MCALLISTER, John
| Service Number: | 1085 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 10 October 1914, Enlisted at Sydney, NSW |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 2nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Carnouiste, Forfarshire, Scotland, 1893 |
| Home Town: | Murwillumbah, Tweed, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Glasgow High School, Scotland |
| Occupation: | Clerk |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Gallipoli, Gallipoli, Dardanelles, Turkey, 20 May 1915 |
| Cemetery: |
Shrapnel Valley Cemetery, Gallipoli Plot 111, Row D, Grave 6 Rev. A. Gillison officiated Headstone inscription reads: Tread gently on the grass sod a mother's love lies here, Shrapnel Valley Cemetery, Gallipoli Peninsula, Canakkale Province, Turkey |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 10 Oct 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1085, 2nd Infantry Battalion, Enlisted at Sydney, NSW | |
|---|---|---|
| 18 Oct 1914: | Involvement Private, 1085, 2nd Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Suffolk embarkation_ship_number: A23 public_note: '' | |
| 18 Oct 1914: | Embarked Private, 1085, 2nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Suffolk, Sydney |
Help us honour John McAllister's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Carol Foster
Son of John and Christina McAllister of 2 Downe Quadrant, Kelvinside, Glasgow, Scotland
Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal
Biography contributed by Geoffrey Gillon
He served as a territorial soldier for four years with the 5th Scottish Rifles. He emigrated to Australia in 1911 under the youth assistance migration scheme and settled in Murwillumbah, New South Wales, where he worked as a clerk.
Soon after the First World War began he enlisted for service with the 2nd Battalion, AIF, and with his previous experience in the Scottish Territorials he was posted to the battalion’s machine-gun section.
He embarked with his unit from Sydney on 18 October aboard the transport ship Suffolk and arrived in Egypt in December. Several months of training in the desert followed before the AIF began moving to Lemnos in preparation for the landing on Gallipoli.
He landed with his battalion during the day on 25 April 1915 and saw almost continuous front-line service over the following weeks.
In May Turkish troops launched a major attempt to drive the Australians back into the sea. John and his battalion were heavily involved in stopping the attack, with the Turks suffering heavy casualties. The men of the 2nd Battalion were kept stood to during the night, with more attacks expected. Rifle fire from both sides was heavy and continuous throughout the night and into the next day. It was sometime in the early hours of 20 May that John was shot and killed. He was 22.
Carnoustie is a town and former police burgh in the council area of Angus, Scotland. It is at the mouth of the Barry Burn on the North Sea coast. Carnoustie can be considered a dormitory town for its nearest city, Dundee, which is 11 miles (18 km) to the west.
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