Donald William Rutledge
| Donald William Rutledge | |
|---|---|
| Born | 7 August 1891 Dunedin, New Zealand |
| 💀Died | 9 January 1956 (aged 64) Port Albert, New Zealand9 January 1956 (aged 64) |
| 💼 Occupation | |
| 👩 Spouse(s) | Mary Gatland (m. 22 November 1922, Auckland) |
| 👶 Children | Vincent Ralph Rutledge (1923-) Lois Margaret Rutledge (1926-2010) Jean Elizabeth Rutledge (1928-1942) Colleen Ann Rutledge 1931-2011) |
| 👴 👵 Parent(s) | Barret Rutledge Elizabeth Rutledge, née Donaldson |
'Donald William Rutledge' O.B.E., J.P
Donald William Rutledge[1] was born in Dunedin, New Zealand on the 7th of August 1891 and was the eldest son of Barret Rutledge (born Lyttelton, New Zealand of Irish descent) and Elizabeth (Donaldson, born Edinburgh).
WWI Military Service - New Zealand, Samoa, Gallipoli and France[edit]
At the age of 23, Donald while living at 40 Wellesley Street Auckland, enlisted[2] for service in World War I with the 1st New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Auckland Infantry Battalion on the 8th of August 1914 and was given Regimental Number 12/2560.[3] Prior to living in Auckland he had been in Wellington and served in the Wellington Highland Rifles, B Company, 5th Regiment.
Departing New Zealand on the 15th of August 1914 as part of the 1,370 strong Samoa Expeditionary Force, which was New Zealand's first action in World War I, he partook in the capture of Samoa from the Germans. The British government had indicated it would be a great and urgent Imperial service if New Zealand forces seized the German wireless station near Apia which was one of several radio stations used by the German East Asia Squadron. He returned to Wellington, New Zealand onboard the Tahune the 14th of April 1915 having embarked in Samoa on the 3rd.
He embarked for Suez on the 13th of June 1915 as part of the New Zealand 5th Reinforcement in the Machine Gun Corps. He was in Egypt between July 24 and August 6 when he was shipped out to Gallipoli, Dardenelles, Turkey to join the ANZAC troops fighting in the Gallipoli Campaign on the 8th. He was admitted to St David's hospital, Malta on the 17th and embarked for England on the 25th of August for admission to hospital in Birmingham. He was discharged from hospital on the 1st of October and returned to the Dardenelles on the 7th of December 1915. He was attached to the "miners" on the 8th.
He arrived in Alexandria on the 29th of December 1915 and was then posted to the Egyptian Expeditionary Force.
He was shipped out for France on the 7th of April 1916. He was again wounded on the 16th of June and shipped from Wimereux Hospital for London on 2 July 1916. He was discharged from hospital and transferred to Hornchurch on the 27th of July. He was shipped back to France with the NZ Machine Gun Company No4 on February 1917. He was seriously wounded on the 7th of June 1917 and shipped back to England on the 14th for treatment at the No 2 NZ General Hospital in Walton. He was classified as being unfit for military duty by a Medical Board on October 13, 1917 and embarked for New Zealand from Avonmouth onboard the New Zealand Hospital Ship "SS Marama" on the 21st of November 1917 and arrived in New Zealand on the 27th of December.
He was discharged from the New Zealand Army on the 28 March 1918 after 3 years and 232 days of active service of which 153 days were in New Zealand.
Decorations in recognition of service issued on the 1st August 1921:- 1914-1915 Star, Silver British War Medal 1914–1918, Victory Medal
Family[edit]
Donald married Mary Gatland at St Columbia Church of England, Grey Lynn, Auckland on the 22nd of November 1922. The married couple lived in Kaitaia, Northland where their family were born and Donald operated a business in town, Hairdressing and Tobacconist, from 1923 until 1938 when because of his war injuries he retired and moved to Point Chevalier, Auckland. Vincent Ralph Rutledge was born in Kaitaia on the 16th of September 1923. Vincent married Marion Lamont Murray on the 24th of May 1952 and they had one son Donald Vincent Rutledge. Lois Margaret Rutledge was born in Kaitaia on the 15th of June 1926. On the 9th of March 1948 at the age of 21 Lois married Edwin Smith (Ted Smith) at St Peters, Grey Lynn, Auckland. Lois and Ted Smith had four children who grew up in Auckland. Jean Elizabeth Rutledge was born in 1928 in Kaitaia. She was a bright happy girl but sadly she died in hospital on the 6th of July 1942 of diphtheria. Colleen Ann Rutledge was born in Kaitaia on the 7th of December 1931. Colleen met Hartley Maxwell (Max) Reid who was from Port Albert at a dance in Point Chevalier and they were married in the Anglican Church in Pt Chevalier on the 15th of November 1952. Colleen and Max had four children who grew up on the farm at Port Albert.
Community Service[edit]
Donald was a member of the Kaitaia Town Board and a foundation member of the Kaitaia Returned Services Association (RSA). He became a Life Member of the Auckland Returned Services Association having been a member of the executive for many years.
After 1938 Donald became a member of the Point Chevalier School Committee and in appreciation of his many years of service, the School's new assembly hall was named the "Rutledge Hall' at its opening in 1955. He was appointed Chairman of the Auckland Education Board's Training College Committee and a member of the Finance Committee and President of the Auckland School Committee's Association in 1954 and 1955. He became the Deputy Chairman of the Auckland Education Board from 1955 till his death. He was a member of the Point Chevalier Masonic Lodge No. 303.
Donald was appointed a Justice of the Peace in 1946.
Queen Elizabeth II invested Mr Donald William Rutledge with his O.B.E. for services to the community in the Wellington Town Hall on the 12th of January 1954 during her Royal Tour.
Donald died at the Port Albert farm of Colleen and Max Read in 1956.
External links[edit]
- Auckland Museum Cenotaph Database
- New Zealand and World War One, NZ Expeditionary Force - Samoa - 1914, Surnames M to Z
- Archives New Zealand - RUTLEDGE, Donald William - WW1 12/2560 - Army. Record Number (R20808910)
- NZ RSA Gallipoli "an abridged version of the Gallipoli Diary from Major Fred Waite DSO, The New Zealanders at Gallipoli (1919"
- NZ RSA ANZAC Remembrance Day
- Google Docs - Donald William Ruteledge
- Union Steam Ship Co - SS Marama
References[edit]
- ↑ Pat Whiting (1999), 150 Years in New Zealand - The Gatland, Buckton and Cadman Families. ISBN 0-473-06598-3
- ↑ Archives New Zealand - RUTLEDGE, Donald William - WW1 N.Z. Army - Regimental Number 12/2560. Archives Record Number R20808910
- ↑ Auckland Museum, Cenotaph Data Base. RUTLEDGE Donald William
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