ARMSTRONG, John McGill
| Service Number: | 296 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen |
| Born: | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 3 September 1873 |
| Home Town: | Brisbane, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Woodcutter, Cane Farmer, Waterside Worker |
| Died: | Cairns, Queensland, Australia, 15 November 1953, aged 80 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Cairns (General) Cemetery, Queensland Plot: Monumental East Side, Row H, Site 6657 |
| Memorials: |
Boer War Service
| 1 Oct 1899: | Involvement Private, 296 | |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Apr 1901: | Embarked Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 296, 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 506 notes 6th QIB embarked at Pinkenba 4 Apr 1901 aboard Victoria arriving Cape Town 2 May 1901. | |
| 23 Jun 1902: | Discharged Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 296, 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 508 notes 6th QIB embarked at Durban 17 May 1902 aboard Devon returning to Australia arriving Brisbane 17 Jun 1902, disbanded 23 Jun 1902. |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Claude McKelvey
When John McGill Armstrong enlisted in 1901 in the 6th QIB and his details were published with the rank and file in The Queenslander, 13 Apr 1901, he noted his N.O.K. as Mrs. J. Cells, Whynot St, West End. The original Nominal Roll of the 6th QIB Queensland Defence Force for service in South Africa, held by National Archives Australia, notes Mrs. J. Cells (correct spelling Scells) was his sister. The Boer War Service Paybooks for the 6th QIB, Bk 2 p. 85, notes he was granted a pass to travel to Cairns after he was discharged.
John McGill Armstrong was born on 3 Sep 1873 at Brisbane, Queensland, a son to John Armstrong and Rebecca Adelaide Armstrong (nee Fordham). He married Anna Christina Osmundsen on 4 Jul 1908 at Edmonton, Qld, and they had 3 children.
Following his discharge in Brisbane in 1902 he ventured north to the Cairns region where he worked as a woodcutter in the Mungana district. He then went into cane farming in the Stone River and Edmonton area with his wife. His wife passed in 1918 and in 1920 he commenced his last career move with the Waterside Workers Federation in Cairns until he retired in 1937.
(source- AWM Boer War Nominal Roll, Murray p. 515; Qld State Archives- Boer War Service Paybooks 6th QIB, Bk 2 p. 85; National Archives Australia- B 5172 Nominal Roll 6th QIB Queensland Defence Force for service in South Africa; Obituary- The Cairns Post, 16 Nov 1953, p. 5).
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