 in Beachwood, NSW. He commenced his railway career on 22 December 1914 as a junior porter, in the Traffic Branch. He was repositioned to gatekeeper in January 1915. He joined the AIF shortly after starting in the railways on 31 March 1915. He embarked from Australia on 25 June 1915 to join the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and disembarked at Gallipoli on 16 August 1915. He was allotted to the 20th Battalion.
Submitted 3 June 2023 by John Oakes
Biography contributed by John Oakes
James Francis COLGAN (Service Number 846) was born 25th May 1897 in Beachwood, NSW. He commenced his railway career on 22nd December 1914 as a junior porter, in the Traffic Branch. He was repositioned to gatekeeper in January 1915. He joined the AIF on 31st March 1915. He embarked from Australia on 25th June 1915 to join the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and disembarked at Gallipoli on 16th August 1915. He was allotted to the 20th Battalion.
He embarked at Alexandria (Egypt) on HMT ‘Ingoma’ and disembarked at Marseilles (France) on 25th March 1916. On 5th May 1916, he was wounded in action in France. He suffered from shrapnel wounds to the abdomen, face, and arm. He was admitted to hospital and was transported to England on 15th May. He recovered from his wounds and went bacj to France 14th October 1916. He rejoined his battalion on 31st October 1916.
On 15th November 1917, a Miss Wade, presumably a friend from home, sent a letter asking about him, saying she had ‘no communications since April of this year’. She received a letter back saying that there was ‘no recent report of casualty’, and that ‘it can be but assumed he is with his unit’. Clearly his wound and hospitalisation prevented him from corresponding with home for several months.
On 19th November 1916, he was sent to the Field Ambulance sufffering from trench feet. He was promoted from Private to Lance Corporal in Belgium on 26th December 1917. He was killed in action on 7th April 1918 iin France. Although he had listed his mother as his next of kin,this was corrected to his father after he died (the next of kin procedure placed a father above a mother). The personal items that were given to his father were a rosary, bombing notes, cards, photos, badge, and a disc. His family also received the 1914/15 Star, the British War Medal, and the Victory Medal.
Since he has no known grave he is remembered at the Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, France.
- based on notes for the Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board