WALKER, James John
| Service Number: | 3 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Company Sergeant Major |
| Last Unit: | 1st Queensland Mounted Infantry |
| Born: | 1865, place not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Red Hill, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Soldier |
| Died: | Chatswood, Sydney - New South Wales, Australia, 1956, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
Boer War Service
| 1 Oct 1899: | Involvement Warrant Officer II, 3, 1st Queensland Mounted Infantry | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Nov 1899: | Embarked Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Company Sergeant Major, 3, 1st Queensland Mounted Infantry, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 448 notes 1st QMI embarked 1 Nov 1899 aboard Cornwall arriving Cape Town 13 Dec 1899. | |
| 23 Jan 1901: | Discharged Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Company Sergeant Major, 3, 1st Queensland Mounted Infantry, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 449 notes 1st QMI embarked 13 Dec 1900 returning to Australia aboard Orient arriving Brisbane 17 Jan 1901, disbanded 23 Jan 1901. | |
| 10 Sep 1901: | Honoured Mention in Dispatches, London Gazette, 10 Sep 1901, p. 5954 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Claude McKelvey
James John Walker was serving in the Mounted Infantry of the Queensland Defence Force as reported in The Queenslander, 10 Oct 1896, and immediately prior to enlisting was serving as an accountant at HQ. When he joined the 1st QMI in 1899 for the Boer war and his details were published in The Brisbane Courier, 18 Nov 1899, it was noted he was married and living at Harriet Street, Red Hill, Brisbane.
He served the full tour of the 1st QMI returning with the contingent aboard Orient with discharge in Brisbane on 23 Jan 1901. For meritorious service he was mentioned in despatches by Lord Roberts and awarded the DCM in Sep 1901. It appears he rejoined the Queensland Defence Force following his discharge and was serving as a sergeant-instructor when called to give evidence in a court action taken for libel by his commanding officer Colonel Ricardo as reported in The Queensland Times, 17 Aug 1901.
James John Walker was born in 1865, possibly in New South Wales, a son to James M. Walker. In 1895 when he married, his father was noted as living at Stanmore, Sydney. He married Christina Russell White on 18 Dec 1895 at Milton, Brisbane, and they had at least 2 children while living at Red Hill, Brisbane. At some point they relocated to Sydney where they resided until they passed.
(source- AWM Boer War Nominal Roll, Murray p. 451; National Archives Australia- Boer War Dossier; Qld State Archives- Boer War Service Paybooks, Bk 1 p. 116; Australian Boer War Memorial- database bio).
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