Birth

Enlistment Information

Military Service

Embarkation Information

Military Awards

Death

Biographical Notes

John Rutherford who was known as Jack was born on 16 September 1885 at Timaru, the third son of John Scott and Mary Elizabeth (née Brown) Rutherford, although the first-born John had died in infancy. John was baptized on 17 November 1893 at St Alban’s Anglican Church, Pleasant Point, his younger brother Edmund baptized a week prior. John Scott and Mary Elizabeth married in 1873 at Timaru. John was born in New South Wales of Scottish parents and Mary was born in England. Sadly, Mary Elizabeth Rutherford – “a model wife and mother” - died in December 1910 after a lengthy illness (paralysis), leaving her husband and three sons. They had lost not only a son in 1883 but their only daughter, Isabella, in 1892 at the age of 13. Mrs Rutherford was buried at Albury Cemetery on Christmas Day. No school records have been identified for Jack and his siblings, although their parents resided at their Opawa Station at Albury throughout their formative years. His father John was very active and generous in the Albury-Chamberlain-Mount Nessing district, being involved in so many groups, including the Albury School. Jack was into football. “Jack Rutherford made an easy going but safe fullback” playing for Albury against Cricklewood in July 1909, in one of the hardest and best games of the competition. In 1911 John, junior, was a farmer at Opawa, presumably on the home property. At the October 1909 meeting of the Canterbury Land Board, the application was granted for J. S. Rutherford to transfer Pastoral Run No. 80, Mistake Station, 62,000 acres, to John Rutherford, jun., of Mistake Station, Lake Tekapo. John Rutherford sold his Mistake Station in 1912. By reason of the large number of sheep that had been lost there it was named “the graveyard of the Mackenzie”.

On a Friday night in mid-March 1915, Mr Jack Rutherford, of Rangitata (second son of Mr J. S. Rutherford, of Opawa, Albury), was seriously hurt in an accident at Sutherlands. He was on his way home, riding a motor bicycle, when his dust coat became entangled in the wheel of the motor, and the machine, skidding right across the road, capsized heavily. He was picked up in an unconscious state and conveyed to the Peasant Point private hospital, where his injuries were attended to, his coat having to be all cut away before he could be extricated from the motor. He suffered from severe concussion of the brain. Later in March 1915, John Scott Rutherford – known locally as “Laird of Opawa” or “Lord Chamberlain” – “was in his element . . . . . when he had neighbouring farmers with their wives and children at his homestead, for the picnic which he inaugurated last year and intends to make an annual fixture.” He had sold Chamberlain to the Government for settlement just after the turn of the century. About 170 locals enjoyed a great day in the garden bedecked with flags, playing games, being entertained by the Fairlie Pipe Band, participating in various competitions, and indulging in an inexhaustible supply of refreshments. A concert was held at Albury in the evening, the festivities closing with the National Anthem.

John married Lily Edith Wilson on 27 October 1915 at Turakina. The people of Albury wanted to give Lily a hearty welcome to her new home at Opawa, as a mark of the respect they had for John. So, they gathered at Opawa Station, Albury on 5 December. Like his father, young John was a generous man and very supportive of the local folk. He requested that the people go to no expense, he would himself foot all the bills. The Fairlie pipers were engaged for the occasion, and they marched at the head of a procession of l50 men and women up the drive leading to Mr Rutherford’s homestead, where they were met by Mr and Mrs Rutherford, who invited them in. Before them was a lavish “spread”. “They did not know her very well yet, but they knew that as Mr Rutherford had chosen her for a wife, she must be a woman worthy of all the honour they could do her.” Speeches were interspersed by numerous songs and recitations until the gathering concluded in the early hours of the next morning. The marriage of Jack and Lily was recorded in the register of Chalmers Presbyterian Church, Timaru as taking place there. Jack’s father, John Scott Rutherford, married Alice Beatrice Bowen, also of Turakina, in December 1915. Alice supported John in all his philanthropic and official activities.

Come January 1917 and John Rutherford, junr., a sheep farmer at Coal Hill, Peel Forest, was drawn in the Third Ballot under the Military Service Act for the South Canterbury district. When the Second Military Service Board for Canterbury sat on 28 February 1917 in Timaru, John Rutherford, junr., sheep farmer, Peel Forest, appealed on the grounds of financial obligations. He had a sheep farm of 4501 acres, which was snowbound in winter and required special knowledge to work. He had four men on the place, and he had tried to get a manager but could not get one. He had enlisted at the beginning of the war but had been told that he was too tall and too heavy. “Too good a mark for the bullets, I suppose,” the chairman quipped. The appeal was dismissed, and appellant was given to April 30. John Rutherford had been medically examined on 2 February 1917 at Timaru. He was indeed a big man, standing at 6 feet 4 inches, weighing 170 pounds, and having a chest measurement of 36½-39 inches. His complexion was fair, his eyes grey, and his hair fair. While his sight in his right eye was 6/9, his left eye was normal, as were his hearing, colour vision, heart and lungs. His limbs and chest were well formed. He had had no illnesses or fits, was free from diseases, and was in good bodily and mental health. The only slight defect was not sufficient to cause rejection - presumably the “weak knees” he stated he suffered from. He was rated fit, Class A.

John Rutherford had enlisted on 28 February 1917 at Timaru. Of Church of England allegiance, he named his wife as next-of-kin – Mrs L. E. Rutherford, Coal Hill, Peel Forest. There was a send-off to the Geraldine district recruits at the drill hall on 28 April 1917. As the date of their departure had been altered three times, the function was arranged at very short notice. Consequently, only three of the eleven local men going with the draft attended, the others, including J. Rutherford, spending their last evening with family and friends. John left South Canterbury, with the Temuka and Geraldine quota of the 29th Reinforcements, on 30 April 1917, at short notice because of transport rearrangements. There were a three-course luncheon and a few formalities at Temuka. Mr T. Gunnion in a short speech said that all were proud of the Temuka and Geraldine men; and the Rev. C. Macdonald commented that, by the newspapers, things were going well at the front and were moving in the right direction. Thus, these men were being sent to make sure of the final victory and to provide backing for the men at the front. If only that had been the case. He wished them God's blessing and a safe return home. After badges were pinned on to the coats of the young soldiers, the proceedings terminated with the National Anthem. The soldiers were then marched outside the hall, the roll was called, and headed by the Brass and Pipe Bands, a procession marched to the railway station. We are proud to see the boys going away and we would be still more glad to see them coming back after vanquishing the foe, said the Mayor. There with the departing Infantry was J. Rutherford, junior.

At Trentham, he was transferred to Details and to the 30th Reinforcements on 10 September. In the event, Private J. Rutherford embarked with the 30th Reinforcements, departing from Wellington for Liverpool, England per the “Corinthic” on 13 October 1917 and, disembarking at Liverpool, England, on 8 December, he marched into Sling with the Otago Infantry Regiment that day. On 8 February 1918, Jack marched out from Sling and was admitted to the City Fever Hospital at Edinburgh (Military Hospital Edinburgh Castle) with severe and life-threatening measles (marked prostration, myocardial weakness, poor circulation, faintness on exertion). After being transferred to No. 2 Scotland General Hospital at Craigleith, Edinburgh on 10 April 1918, he was transferred to Walton on 13 April and from there to Hornchurch on 4 May 1918. He was classified unfit on 11 July 1918. Invalided on 24 August 1918, he had been unable to do any training at Hornchurch and could not go overseas.

J. Rutherford, 53985, returned home on Troopship 187, in September 1918. The “Ionic” which carried a large number of invalided and wounded soldiers, left Plymouth on 24 August 1918 and arrived at Auckland on 6 October. Officers and men on the troopship complained of the fare and accommodation. Some of the returning men were forced to purchase extra supplies from the ship’s staff. One dormitory was said to be overcrowded. During this same voyage an experiment was made to provide daily instruction for soldiers – farming (the most popular), commerce, economics, English history, general knowledge, French, English, mathematics, technics, shorthand, book-keeping, chemistry, and architecture.

Returning to Peel Forest, he was granted a week’s sick leave. The proceedings of the Medical Board assembled at sea on the “Ionic” found that he was suffering from shortness of breath, cough pain in the chest, noticeable loss of weight, but had shown marked improvement lately. The Provisional Medical Board assembled on the “Ionic” at Auckland on 6 October 1918 found that he was suffering from chronic pulmonary disease and recommended that he be treated at Timaru Hospital. The Medical Board convened at the New Zealand Convalescent Hospital at Hornchurch in early July 1918 had found that his disability was aggravated by Active Service, ruling him unfit for War Service for nine months and unfit for Home Service for six months. The origin of his disability was uncertain. In 1917 he had been ill with pleurisy for three months and had not felt well since then. Another Medical Board was assembled at the Drill Hall, Timaru, on 9 January 1919. His disability – chronic pulmonary disease – was constitutional and resulted in debility. Although progress was satisfactory, his disability was likely to be permanent. His capacity for earning a full livelihood was lessened by one quarter. No longer physically fit for war service (chronic pulmonary disease), he was discharged on 6 February 1919 and awarded the British War Medal.

While John, junior, and Lily Rutherford farmed variously at Peel Forest, Orton and Ruapuna before retiring to the Downs, Geraldine, his father John Scott Rutherford and Alice remained at Albury where their hospitality was legendary. In April 1919, five car-loads of returned soldiers and nurses from the Orthopedic Hospital and the Public Hospital, numbering 81, travelled to their Opawa residence, where they were “entertained right royally”. Such outings were most beneficial to the men. “The generosity and hospitality of Mr and Mrs J. S. Sutherland, Opawa, has become proverbial throughout South Canterbury, and was again demonstrated in a very practical manner last Friday evening [mid-October 1919], when the people of the Mt. Nessing and Chamberlain settlement met as their guests in the Mt. Nessing Hall, in order to accord a fitting welcome home to all the men of the district who have seen service and have been spared to return after doing their bit for King and Country.” Several marquees (dining room, card and games room, ladies’ room) were erected to cater for the large crowd. The Fairlie Pipe Band was “commandeered” by Mr Rutherford in order to do fitting honour to the occasion, and a concert was held. “Before the supper interval, to the stirring strains of martial airs, sixteen returned men marched through the hall to the platform amid a scene of great enthusiasm.” Was John junior one of those men?

Jack and Lily were also very much involved in community life - with the protection of the Milford Lagoon, the Peel Forest Horticultural Society, the A. and P. Association, the Peel Forest Rifle Club, Women’s Institute. They were recognised for their hospitality and for their interest in local causes. John Scott Rutherford, No. 53985, 1st N.Z.E.F., died at his residence, The Downs, Geraldine on 18 October 1965, aged 80 years. After a service at St Mary’s Church, Geraldine, he was interred privately in the Arundel Cemetery, the inscription reading John Scott Rutherford. When Lily died in May 1975, she was interred there with him. John left a very precise Will. While he bequeathed the whole of his estate to his wife Lily Edith Rutherford, he bequeathed an Australian oil painting and a water colour of Opawa and Mount Cook to the Timaru Aigantighe Art Gallery, made monetary bequests to both the Geraldine Presbyterian Church and the Geraldine Anglican Church, and left money to three friends. All his trophies were to go to the Timaru Agricultural and Pastoral Society. J. Rutherford’s name is inscribed on the Albury Football Club’s Roll of Honour for the Great War 1914-1919 in the column headed Returned. At least 69 members of the Albury football Club served in the war, 17 being killed in action.

John Scott Rutherford, senior, who had come to New Zealand with his parents and six brothers in 1860, settling in Canterbury, died at his home, Opawa Station, in April 1924 at the age of 79 and was buried at Albury with his first wife. Jack, his brother Edmund, and cousins were pallbearers. John Scott Rutherford had been at the centre of so many South Canterbury facets of life. His generosity to the Albury Catholic Church at its foundation and his virtues were noted. His generosity had also contributed to the opening of St Martin’s Anglican Church at Albury. He had had long involvement with the South Canterbury Hunt Club; he had served on the Mt Cook Road Board and the Mackenzie County Council; he was chairman of the Albury Saleyards Company, president of the Timaru A. and P. Association, a member of the Timaru Harbour Board and the South Canterbury Education Board, and more. Later in 1924, the Opawa Estate passed out of the Rutherford family. John Scott Rutherford, senior, and his brothers were all at least 6 feet 3 inches tall. Jack’s older brother, Wilfred George Rutherford, who was a sheep farmer at Waihao Downs, was listed on the Reserve Rolls. Five cousins of Jack Rutherford are known to have served in World War One – William Oliver Rutherford, Duncan Oliver Rutherford, Bertie Cecil Rutherford, Stuart Leslie Rutherford and Duncan Leslie Rutherford (with British Red Cross Ambulance Service).

Sources

Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [21 September 2014]; NZ Defence Force Personnel Records (Archives NZ Ref. AABK 18805 W5550 0101007) [18 May 2017]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [20 March 2015]; Timaru Herald, 31 August 1883, 6 September 1883, 2 September 1892, 2 April 1897, 14 December 1899, 20 July 1909, 24 December 1910, 4 March 1912, 29 March 1915, 18 October 1915, 23 December 1915, 13 January 1917, 1 & 5 March 1917, 30 April 1917, 1 May 1917, 1 October 1918, 14 April 1919, 10, 11, 12 & 19 April 1924, 28 August 1924, 2 May 1928, 20 May 1930, 4 June 1934, Temuka Leader, 9 October 1909, 24 December 1910, 1 March 1917, 28 April 1917, 1 & 3 May 1917, 1 October 1918, 12 April 1924, New Zealand Times, 30 September 1918, Evening Post, 10 April 1924, NZ Herald, 11April 1924 (Papers Past) [20 March 2015; 18 May 2017; 05 January 2020; 23 May 2020; 14 & 15 October 2023]; Arundel Cemetery headstone transcription [20 March 2015]; Arundel Cemetery headstone image (Timaru District Council) [20 March 2015]; NZ Electoral Rolls (ancestry.com.au) [20 March 2015]; Timaru Herald, 19 October 1965 (Timaru District Library) [08 January 2016]; Probate record (Archives NZ/Family Search) [25 June 2016]; Chalmers Church marriage record; St Alban’s, Pleasant Point baptism records (South Canterbury Genealogy Society records) [18 October 2023]; Christ’s College Register, December 1973 (held by South Canterbury Genealogy Society) [19 October 2023]

External Links

• Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph record
• Military personnel file
• Other military personnel file

Related Documents

• RUTHERFORD John - newspaper clippings (pdf, 196.7 KB updated 10-Nov-2023)

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