SWANEY, John
(Service number 62840)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Private |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 3 June 1880 | Place of Birth | Wakanui, Ashburton |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | 17 August 1917 | Age | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | C/o Miranui Flax Mill, Shannon, Manawatu | ||
| Occupation | Flax cutter | ||
| Previous Military Experience | |||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | Mr J. SWANEY, Culverden, North 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 | Training Unit | ||
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 | 1 December 1917 | Age | 37 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Porirua Mental Hospital | ||
| Cause | Exhaustion from acute mania | ||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Karori Cemetery, Welington | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | |||
Biographical Notes
John Swaney was born on 3 June 1880 at Wakanui, Ashburton, the elder son of John and Mary Ann (formerly Stewart, née Crow) Swaney. John (from Scotland) and Mary Ann (from England) who married in 1879 in New Zealand, had two sons and two daughters. MaryAnn’s first husband died in 1877, leaving her with three little boys. John started at Rangitira Vallley School with his half-brother Peter and joined by his sister Alice and brother Albert. After transferring to Rangitata Island School with his half-brother Robert and Peter an dsister Alice a few months later, he returned Rangitira Valley in March 1891. His mother Mary Ann Swaney died at Temuka in February 1891. John Swaney senior died at Temuka in november 1933.
Perhaps John was the John Swaney, a labourer at Longburn, Kairanga, who was listed on the Reserve Rolls in 1916-1917. His name was drawn in a ballot and he enlisted at Wellington on 17 August 1917. A flax cutter at Shannon , Manawatu, single and Presbyterian, he named his father as next-of-kin – Mr J. Swaney, Culverden, North Canterbury. Posted initially to Details, Private John Swaney was transferred to the 30th Reinforcements on 22 August then to the 31st Reinforcements on 2 September. John was admitted to hospital at Featherston Camp on 20 September, suffering from acute mania, and was discharged from there on 25 September. Exhausted from acute mania, he died at Porirua Mental Hospital on 1 December 1917, aged 37 years. The beloved son of John Swaney, Culverden – “Deeply regretted.” He was buried in the Soldiers’ Section of at Karori Cemetery, Wellington, a services stone marking his grave. His burial is recorded with the Commonwealth War Graves.
Three nephews of John, sons of his brother Albert Ernest Swaney, served in World War Two – Clifford John Swaney, Albert Ernest Swaney, and Trevor James Stanley Swaney wo died in Italy in 1944. Two cousins, whose father was a brother of John Swaney and mother was a sister of Mary Ann Crow, served in World War One – Inglis McGregor Swaney and Middleton Ryburn Swaney; their brother Thomas Henry Swaney also enlisted.
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [06 September 2025]; CWGC [07 September 2025]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [06 September 2025); Dominion, 5 December 1917, NZ Times, 5 December 1917, Lyttelton Times, 12 December 1917 (Papers Past) [07 September 2025]; School Admission records (South Canterbury Branch NZSG) [06 September 2025]; Karori Cemetery headstone image (Find A Grave) [07 September 2025]
External Links
Related Documents
No documents available.
Researched and Written by
Teresa Scott, SC Geneaology Society
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!