World War One - Cambridge Roll of Honour

In 2000 Eris Parker published a book called ‘Cambridge World War One – Something to Remember’ ©. In the foreword she said – “I, like most New Zealanders, feel that Anzac Day is special. A day to remember those who died and fought for us.

In the 1950s I can remember Alf ‘Cocky’ Swayne [a World War One veteran] coming to Goodwood School and talking to us just before Anzac Day. He spoke mainly to the boys but I do remember him saying ‘Play the game’.

“Then there was the poem –

In Flanders field the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark the place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing fly
Scarce heard among the guns below.

“And I have no problem with ‘Lest We Forget’ – but more with ‘what we should remember’. This is my interpretation of the information I have found on Cambridge and World War One. Taking the names from the Cambridge cenotaph, the book tells a chronological story from 2 August 1914 when the announcement was made from the church pulpits, to 11 December 1923 when the cenotaph was unveiled. Service records, cards, letters and photographs have all been included to help immortalise our Cambridge soldiers.”

There are soldiers, from various parts of New Zealand, in the Cambridge cemetery, who came back from the war with chest afflictions and TB, and were recuperating at Te Waikato Sanatorium when they died.

Leonard James Rawnsley 12 December 1916, Ira William Holdsworth 24 March 1917, Patrick Heath 19 November 1917, Percy Kettlewell 24 December 1917, Albert Ernest Chitty 13 January 1918 and Tipene Potatau 10 June 1919.

23457 Walter Beville Wade was the son of Albert and Mary Wade. He died in the Waikato Hospital 9 March 1918 after a long illness and was buried at the Pukerimu cemetery aged 22 years.

Herbert Strother died after being discharged from the army on 20 December 1917 and is buried at Hautapu.

Victor Dons came to Cambridge about 1910 and had worked for the dairy company. He had been manager of the Fencourt Creamery and died from his war wounds 10 October 1922.

John Hally had been wounded in the thigh at Gallipoli and returned home February 1916. He died from the effects 19 August 1929.

Benjamin Seabourne was a married man when he enlisted in Cambridge in 1915. He went missing in the Waikato River 3 October 1929.

William Joseph Hickey had been wounded in October 1917 and awarded the Military Medal in May 1918 for gallantry in the field of action. He returned from three years service and married Blossie Armer. They had four daughters and Bill entered the Police Force. He died 21 September 1929 after a long illness and is buried at Leamington Cemetery.

Andrew Christie returned to Cambridge on Anzac Day 1919. He married and took up a farm at the Te Miro Settlement and after a short illness died 7 November 1931 age 36.

Robert Chambers died suddenly on 28 October 1936. He was a bachelor aged 44.

In 2006 Eris travelled to France, Belgium, Gallipoli and England to visit the cemeteries of our Cambridge soldiers. She left a message in the Visitors’ Books ‘Cambridge Remembers’, and took away a photo of the headstones. (Still to visit Palestine and Egypt.) These, along with photos of as many soldiers as we have, have been associated to this Roll of Honour. Click on each soldier’s name to go to his page. For soldiers who had associations with Cambridge but are not included on the Cambridge Cenotaph, click here to go to the Supplementary Roll of Honour.

Links:
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Royal New Zealand Returned Services Association
National Archives Wellington

World War One Roll of Honour

49683 Rifleman John Roderick Allwill
Son of Jared and Florence Allwill
Born 6 September 1890
Farmer
Enlisted 1917
New Zealand Rifle Brigade
Killed in Action 26 August 1918
Vaulx Hill Cemetery

40275 Private Keith Armer
Son of John and Alice Armer
Born 2 October 1892
Clerk
Wellington Infantry Regiment
Killed in Action 27 July 1917
Messines Ridge Memorial

16058 Trooper Bertie Edwin Atkinson
Son of Edwin Atkinson
Age 28
Farmer
Enlisted March 1916
Auckland Mounted Rifles
Died of Wounds 8 November 1917
Beersheba War Cemetery, Palestine

23945 Private Sidney James Attwood
Son of John and Ellen Attwood
Born May 1895
Sharemilker
Enlisted 7 March 1916
New Zealand Machine Gun Company
Died of Wounds 3 December 1917
Menin Road Cemetery, Ypres