Birth

Enlistment Information

Military Service

Embarkation Information

Military Awards

Death

Biographical Notes

Isaac Vincent was born on 23 September 1887 at Waimate, the youngest son of Joseph and Mary (née Wild) Vincent. Mary Vincent had arrived at Timaru by the “Peeress” on 26 July 1874 with her parents and five siblings. Soon after arriving the family came on to Waimate. Her father died on 27 September 1910 at Waimate, having resided there for 36 years. Mary married Joseph Vincent in 1880. By 1886, all was not well. Mary was in poor health and destitute, while Joseph had deserted his family. Three little boys – Joseph James and William – were committed to Burnham Industrial School on the application of Charlotte Wild. In 1887 Isaac joined the family, making four sons and one daughter in total. In 1893 he joined his sister Elizabeth and brother William Henry at Burnham Industrial School. Isaac Vincent married Alice Glen Young on 19 December 1911 at Mosgiel. Their first-born, Myra, died in 1912 at 2 weeks of age. William Wilson Vincent was born on 13 October 1913 at Dunedin. Isaac enlisted soon after the outbreak of war, doing so on 21 September 1914 at Dunedin. On 20 October, with the Veterinary Mobile Corps, he was among the Dunedin men who went North by the first express en route to Trentham to form part of the first reinforcement of the main Expeditionary Force. He was married with one child. He was however, rejected as unfit for the military forces when he was thrown from his horse at Trentham. Come August 1915, and Isaac Vincent, butcher, Dunedin, had been passed fit for service. He re-enlisted on 20 October 1915 at Trentham. He named his wife as next-of-kin – Mrs I. Vincent, 16 John Street, Caversham, and later 67a Harrow Street, Dunedin. Another child was born to Isaac and Alice on 10 December 1915 – Doris Alma Vincent. Private I. Vincent embarked with the Otago Infantry Battalion of the 9th Reinforcements, departing from Wellington for Suez, Egypt, 8 January 1916 per the “Maunganui”. He was discharged on 16 June 1919, on the termination of his period of engagement. He had served overseas in Egypt and Western Europe for more than three years and received the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. Isaac Vincent died on 4 September 1953 at Stratford, aged 65 years, and was buried at Koputama Cemetery, Stratford, a services marker over his grave. Alice died on 3 July 1968 at Dunedin Public Hospital and was cremated at Andersons Bay. His uncle, Thomas Wild, also served in World War One. A nephew, Malcolm Vincent, was killed in action in 1945 in Italy.

Sources

Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [27 June 2023]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [27 June 2023]; Industrial School Admission records (Archives NZ) [27 June 2023]; Koputama Cemetery, Stratford, headstone transcription [27 June 2023]; Koputama Cemetery burial record (Stratford District Council) [27 June 2023]; Evening Star, 21 October 1914, 21 August 1915 (Papers Past) [27 June 2023]

External Links

• Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph record
• Military personnel file

Related Documents

No documents available. 

Researched and Written by

Teresa Scott, South Canterbruy Genealogy Society

Currently Assigned to

Not assigned.