PENNIE, William
(Service number 28913)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Private |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 15/09/1893 | Place of Birth | Limerick, Ireland |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | Age | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | C/- J McNamara, Arno, Waimate | ||
| Occupation | Farm labourer for H Ruddenklau | ||
| Previous Military Experience | |||
| Marital Status | |||
| Next of Kin | John Pennie (father), Crohane, Shannagolen, County Limerick, Ireland; later changed to Miss Molly Hanley (neice), C/0 Mr G Webster, Nelson Terrace, Timaru | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | New Zealand Expeditionary Force | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | 18th Reinforcements, J Company | ||
| Date | 11 October 1916 | ||
| Transport | Tofua | ||
| Embarked From | Wellington, New Zealand | Destination | Plymouth, England |
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | Canterbury Infantry Regiment, 1st Battalion | ||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | Western European, 1917-1918 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Medals | |||
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 | 25 August 1918 | Age | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Bapaume, France | ||
| Cause | Killed in action | ||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Grevillers (New Zealand) Memorial, Grevillers British Cemetery, Pas-de-Calais, France | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | On Memorial wall, Timaru; Waimate First World War Memorial (as W Penny?) | ||
Biographical Notes
William Pennie's service records note that he was the son of John and Margaret Penny, of "Crohane, Shanogolden, Co. Limerick, Ireland". A current resident of the property commented (in November 2021) though that the house (now in ruins on his farm), was traditionally addressed "Croaghhane, Shanagolden, Co Limerick" or sometimes given as "Knockpatrick, Foynes, Co Limerick".
William spelt his surname "Pennie" in his attestation papers when he enlisted in June 1916. It seems he also gave his birth date incorrectly as 15 September 1893 on enlistment, as his birth appears to be registered in the County of Limerick on 23 Sepotember 1889 (under the surname Penny). The 1901 Census for Limerick backs this up - and the spelling of the family surname as Penny. These also show William (aged 12) living with his parents and older siblings Michael, aged 16, and Eliza, aged 17 as "Residents of a house 2 in Croaghane (Ballynacragga North, Limerick)". By 1911 the census shows that William had moved be part of the household "Residents of a house 4 in Knockpatrick (Shanagolden, Limerick)" where, aged 22, he was listed as a "servant" living with the Madigan family.
William was posted for training in New Zealand at Trentham. There he ran afoul of the military authorities and was (possibly somewhat harshly) confined to barracks for seven days after "Urinating in an empty urinal stand". 18th Reinforcements. He proceeded overseas on the Tofua with J Company of the 18th Reinforcements in October, landing at Plymouth, Devon, in England on 29 December 1916. There he marched in Sling Camp (Aldershot) for further training. On 1 February 1917 embarked for France. There, at Etaples, he would have received further training in preparation for heading to the front. In May he was charged with falling out on a route march and forfeited seven days pay, William was finally posted to 2 Battalion Canterbury Regiment in the field on 3 June 1917.
Three months after being posted to the front William suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the leg and hand on 29 September 1917. He was admitted first to the 2nd NZ Ambulance, then to 64 Casualty Clearing Station (CCS) that day, before being transferred to No.12 General Hospital at Rouen on 2 October. On 16 October he embarked to return to England and was treated at No.1 New Zealand General Hospital at Brockenhurst. Improving, he was transferred to recuperate at the Convalescent Hospital at Hornchurch on 19 December 1917, until returning to the base depot at Codford on 21 December 1917.
At Codford William was posted to A Company, 3rd (Reserve) Battalion of the Canterbury Reguiment in March 1918. Just prior to being sent back overseas he forfeited two days pay after overstaying his leave. On 14 April 1918 headed back overseas to France and rejoined the 1st Battalion, Canterbury Regiment. Four months later, on 25 August 1918, William was killed in action, part of the Alied forces in the early stages of the war's final offensive.
In the early 1920s, after the war, William's a scroll and service medals - a British War Medal and a Victory Medal - were sent to his father, John, still residing in the family home at Croaghhane in County Limerick.
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [30 Dec 2013]; Military Record - Archives New Zealand, Wellington Office Item ID R20800362; SCRoll web submission by G O'Connor, 16 November 2021); 1901 and 1911 Census Records from the National Archives of Reland, available at http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Limerick/Ballynacragga_North/Croaghane/1514256/ and http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Limerick/Shanagolden/Knockpatrick/642866/ [accessed 23 November 2021]; Church Records, Civil Records of Births, Marriages and Deaths are the official State records of Births, Marriages and Deaths in Ireland (accessed 23 November 2021} - see Birth rergistrations for the County of Limerick at https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie/churchrecords/images/birth_returns/births_1889/02447/1910039.pdf
External Links
Related Documents
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Researched and Written by
John Sutherland, SC branch NZSG; Tony Rippin, South Canterbury Museum
Currently Assigned to
Not assigned.
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License unless otherwise stated.
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