Birth

Enlistment Information

Military Service

Embarkation Information

Military Awards

Death

Biographical Notes

Garret Allen was born on 28 October 1882 at Rangitata, the third son of Alexander Mair and Mary Ellen (Ellen, née Scollard) Allan. Scottish-born Alexander and Irish-born Ellen married in New Zealand in 1875. They had five sons and three daughters, one son dying in 1891 at 19 months. Little William had climbed up on a low chair to get his hat off a box and fallen between the chair and the box. He seemed unharmed for about an hour then went into a fit and died. The children were all educated at Rangitira Valley School, Garret starting there shortly after his fifth birthday. On 23 December 1890, the annual treat was given to the school’s scholars – sports, tea and the distribution of prizes. Garret Allan was recognised for his second placing in Standard I. The annual distribution of prizes in December 1891 followed an ample dinner under shady trees and a lengthy programme of sports in an adjoining paddock. Garret was awarded fourth prize for Standard I, his older brother James also being amongst the prize recipients. Friday, 22 December 1893 was the day for the annual school treat, which followed the successful pattern of earlier years. Garret was presented with a prize for 2nd in Standard III. And in 1894 his prize was for third place in Standard IV. On 11 June 1893, prizes were presented to scholars of the Rangitira Valley Sunday School. Garret was rewarded in the Second Class, Isabella, James and Ellen also being rewarded in their respective classes. At the Rangitira Sabbath School in June 1897 when every pupil was given a book, he received second prize for Class I and his sister Hannah received first prize for Class III. The first meeting of creditors regarding the bankruptcy of Alexander Mair Allan, of Waitohi, farmer, was held in mid-June 1888. He had applied for an order of discharge in March 1886, which was granted. An order for discharge was applied for again in September 1888. A. M. Allan was still a farmer at Waitohi when he gave evidence in court on 4 March 1889. At the beginning of February 1904, Mr W. Wright, of Rangitira Valley, requested necessary alterations to be made on the Temuka Road Board roll, as he had sold his farm in lots (enumerated) to Messrs J. Davey, J. Talbot, A. M. Allan, Alex. Allan, Jas. Allan, and E. F. O’Neil; that is Alexander Mair Allan and his two oldest sons, Alexander and James.

Garret Allan, farmer at Rangitata, was a witness to his sister Isabella’s marriage at the family home at Rangatira Valley in 1908. Mrs A. M. (Ellen) Allan died on 18 November 1910 at her Rangitira Valley residence and was buried at Temuka. For several years her loving family inserted a memorial notice in the newspaper – (1911) “How wo miss thee dearest mother, None but our sad hearts can tell. A place is vacant in our home Which never can be filled. Rest, dear mother, your work is o’er, Your loving hands will toil no more, Till God alone did think it best, To ease yon from suffering and give you rest, But in heaven we hope to meet.” (1912) “Two long years have passed, dear mother, Since you crossed the great divide; There to wait your loved ones’ coming In the land beyond the tide, Two years have passed, our hearts are sore, As time goes on we miss you more, Your loving voice, your welcome face, There’s none can fill our mother’s place.”

For many years Garret farmed at Rangitira Valley. In February 1917 he was called up, his name being one of over 600 South Canterbury men drawn in the fourth ballot. At the sitting of the Military Appeal Board held at Timaru on 15 March 1917, Garret Allan, farmer, Temuka, asked to be allowed till June 30. He was part owner, with his brother (probably James), in a farm of 158 acres. He was given till June 20. He had been medically examined at Timaru on 24 February. Standing at 5 feet 7 inches, weighing 145 pounds, and with a chest measurement of 36-38¼ inches, he had a fair complexion, blue eyes and dark hair. His sight, hearing, colour vision, heart and lungs were all normal; his limbs and chest well formed. He had had no illnesses, was free from diseases , was vaccinated, and was in good bodily and mental health - Class A. He enlisted at Timaru that same day. Single and Presbyterian, he named his brother as next-of-kin – Mr James Allan, Rangatira Valley, Temuka.

It was on 22 June 1917 that Garret Allan, of Rangitira Valley, and ten comrades were guests at a send-off for the 31st Reinforcements in the Temuka Drill Hall. The Temuka Brass Band and Pipe Band played selections outside the hall. The programme was in the hands of Major Kennedy of Geraldine. After the National Anthem was sung, the Geraldine Orchestra rendered a selection in splendid style, followed by many musical and vocal items, all of which were loudly applauded and encored. The departing soldiers were then presented with “holdalls”. More entertainment of a high calibre followed. A hearty vote of thanks was proposed to the performers, who had come all the way from Geraldine, not only to entertain the audience, but principally to do honour to the men who were doing their duty for their fellow citizens. The National Anthem was then sung to the accompaniment of the orchestra, after which cheers were given for the boys at the front, and for the boys who were going away. It was then on 25 June that the men from the Geraldine and Temuka districts, who were going into camp at Trentham to join the 31st Reinforcements, were entertained at luncheon by the ladies of the Temuka Patriotic Entertainment Committee. Addressing the men who were leaving, Mr Gunnion (chairman of the Temuka Patriotic Entertainment Committee) wished them good luck and said he hoped they would have a safe journey, do their duty as Britishers and come back as sound and well as they were then. At the call of Mr Gunnion, all joined in singing “For they are jolly good fellows.” Mr C. J. Talbot, member for the district, said that it was essential to send the men away with smiling faces, and “it was quite right and proper that we should have send-offs to send them away with as good cheer as possible.” After the roll was then called, a procession was formed and, headed by the Brass Band, the men marched to the railway station, where more addresses were made and Mr Torepe’s Singing Company sang several songs, concluding with “God he with you till we meet again.” As the train left the men were cheered again and again. One of those men was G. Allan. Then again, on 6 August 1917 at the Temuka railway station, was Private Allan, one of a number of soldiers (29th Reinforcements) who had been spending their final leave with their relatives and friends or were returning to their duties in camp. The Mayor tendered to them the town and district’s best wishes, and hopes for their safe return. As the train steamed away, the departing men were cheered again and again, the men heartily responding. These Temuka soldiers had arrived at Temuka on final leave on 27 July. He had been posted to the 29th Reinforcements on 26 June 1917.

Private G. Allan embarked with the Canterbury Infantry Regiment of the 29th Reinforcements, leaving from Wellington per the “Ruahine” (Transport No. 92) on 15 August 1917. He was admitted to the Ship’s Hospital on 23 August with synovitis of the left knee after falling on his kneecap during rough weather. He was discharged on 28 August, cured. Disembarking at Glasgow, Scotland on 2 October 1917, he marched into Sling the next day and was posted to the 4th Reserve Canterbury Regiment at Sling. He proceeded overseas to France with the 4th Canterbury on 11 November 1917, marching into camp at Etaples on 13 November, then joining the 2nd Canterbury Infantry Regiment on 9 December. He was confined to Barracks for two days as punishment for lateness to parade on 10 August 1918 after being warned. Reported wounded, he was admitted to the Casualty Clearing Station on 24 August 1918, then to the 6th General Hospital on 25 August. He had suffered a gunshot wound to his upper right arm. Three days later he embarked for England where he was admitted to No. 1 New Zealand General Hospital at Brockenhurst on 29 August. After being transferred from Brockenhurst to the Convalescent Hospital at Hornchurch on 9 September, he was discharged from Hornchurch to Codford on 10 October, with leave until 25 October. His was reported as a not severe case. His brother, Mr James Allan, Rangitira Valley, received messages advising of his hospital admission and transfer.

He returned to New Zealand per the “Briton” (Draft 211), embarking at Plymouth on 24 December 1918 and arriving at Lyttelton on 29 January 1919. The Provisional Medical Board assembled on board the Troopship “Briton” with regard to the gunshot wound, found that he no longer required treatment and recommended demobilization, classing him A. He was discharged on 26 February 1919 and awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. “Temuka’s Greatest Day” saw over twenty boys from the Temuka district welcomed home on 30 January. Flags were suspended across King Street and on many buildings. As the train came into the station, the big crowd cheered the soldiers who soon found their family and friends. Preceded by the Temuka Pipe Band and the Juvenile Brass Band, they were conveyed to the Post Office for the official welcome and praise for their work. Three rousing cheers were given for the returned men and three more for the boys who were still to return. “They had done their duty, and brought back victory,” said the Mayor. “The war was practically finished, . . . .” He hoped that the future of the world would be better than the past. Private G. Allan was among the morning arrivals. Garret was one of 45 returned soldiers who were presented with gold medals at a most memorable gathering organised by the Waitohi Flat Presentation and Memorial Committee and held in the Waitohi schoolroom in November 1919. An enjoyable concert was provided before the returned soldiers, assembled in the front seats, were thanked and welcomed home. All involved were thanked for their kindness and mementoes of the war and the ladies of Waitohi were thanked for the much-valued parcels sent to the front.

Garrett Allan and two others who were charged with being found on licensed premises during prohibited hours on 29 March 1919, were fined 20 shillings each. Garret resumed farming at Rangitira Valley, then moved with his brother James to Springbrook, near St Andrews. While Garret remained at Springbrook through the 1940s, James moved into Timaru after the death of his wife Esther in 1948 and lived with one of his sons. In July 1943, Mr Garret Allan had made a donation to the Waimate “On to Victory” Appeal. It seems that at some time after his brother James moved away, Garret Allan developed some unacceptable behaviour. On 1 May 1952 in the Supreme Court at Timaru, he was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment with hard labour. “I don’t like sending a man of your age to imprisonment but you will have to have it impressed upon you that you must not . . . . . . . . . . . ,” said the Magistrate when he sentenced Garrett Allen, a 78-year-old pensioner, to imprisonment for six months on each of three charges . . . . . . . . . . . . at Waimate in December 1959. The terms were to be served concurrently. The accused had previously served a prison term for a similar offence, and according to the mental hospital report was not certifiable, said the Magistrate. He suggested that the Returned Services Association, which had taken an active interest in him. might find him a home when he came out of prison to keep him under supervision. In February 1960, Garrett Allan, aged 77, of Waimate, appealed against a sentence of six months’ imprisonment imposed on him in the Christchurch Magistrate’s Court on December 22 on one charge of . . . . . . . . . and two of . . . . . . . . . His Honour quashed the sentence and ordered that Allan appear for sentence if called on at any time within three years. Mr J. G. Hutchison said arrangements had been made for the appellant to be received into the Taurangi Home, Ashburton, if his appeal was allowed. His Honour said that, in view of this arrangement which had not been in existence when the appellant was originally sentenced, he would allow the appeal.

Garret’s father, Alexander Mair Allan, had died on 17 July 1926 at Christchurch and was buried at Temuka with his wife and infant son, the funeral leaving his daughter’s Waitohi residence. The family of the late Alexander Mair Allan, late of Rangitira Valley, thanked all kind friends and neighbours for their messages and expressions of sympathy in their sad bereavement. He died intestate, having cash in the Public Trust Office. Garret Allan died at Waimate on 6 May 1960, aged 77 years. After a service at Knox Presbyterian Church, he was buried in the RSA section of Waimate LawnCemetery where a services plaque marks his grave. Members of the Waimate Returned Services’ Association attended his funeral. His next-of-kin at death was James Garrett Allan, 27 Matilda Street, Timaru – his nephew. Two brothers of Garret served in World War One – Alexander Allan (oldest) and Peter Allan (youngest). Three nephews – James Garret Allan, son of his brother James, and Alexander William Allan and Mervyn Peter Allan, sons of his brother Peter – served in World War Two.

Sources

Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [25 July 2016]; NZ Defence Force Personnel Records (Archives NZ Ref. AABK 18805 W5520 0007537) [26 July 2016]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [25 July 2016]; School Admission record (South Canterbury Branch NZSG) [25 July 2016]; Timaru Herald, 7 May 1960 (Timaru District Library) [25 July 2016]; Waimate Cemetery headstone transcription (South Canterbury Branch NZSG cemetery records) [26 July 2016]; Waimate Cemetery headstone image & burial record (Waimate District Council); South Canterbury Times, 15 & 16 March 1886, 15 September 1888, 26 December 1890, Temuka Leader, 28 June 1888, 3 September 1891, 29 December 1891, 15 June 1893, 2 January 1894, 29 December 1894, 8 June 1897, 4 February 1904, 19 November 1910, 18 November 1911, 18 November 1912, 15 February 1917, 17 March 1917, 23 & 26 June 1917, 7 August 1917, 26 September 1918, 25 January 1919, 1 February 1919, Timaru Herald, 17 November 1913, 14 February 1917, 16 March 1917, 26 June 1917, 10 & 25 September 1918, 23 & 31 January 1919, 7 May 1919, 10 November 1919, 19 & 30 July 1926, 24 July 1943, NZ Times, 9 & 10 September 1918, 23 January 1919, Lyttelton Times, 11 September 1918, Otago Witness, 25 September 1918, 29 January 1919, Otago Daily Times, 24 January 1919, Press, 2 May 1952, 23 December 1959, 16 February 1960 (Papers Past) [02 July 2023; 25 September 2023, 27, 28, 29 & 31 December 2024]; NZ Electoral Rolls (ancestry.com.au) [26 July 2016; 27 December 2024]

External Links

• Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph record
• Military personnel file

Related Documents

• ALLAN Garret - newspaper clippings (pdf, 213.4 KB updated 18-Feb-2025)

Researched and Written by

Teresa Scott, SC Genealogy Scoiety

Currently Assigned to

TS