Profile

SIMMERS, William Wallace
(Service number 6/3461)

Aliases
First Rank Sergeant Last Rank Sergeant

Birth

Date 26 October 1892 Place of Birth Dunedin, New Zealand

Enlistment Information

Date 23 August 1915 Age 22
Address at Enlistment 448 lincoln Road, Christchurch
Occupation Student
Previous Military Experience
Marital Status Single
Next of Kin son of George Annand and Isabella Glen Simmers, 20 Selwyn St, Timaru
Religion Presbyterian
Medical Information

Military Service

Served with NZ Armed Forces Served in
Military District

Embarkation Information

Body on Embarkation 8th Reinforcements
Unit, Squadron, or Ship Canterbury Infantry Battalion
Date 13 November 1915
Transport HMNZT 35, 36, Willochra or Tofua
Embarked From Wellington, New Zealand Destination Suez, Egypt
Other Units Served With
Last Unit Served With Canterbury Infantry Regiment,

Military Awards

Campaigns
Service Medals BWM, VM
Military Awards Military Medal (for acts of Gallantry in the Field)

Award Circumstances and Date

Mentioned in London Gazette 14 Nov 1916 pg 11146 Rec No 82

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

Discharge

Date Reason

Hospitals, Wounds, Diseases and Illnesses

Post-war Occupations

Death

Date 13 June 1917 Age 25
Place of Death Belgium
Cause Killed in action
Notices
Memorial or Cemetery Messines Ridge ( Memorial, Ressines Ridge British Cemetery, Belguim
Memorial Reference No grave
New Zealand Memorials On Memorial wall, Timaru; Timaru Boys High School War Memorial (Library) (as W W Simmers, MM); Waimataitai School War Memorial

Biographical Notes

Educated at Timaru Boys High School. Son of George Annand Simmers and Isabella Glen Simmers nee Wallace. One of 7children (6 boys 1 girl). Brother Robert Simmers ser no 25/239 also attended Boys High (born1894 - d 1977). George Annand was the Rector at Boys High. Timaru Herald, Volume CVI, Issue 16271, 26 June 1917, Page 2

SERGEANT WALLACE SIMMERS.

A cable has been received that Sergeant Wallace William Simmers was killed in.action on June 13th. He' was the eldest son of Mr George Simmers. MA., late Rector of the Timaru High School. He received his primary education at Waimataitai school, and then went to the Timaru High School, where he was one of the most distinguished of recent old boys. He was captain of the first football fifteen and was in the first cricket eleven in his last year at school. In 1910 he gained a Junior University scholarship and went to Canterbury College, where he took the engineering course . In 1913 he gained his B.Sc. He was only three months off his final examination for BE when he joined the forces He was captain of the College first fifteen, a member of the Canterbury rep team, president of the Students' Christian Union, and secretary to the Students' Union. He was a right good fellow, at school and college, and in football circles was well known and very popular in Canterbury. On leaving for the war he went first to Egypt, where he spent some time and then went to France Some months ago he won the military medal. Last evening Mr Simmers received a cable from his second son, Robert, who is now at Sling Camp: "Well. Have gained a commission." This son has also seen a lot of fighting, and has won the military medal, a bar, and a Russian decoration.

Sources

Auckland Cenotaph, CWGC, Historical BMD, PapersPast

External Links

Related Documents

Researched and Written by

Liz Shea (SC branch NZSG)

Currently Assigned to

Not assigned.

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