James Spiers PARK

James Spiers PARK Update Details

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S5659

PARK, James Spiers

Service Number:	6684
Enlisted:	2 January 1917
Last Rank:	Private
Last Unit:	27th Infantry Battalion
Born:	St Peters, South Australia, 19 December 1898
Home Town:	St Peters (SA), Norwood Payneham St Peters, South Australia
Schooling:	Not yet discovered
Occupation:	Labourer
Died:	24 May 1976, aged 77 years, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered
Cemetery:	Centennial Park Cemetery, South Australia
Memorials:	North Adelaide St Peters Presbyterian Church Roll of Honour WW1

World War 1 Service

2 Jan 1917:	Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 6684, 27th Infantry Battalion
24 Jan 1917:	Involvement Private, 6684, 27th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Miltiades embarkation_ship_number: A28 public_note: ''
24 Jan 1917:	Embarked Private, 6684, 27th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Miltiades, Adelaide

Help us honour James Spiers Park's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.

Biography contributed by Adelaide Botanic High School

James Spiers Parks was born on 19 December 1898. Parks lived with his parents, Catherine and William Parks, and his two siblings in St Peters, Adelaide. Parks was previously a labourer before enlisting in the army on January 2nd at the age of 18. Parks had blue eyes, brown hair and was 177cm tall and weighed 65.7kg. He was ranked a Private and his service number was 6684.

Parks embarked from Adelaide on the Miltiades on the 24th of January 1917. He disembarked on 27 March 1917 in Devonport. After disembarking he went to Rolleston to train at the training camps on 30 March 1917. Rolleston was a small town in England that had a training camp for Australian soldier that were going to war. The weather at Rolleston was quite the opposite to Australia's.

Parks never went to war as he was discharged on 24 August 1917, due to mental illnesses. Though, he was signed off by the medical officer when he enlisted on 2 January 1917. There was no specific reason that was shown why Parks was discharged but some mental issues that could have led to his discharge were depression, anxiety, or schizophrenia as all were common.

Arriving back in Adelaide, Parks tried to claim a pension but was rejected on the grounds that claimant's incapacity is not the result of participation in war like operation.

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