Profile

McGILLAN, Michael
(Service number 6/1358)

Aliases	McGILLAN in Nominal Rolls; McGILLEN in Archives NZ
First Rank	Private	Last Rank	Private

Birth

Date	31 December 1894	Place of Birth	Temuka

Enlistment Information

Date	20 October 1914	Age	19 years 9 months
Address at Enlistment	John Street. Temuka
Occupation	Labourer
Previous Military Experience	2nd South Canterbury Regiment
Marital Status	Single
Next of Kin	Mrs Bridget McGILLAN (McGILLEN) (mother), John Street, Temuka
Religion	Roman Catholic
Medical Information	Height 5 feet 8⅛ inches. Weight 152 lbs. Chest measurement 31-33½ inches. Complexion fair. Eyes grey. Hair light brown. Sight - both eyes 20/24. Hearing & colour vision both normal. Limbs well formed. Full & perfect movement of all joints. Chest well formed. Heart & lungs normal. Teeth fair. Free from hernia, varicocele, varicose veins, haemorrhoids, inveterate or contagious skin disease. Vaccinated. Good bodily & mental health. No slight defects.

Military Service

Served with	NZ Armed Forces	Served in	Army
Military District

Embarkation Information

Body on Embarkation	2nd Reinforcements
Unit, Squadron, or Ship	Canterbury Infantry Battalion
Date	14 December 1914
Transport	Verdala or Willochra or Knight of the Garter
Embarked From	Wellington	Destination

Other Units Served With
Last Unit Served With	Canterbury Infantry

Military Awards

Campaigns	Balkan (Gallipoli); Egyptian
Service Medals	1914-1915 Star; British War Medal; Victory Medal
Military Awards

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

Discharge

Date	7 September 1916	Reason	No longer physically fit for war service on account of wounds received in action.

Hospitals, Wounds, Diseases and Illnesses

Gunshot wound right arm

Post-war Occupations

Death

Date	7 March 1961	Age	67 years
Place of Death	Timaru
Cause	Service with the Forces
Notices	Timaru Herald, 8 March 1961
Memorial or Cemetery	Temuka Cemetery
Memorial Reference	Services Section, Row 200, Plot 14
New Zealand Memorials

Biographical Notes

Michael McGillen was the youngest son of Patrick and Bridget (née Scully) McGillen. Michael enlisted soon after the outbreak of war. His stated age was 27 years 10 months - quite at variance with his given birthdate. He was in fact only 19 years 9 months old. His bothers, John Joseph and William Peter, also served in World War one. On 15 March 1961 the War Pensions Board decided that his death was due to his service with the Forces.

Sources

Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [06 March 2017]; NZ Defence Force Personnel Records (Archives NZ ref. AABK 18805 W5544 0073289) [12 March 2017]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [06 March 2017]; Temuka Cemetery headstone image (Timaru District Council) [06 March 2017]; Roman Catholic Baptisms Timaru (Christchurch Diocese CD held by South Canterbury Branch NZSG) [12 March 2017]; Timaru Herald, 8 March 1961 (Timaru District Library) [21 March 2017]

External Links

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