MCKENZIE, Alexander
| Service Numbers: | 30535, V84274 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 16 May 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 16 Garrison Battalion (NSW) |
| Born: | Yarrawonga, Victoria, Australia, 31 January 1892 |
| Home Town: | Brunswick East, Moreland, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Illness, Australia, 15 September 1945, aged 53 years |
| Cemetery: |
Springvale War Cemetery, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 16 May 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Gunner, 30535, 14th Field Artillery Brigade | |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Nov 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Gunner, 14th Field Artillery Brigade , HMAT Hororata, Melbourne | |
| 23 Nov 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Gunner, 14th Field Artillery Brigade , --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '4' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Hororata embarkation_ship_number: A20 public_note: '' | |
| 5 Oct 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Gunner, 5th Field Artillery Brigade | |
| 15 Oct 1917: | Wounded AIF WW1, Gunner, 15th Field Artillery Brigade , 1st Passchendaele, SW right hand | |
| 23 Feb 1918: | Transferred AIF WW1, Gunner, 5th Field Artillery Brigade | |
| 6 Mar 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Gunner, 30535, 5th Field Artillery Brigade , 3rd MD |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Private, V84274 | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Feb 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, V84274, 16 Garrison Battalion (NSW) |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
From How We Served
The final resting place for; - 30535 & V84274 Private Alexander McKenzie of Yarrawonga, Victoria and Lowesdale, New South Wales who prior to his enlistment for War Service on the 16th of May 1916 had been employed as a laborer.
Alexander was allocated to reinforcements for the Field Artillery Brigade 1st AIF and was embarked for England and further training on the 23rd of November. Following his arrival, and having completed his training phase, Alexander was sent over to France where he was disembarked on the 7th of August 1917, and was officially taken on strength with the 2nd Division Ammunition Column on the 19th of August.
Shortly after his arrival he was transferred to the 5th Field Artillery Brigade on the 30th of September. Mustered as a Gunner, Alexander was sent to Belgium with the 15th Battery, in time for the Third Battle of Ypres.
It was during these operations, that Alexander was wounded in action by shrapnel to his right hand on the 15th of October, and was evacuated for hospitalization, and was returned to England where he was admitted into hospital at Colchester.
Following treatment, and then a short period of convalescence, Alexander was deemed fit to be returned to France, where he again arrived on the 6th of February 1918.
Returned to his Unit, Alexander was allocated to the 13th Battery on the 21st of February, with whom his service in the field would then be continuous until he was accidentally injured due to boiling water to his left foot on the 25th of September.
Due to these injuries, Alexander was again returned to England for medical treatment, and was admitted into the Beaufort War Hospital, at Bristol, on the 20th of September.Owing to the seriousness of these injuries, Alexander was deemed as no longer fit for active service, and he commenced his repatriation back to Australia as an invalid, departing England on the 21st of December.
Following his return to Australia, and ongoing medical treatment, Alexander received his official discharge from the 1st AIF for his re-entry into civilian life on the 6th of March 1919.
With the outbreak of a Second World War, Alexander again presented himself for service with the Australian Military Forces on the 20th of February 1940, and was accepted for full time duty within Australia.
Alexander’s service would be continuous throughout the War, and whilst serving with the Australian Army Catering Corps, attached to the 16th Garrison Battalion, he was admitted into hospital suffering sickness.
Whilst still being hospitalized, Alexander succumbed to illness, when he passed on the 15th of September 1945. He was aged 53.
Private Alexander McKenzie, a wounded veteran of the ‘Great War’, and who had chosen to serve his country during a second world conflict, was formally laid to rest within Springvale War Cemetery, Victoria.
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