MAY, Frederick Cecil
(Service number 88163)
| First Rank | Last Rank |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 2 December 1882 | Place of Birth | Orari, South Canterbury |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | 14 June 1918 | Age | 35 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | Rakaia, Canterbury | ||
| Occupation | Auctioneer | ||
| Previous Military Experience | |||
| Marital Status | Married. One child | ||
| Next of Kin | Ethelfreda Gwendolyn MAY (wife), Rakaia, Canterbury | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | |||
| Date | |||
| Transport | |||
| Embarked From | Destination | ||
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | |||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 18 February 1937 | Age | 54 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Timaru | ||
| Cause | |||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Timaru Cemetery | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | |||
Biographical Notes
Frederick Cecil May was born on 2 December 1882 at Orari, South Canterbury, the second son of John and Elizabeth Ann (née Bennett) May. John and Elizabeth arrived in New Zealand from Cornwall in August 1874, with two daughters. Little John was born in November 1874 and died nearly four weeks after, in December. Frederick married Ethelfreda Gwendolyn Cordner on 24 November 1913 at St Mary’s, Merivale, Christchurch. Their son, Terence Cecil May, was born on 6 November 1916.
Frederick was an auctioner for Loan & Mercantile Ltd at Rakaia when he enlisted on 14 June 1918 at Ashburton. He named his wife as next-of-kin - Mrs Ethelfreda Gwendolyn May, Rakaia, Canterbury. He was a member of the South Canterbury quota of the Forty-sixth Reinforcements which left Timaru by the north express on 9 September 1918 after parading at the drill hall. F. C. May did not serve overseas.
He died on 18 February 1937 at his Timaru residence, aged 54 years. He was buried in the Timaru Cemetery, his wife and son with him. Frederick’s brother, Robert Gordon May, also served in World War One.
See attachment for obituary.
Sources
Timaru Herald, 21 May 1918, 20 February 1937 (Papers Past) [08 October 2021; 03 February 2022]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [31 January 2022]; Timaru Cemetery headstone image (Timaru District Council) [01 February 2022]
External Links
Related Documents
Researched and Written by
Teresa Scott, SC branch NZSG
Currently Assigned to
Not assigned.
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License unless otherwise stated.
Tell us more
Do you have information that could be added to this story? Or related images that you are happy to share? Submit them here!