Profile

POLSON, Donald John
(Service number 35981; 933)

Aliases Enlisted as Donald
First Rank Corporal Last Rank Corporal

Birth

Date 10/10/1870 Place of Birth Timaru

Enlistment Information

Date 13 November 1916 Age
Address at Enlistment 48 College Street, Wellington
Occupation Clerk
Previous Military Experience
Marital Status Single
Next of Kin (1) Mrs R. POLSON (mother), 2 Disraeli Street, Addington, Christchurch; (2) G. M. POLSON (brother), Public Works Department, Westport
Religion Presbyterian
Medical Information

Military Service

Served with NZ Armed Forces Served in Army
Military District

Embarkation Information

Body on Embarkation New Zealand Mounted Rifles
Unit, Squadron, or Ship 8th Contingent
Date 7 June 1917
Transport Surrey
Embarked From Destination
Other Units Served With
Last Unit Served With Canterbury Mounted Rifles

Military Awards

Campaigns
Service Medals
Military Awards Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (DSO); Mentioned in Despatches (MiD)

Award Circumstances and Date

DSO London Gazette, 19 April 1901 "In recognition of services during the operations in South Africa (Especially for services in North West Transvaal.)"

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

Discharge

Date 11 October 1919 Reason No longer physically fit on account of illness contraced on active service.

Hospitals, Wounds, Diseases and Illnesses

Post-war Occupations

Death

Date 17 September 1930 Age 60 years
Place of Death Wairau Hospital, Blenheim
Cause Disease - myocardial degeneration
Notices
Memorial or Cemetery Omaka Cemetery, Blenheim
Memorial Reference RSA Section, Block D, Plot 9
New Zealand Memorials

Biographical Notes

Donald John Polson, born on 10 October 1870 at Timaru, was the eldest son of George McLeod and Robertina (née Gunn) Polson, both of whom came from Helmsdale, Caithness, Scotland. Donald had a notable miliyary career, serving in the South frica War, with distinction, in World War One, and with the Forces post World War One.

Sources

Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database (incomplete study) [04 May 2017]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [04 May 2017]; Omaka Cemetery, Blenheim, headstone transcription (South Canterbury Branch NZSG cemetery records) [04 May 2017]

External Links

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