Birth

Enlistment Information

Military Service

Embarkation Information

Military Awards

Death

Biographical Notes

John Francis McMillan was born on 21 August 1883 at Lake Tekapo, the eldest son of Donald and Margaret Jane (née McDowall) McMillan. Donald McMillan from Ross-shire, Scotland, first came to New Zealand in 1865. Returning in 1868 he settled in the Mackenzie Country. Donald was the licensee of the Tekapo Hotel (Tekapo House) when John was born. Donald held the licence there until 1894, but took up the licence for Burkes Pass Hotel in 1898, holding that until his detah in 1905. There Donald was buried with of John's siblings who died in infancy. John's mother, Margaret Jane McMillan, was from a family (parents and three daughters) who arrived in New Zealand in the early 1870s, and also settled in the Burke’s Pass area. She too was buried there too when she died in 1930. Along with his surviving siblings, John was educated at Burke’s Pass School. John Francis McMillan married Ada Charter on 20 October 1904 at Timaru. They had two daughters, both born at Timaru – Mavis Victoria on 24 May 1905 and Margaret Elizabeth on 19 January 1907. A third daughter, Nira Matilda, who was born in 1910, died in 1912 at 21 months. And Jean Aubrey, a post-war baby, died in 1934 at the age of twelve. John McMillan, a blacksmith of Kimbell, South Canterbury, enlisted on 12 January 1916 at Trentham. Sapper McMillan embarked with the New Zealand Field Engineers of the 12th Reinforcements at Wellington, bound for Suex, Egypt, on 1 May 1916 by the “Ulimaroa”. J. F. McMillan, of Timaru, where Ada was living, was one of more than 800 men who returned to New Zealand by the “Port Hacking” in August 1919. John Francis McMillan died on 22 May 1972 at Christchurch and was interred in Sydenham Cemetery with his two young daughters and his wife ada who had died in 1962. His sister, Ellen Christina McMillan (Christina), married returned soldier James McConnell in 1921, just before James died as a result of his war service.

Sources

Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph Database [21 May 2021]; NZ BDM Indexes (Department of Internal Affairs) [21 May 2021]; School Admission record (South Canterbury Branch NZSG) [22 May 2021]; Burke’s Pass and Sydenham cemeteries headstone transcriptions [22 May 2021]; Sydenham Cemetery burial record (Christchurch City Council) [22 May 2021]; Timaru Herald, 25 March 1905, 12 July 1912, 11 August 1919, 11 September 1930, Star, 2 November 1934 (Papers Past) [06 September 2014; 22 & 23 May 2021]; SCRoll web submission by L McMillan; Roger Stenhouse "Mid & South Canterbury : early hotel records" [ca.2000], held by the South Canterbruy Museum [ref: 2011/009.01]

External Links

• Auckland War Memorial Museum Cenotaph record
• Military personnel file

Related Documents

No documents available. 

Researched and Written by

Teresa Scott, SC branch NZSG

Currently Assigned to

Not assigned.