KENT, Frederick James
(Service number 78342)
| First Rank | Private | Last Rank | Private |
|---|
Birth
| Date | 01/11/1897 | Place of Birth | Lyttelton |
|---|
Enlistment Information
| Date | 20 December 1917 | Age | 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address at Enlistment | Bricknor Street, Templeton | ||
| Occupation | Labourer (NZ Refrigerating Co) | ||
| Previous Military Experience | 13 Regiment Territorials - still serving | ||
| Marital Status | Single | ||
| Next of Kin | Mrs M. KENT (mother), Bricknor Street, Templeton, Christchurch | ||
Military Service
| Served with | NZ Armed Forces | Served in | Army |
|---|
Embarkation Information
| Body on Embarkation | New Zealand Expeditionary Force | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit, Squadron, or Ship | 39th Reinforcements, C Company | ||
| Date | 13 June 1918 | ||
| Transport | Athenic | ||
| Embarked From | Destination | Liverpool, Merseyside, England | |
| Other Units Served With | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Last Unit Served With | Canterbury Infantry Regiment | ||
Military Awards
| Campaigns | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Service Medals | British War 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 | 31 March 1972 | Age | 74 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Death | Christchurch | ||
| Cause | |||
| Memorial or Cemetery | Memorial Garden Crematorium, Harewood, Christchurch | ||
| New Zealand Memorials | |||
Biographical Notes
Frederick James Kent was born on 1 November 1897 at Lyttelton, the fourth son of Thomas and Mary (née Kempthorne) Kent. He was educated at several schools in Canterbury, starting at Westerfield and moving to Rakaia in October 1906. In July 1907 he was admitted to Culverden School and in May 1908 to Christchurch East for a few weeks. In September 1908, Frederick and his younger brother Percy were admitted to Springbrook School south of Timaru. Their mother was at Home Station. Their mother, Mary Kent, had applied for a separation order against her husband, Thomas Kent. The Magistrate granted the order, giving her custody of the children under sixteen, Kent ot pay £1 a week maintenance. Prison sentences were imposed on Thomas Kent later in 1908 and throughout 1909 for failure to comply with the maintenance order. Frederick and Percy moved to Templeton School 13 months later, and Frederick left Templeton for Islington Factory at the age of fifteen.
The ground of appeal of Frederick James Kent, labourer, of Templeton, on 15 January 1918, was that he was the main support of his mother and invalid sister. The appeal was dismissed, but he was allowed until 1 April. His name had been drawn in the First Division Ballot at the end of November 1917. So, F. J. Kent was off to a training camp on 5 April 1918, with the Christchurch draft of the Fortieth Reinforcements. Private F. J. Kent embarked with the 39th Reinforcements, leaving for Liverpool, England, by the “Athenic” on 13 June 1918. In late July 1919, Mrs Kent of Templeton received word that her son, Private F. J. Kent, was expected home about 14 August.
Having embarked on 4 July 1919 at Liverpool to return to New Zealand by the “Port Hacking”, he arrived on 20 August. He was discharged on 17 September 1919 and awarded the British War Medal.
Frederick married Winifred Pearl Jewell in 1935. He died on 31 March 1972 at Christchurch, aged 74 years, and was cremated at the Memorial Garden Crematorium Chapel at Harewood. He was survived by his wife, two daughters, his sister Christina (Teen) and his brother Perce. Winifred who died in July 1974 was also cremated at Harewood.
Sources
Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [08 October 2022]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [09 October 2022]; School Admission records (Ashburton, Canterbury & South Canterbury branches NZSG) [09 October 2022]; Star, 23 June 1908, 4 December 1917, Sun, 15 January 1918, Press, 6 April 1918, 1 April 1972, 19 July 1974, Lyttelton Times, 13 July 1919 (Papers Past) [10 October 2022]
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Researched and Written by
Teresa Scott, SC Genealogy Society
Currently Assigned to
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Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License unless otherwise stated.