LEEDER, Erastus William
(Service number 6/1227)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Private |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 22 January 1891 | Place of Birth | Cambrians, Central Otago, New Zealand |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | 13 October 1914 | Age | 23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | 102 Taranaki Street, Wellington, New Zealand | ||
| Occupation | Motor Mechanic | ||
| Previous Military Experience | 2yrs service with Infantry Battalion | ||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | Mrs Amelia Leeder (mother), High Street, Timaru | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | Main Body | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | Canterbury Infantry Battalion | ||
| Date | 16 October 1914 | ||
| Transport | Tahiti or Athenic | ||
| Embarked From | Lyttelton, New Zealand | Destination | Suez, Egypt |
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | Canterbury Infantry Battalion | ||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | Egyptian & Gallipoli | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Medals | 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal | ||
Award Circumstances and Date
No information
Prisoner of War Information
| Date of Capture | |
|---|---|
| Where Captured and by Whom | |
| Actions Prior to Capture | |
| PoW Serial Number | |
| PoW Camps | |
| Days Interned | |
| Liberation Date |
Death
| Date | 26 September 1985 | Age | 94 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Auckland, New Zealand | ||
| Cause | |||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Cremated, Purewa Crematorium 30 September 1985 | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | |||
Biographical Notes
Erastus was born at Cambrians, Central Otago, on 22 January 1891, to William & Amelia (nee Dungey) Leeder. He attended the Waikaia School in 1898, and the Caversham School in 1900, where he received awards in Std 1 for attendance and writing.
When enlisting at Wellington on 13 October 1914, Erastus was employed as a motor mechanic for N. Nightendale, 102 Taranaki Street, Wellington. He was described as being aged 23, single, Anglican, 5 foot 10 ½ inches tall, of fair complexion with hazel eyes, brown hair, and weighting 162 lbs, chest 33 inches, with teeth good. He gave his next of kin as his mother, Mrs W.R. Leeder, High Street, Timaru. He stated he had had 2 years previous military service with the Infantry Battalion. Posted to the Canterbury Infantry Battalion, he left with the Main Body 16 October 1914, for Suez, Egypt, aboard SSTahiti or Athenic.
After service in Egypt, he joined his battalion at the Dardanelles on 5 May 1915, but was sent back to Egypt as unfit for military service on 27 June 1915. August 1915 he was returned to NZ on SS Tahiti and discharged as medically unfit on 25 September 1915, diagnosed as suffering from neurasthenia which was brought on by stress. He had suffered a blow to the head as a child which had caused fitting for some years. He was awarded the 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medals for his service.
In 1916 Erastus married Jessie May Aston and had a son that also bore his name, In 1919, he was working as a chauffeur at Marton. In 1938 he was at Matapuna working as a motor mechanic. In December 1941 he again joined up and served as a Sergeant in the Ordnance Corps as a mechanic at Ardmore Workshops with the 9th Heavy Regiment, before being discharged on 15 June 1942.
Erastus died in Auckland 26 September 1985, aged 94 and was cremated at Purewa Crematorium on 30 September 1985.
Sources
Auckland Museum Cenotaph database (June 2015); Archives NZ (Personal File); ancestry.com.au; NZSG Index V5; NZSG NZ Marriages 1856-1956; Papers Past; Purewa Crematorium database.
External Links
Related Documents
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Researched and Written by
Ted Hansen (SC branch NZSG)
Currently Assigned to
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Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License unless otherwise stated.
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