PETRIE, William Avenal
(Service number 3/1415)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Private |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 07/05/1893 | Place of Birth | Invercargill, New Zealand |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | 24 November 1915 | Age | 22 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | C/- W. Lamborn, Geraldine | ||
| Occupation | Mechanic | ||
| Previous Military Experience | B Company, 2nd South Canterbury Regiment & Sergeant No.6 Mounted Ambulance | ||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | Mrs W. Petrie (mother), 47 Bank Street, Timaru, New Zealand | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | NZ Medical Corps | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | NZ Medical Corps | ||
| Date | 4 December 1915 | ||
| Transport | Hospital Ship Marama (NZ Hospital Ship No.2) | ||
| Embarked From | Wellington, New Zealand | Destination | Suez, Egypt |
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | NZ Medical Corps | ||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | Egyptian, Salonika, and Western Europe | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 20 June 1962 | Age | 69 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Timaru, New Zealand | ||
| Cause | |||
| Memorial or Cemetery | |||
| New Zealand Memorials | |||
Biographical Notes
William was born in Invercargill on 7 May 1893, the son of William & Grace Petrie.
Before enlisting at Timaru on 24 November 1915, he was working as a mechanic at Geraldine, for W. Lamborn, Garage proprietor, and gave this as his last NZ address. He was single, aged 22, 5 foot 10 inches tall, weighing 160 lbs, had a chest measuring 34 inches, of dark complexion, brown eyes, dark brown hair, having good teeth and of the Presbyterian faith. His mother was living at 47 Bank Street, Timaru, and he listed her as his next of kin. Private Petrie had had previous military experience, having served with B Company, 2nd South Canterbury Regiment, and as a Sergeant with Number 6 Mounted Field Ambulance. He was posted to the NZ Medical Corps and embarked with them from Wellington, on 4 December 1915, aboard SS Marama (NZ Hospital Ship Number 2), bound for Suez, Egypt, arriving 11 January 1916.
William was to serve in Egypt until being posted on 27 January 1916, to No 1 NZ Stationary Hospital, Salonika. After his return to Egypt, he embarked from Alexandria on 2 June 1916, for service with the NZ Stationary Hospital in France. On 17 June 1919, he embarked from England aboard SS Briton, for his return to NZ, arriving home 23 July. Having completed his war time engagement, he was discharged from the army on 21 August 1919. For his service, William received the 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.
1919 saw William back in Geraldine, working as a mechanic. In 1920 he married Evelyn Marion Dale. From 1928, he is listed on the electoral rolls as working in Timaru as a carpenter/builder. In 1932 he was the employer’s representative on the NZ Builders and Contractors Federation. 1936 saw him elected vice president and, in 1937 at the Timaru conference, was elected unanimously as president of the federation, and again in 1938 at Hamilton.
William died in Timaru, on 20 June 1962, aged 69.
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotpah Database (August 2015); Military Personnel file at NZ Archives (August 2015); NZ BDM Historical Records at https://bdmhistoricalrecords.dia.govt.nz (1 September 2015); Ancestry at http://search.ancestry.com.au/cgi-bin/sse.dll?gl=ROOT_CATEGORY&gss=angs-d&new=1&msT=1&gsfn=william+avenal&gsfn_x=1&gsln=petrie&gsln_x=1&MSAV=1&cpxt=1&cp=14&catbucket=rstp&rank=1 (1 September 2015); Papers Past: Evening Post, 13 December 1932, p11 "Rates of Pay declined by Unions" (1 September 2015) and New Zealand Herald, 19 February 1938 "BuildingFederation: New Officers Elected" (2 September 2015); New Zealand ANZACs in the Great War 1914-1918 at http://nzef.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=203955 (2 September 2015)
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Researched and Written by
Ted Hansen, SC branch NZSG
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