HOOPER, Reginald Charles
(Service number 62569)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Private |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 5 June 1890 | Place of Birth | Timaru |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | 27 June 1917 | Age | 27 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | 16 Herne Bay Road, Ponsonby, Auckland | ||
| Occupation | Agent (C. Hooper, Auckland) | ||
| Previous Military Experience | 3rd Auckland Regiment | ||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | Mr C. H. HOOPER (father), 16 Herne Bay Road, Ponsonby, Auckland | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | New Zealand Expeditionary Force | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | 31st Reinforcements, Canterbury Infantr Regiment, C Company | ||
| Date | 16 November 1917 | ||
| Transport | Tahiti | ||
| Embarked From | Wellington | Destination | Liverpool, Merseyside, England |
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | Auckland Infantry Regiment | ||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | Western European | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Medals | 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 | 14 May 1965 | Age | 74 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Auckland | ||
| Cause | |||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Waimumete Cemetery, Auckland | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | |||
Biographical Notes
Reginald Charles Hooper was born on 5 June 1890 at Timaru, the eldest son of Charles Horace and Jane Rule (née Tonkin) Hooper. Charles and Jane who were both from England married in 1889 in New Zealand. A second child was born at Timaru – Essie Emma Hooper in 1891. The family then moved to Auckland where two more sons were born.
Reginald was an agent for his father when he enlisted on 27 June 1917. He had served with the 3rd Auckland Regiment. Single and either Roman Catholic or Anglican, he named his father as next-of-kin – Mr C. H. Hooper, 16 Herne Bay Road, Ponsonby, Auckland. On 24 September 1917 at Trentham, he stated to the medical authorities that he had injured his left should two years prior, and his medical adviser told him that his left clavicle had been broken and united in a faulty position. Since then he had done no heavy work. There was severe pain in the left shoulder when he carried a heavy load, and he found it impossible on account of the pain to carry his rifle at the slope. The examining medic noted that his left shoulder was lower than the right and there was a slight irregularity of the clavicle, but the muscles of his left arm were well developed. Private R. C. Hooper embarked with the Canterbury Infantry Regiment of the 31st Reinforcements, leaving Wellington for Liverpool, England per the “Tahiti” on 16 November 1917. Private Hooper embarked at Liverpool on 19 December 1918 per the “Oxfordshire” to return to New Zealand. He was discharged on 2 March 1919 and awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
He married Mary Maud Watkins in 1920. They had one daughter before divorcing in 1938. He next married Doris Catherine Bint in 1939. They had two daughters and a son, and also a stillborn child. Reginald Charles Hooper died on 14 May 1965 at Auckland, aged 74 years. He was buried in Waikumete Cemetery with Doris who had died in June 1964. His father had died in 1926 and his mother in 1945. His brother Albert Horace Hooper also served in World War One.
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [31 August 2024]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [31 August 2024]; Ruru Lawn Cemetery burial record (Christchurch City Council) [24 October 2020]; Waikumete Cemetery burial records [31 August 2024]; Waikumete Cemetery headstone image (Find A Grave) [31 August 2024]
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