NICOL, William John
(Service number 54073)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Rifleman |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 6 May 1890 | Place of Birth | Burnside Nth. Canty, N.Z. |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | 28 March 1917 | Age | 26 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | Otaio | ||
| Occupation | Ploughman/farm labourer | ||
| Previous Military Experience | Territorial Reserve | ||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | A Nichol (father) Otaio | ||
Military Service
| Served with | New Zealand Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | New Zealand Expeditionary Force | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | 27th Reinforcements G Company | ||
| Date | 16 July 1917 | ||
| Transport | Athenic | ||
| Embarked From | Wellington, New Zealand | Destination | Liverpool, England |
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | NZ Rifle Brigade | ||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | Western European | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Medals | 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 | 12 September 1918 | Age | 28 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Havrincourt, France | ||
| Cause | Killed in action | ||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Grevillers (NZ) Memorial | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | On Memorial wall, Timaru; Esk Valley War Memorial; Otaio War Memorial; Waimate First World War Memorial | ||
Biographical Notes
William John Nicol was born at Burnside, North Canterbury on 6 May 1890, the son of Alexander and Kathleen Nicol.
By the time of attestation on 28 March 1917 the family was living at Otaio. William was a ploughman and farm labourer, single, and Presbyterian. He was described as being 5ft 6in, weighing 147lbs, with a ruddy complexion, blue eyes, and brown hair. He gave his previous military experience as Territorial Reserves and his father as next of kin. Private Nicol joined the 27th Reinforcements, G Company, and embarked at Wellington on 16 July 1917 on the Athenic. Setting sail for Liverpool, England, he disembarked on 16 September, befofe heading on to France a month later on 23 October 1917, where he joined his unit in Etaples.
William was wounded in action on 21 April but immediately rejoined his unit. In July he was sent to hospital sick, but was back in the front within 10 days. The next time was not so lucky. William Nicol was killed in action on 12 September 1918.
His memorial is at Grevillers (NZ) Memorial in France. His medals were sent to his parents at their home in 19 Beverley Rd, Timaru. He is also remembered on the Otaio War Memorial.
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph [June 2021]; NZ Defence Force Personnel Records [June 2021]
External Links
Related Documents
No documents available.
Researched and Written by
Maree Bowen, SC branch NZSG; Carol Bell, SC branch NZSG
Currently Assigned to
Not assigned.
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License unless otherwise stated.
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