James George Paterson
Died 25 Apr 1915
- Service number
- WWI 12/834 AWMM
- Also known as
- Patterson AWMM
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- Last rank
- WW1 Private AWMM Auckland Infantry Battalion AWMM
- War
- World War I, 1914-1918 AWMM
About
- Title
- —
- Forenames
- James George AWMM
- Surname
- Paterson AWMM
- Ingoa
- —
- Also known as
- Patterson AWMM
- Service number
- WWI 12/834 AWMM
- Gender
- Male AWMM
- Iwi / Hapū / Waka / Rohe
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- Religion
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Images
Documents
About birth
- Birth
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- Date of birth
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- Place of birth
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- Birth notes
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- Address before enlistment
- Unknown AWMM Otahuhu, Auckland, New Zealand AWMM
- Post war occupation
- —
- Next of kin
- James George Paterson, Otahuhu, Auckland, New Zealand AWMM
- Relationship status
- Pre 16 Oct 1914 AWMM Single AWMM
Wars and conflicts
- War
- World War I, 1914-1918 AWMM
- Campaign
- 1915-1916 AWMM Gallipoli AWMM
- Armed force / branch
- Army AWMM
- Service number
- WWI 12/834 AWMM
- Military service
- —
- Promotions/ Postings/ Transfers
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Military decorations
- Medals and Awards
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Training and Enlistment
- Military training
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- Branch Trade Proficiency
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- Enlistment
- WW1 Unknown AWMM
- Age on enlistment
- —
- Occupation before enlistment
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Embarkations
- Embarkation details
- WW1 16 Oct 1914-03 Dec 1914 AWMM
HMNZT 8 or HMNZT 12 AWMM Vessel was Star of India or Waimana AWMM Private AWMM Auckland Infantry Battalion AWMM Main Body AWMM
Prisoner of war
- Capture details
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- Days interned
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- Liberation date
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- POW liberation details
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- Liberation Repatriation
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- POW serial number
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Medical history
- Medical notes
- Killed in Action, Cause of Death AWMM
Last known rank
- Last rank
- WW1 Private AWMM
Auckland Infantry Battalion AWMM - Last rank
- —
Biographical information
- Son of Mr. and Mrs. James George Paterson, of Fairburn Rd., Otahuhu, Auckland. Of Chinese descent.
Next of Kin: Mr J. G. Paterson, Fairburn Rd, Otahuhu (Roll of Honour, Auckland Province 1914-1918 (Volume 2)) AWMM - James George Paterson was born in Palmerston North on 17 July 1894. His maternal grandfather was John Jackson who was a Chinese immigrant who came to New Zealand from Hongkong in 1844, was naturalized in 1870, and lived in Palmerston North where he was a chef at the Commercial Hotel. James’ paternal family were Scottish immigrants who settled in Central Otago during the gold rush.
One week after WW1 was declared, James volunteered for military service and was assigned to 16th Waikato (D) Company, Auckland Infantry Battalion with the rank of private. At the time, James worked as a farmer in Papatoetoe and lived with his parents in nearby Otahuhu.
The Auckland Infantry Battalion was based at Alexandra Park in Auckland and James commenced his training there on 13 August 1914. Training was not that hard with the highlight being a 15 mile route march south, returning the next day. After a farewell on Auckland Domain, the Battalion boarded HMNZT 12 (ss Waimana) on 22 September 1914 and eventually sailed for Wellington on 11 October to join the Main Body convoy. They departed Wellington on 16th arriving in Port Suez via Albany and Colombo on 3 December 1914 and proceeded to Zeitoun Camp, outside Cairo, where they trained. On 10 April the Battalion boarded the troopship Lutzow at Alexandria and headed to Lemnos to await the now eagerly anticipated “great adventure”. On the 24th, Lutzow took it place in the fleet and sailed towards the Turkish coast.
The Auckland Infantry, including Private Paterson commenced their landing at 8am on 25 April and were all ashore by 9.30am with few casualties. They discarded their packs and heavy equipment and headed over Plugges Plateau and down to Monash Gully for the uphill climb to Walker’s Ridge to reinforce the Australian Infantry who had landed earlier that day. James’ company was in the lead but soon fell into disarray because of the enemy sniper and machine-gun fire and overhead shrapnel as well as the thick scrub and congestion in Shrapnel Gully. They initially reached Pope’s Hill and from there pushed towards Baby 700 by which time they were mixed in with Australian troops. The enemy defence was intense.
“All through the afternoon the Turks pressed on the thinning line, creeping up through the scrub, cutting off small parties, sniping, machine-gunning, crawling out on the exposed flanks, enfilading the torn ranks, and all the time their terrible shrapnel pelted and tore. Smoke, dust, heat, the air whining, singing, trembling, with the screeching shells and the flying fragments, rifle barrels red hot with constant firing, dead and dying all around - this was war” (O. E. Burton. “The Auckland Regiment”, p. 29).
The 16th Waikato Company lost 36 men killed including Private Paterson during the assault on Baby 700. James was initially reported “Missing” however it was not until a Board of Inquiry on 16 January 1916 that he was reported “Dead”.
On 25 April 1915, Private James George Paterson earned the dubious honour of being the first New Zealand soldier of Chinese decent to pay the ultimate sacrifice in War. They were considered aliens and therefore only 50 Chinese had managed to join the NZEF during the entire war.
A Memorial Plaque was awarded to the next of kin of those killed while serving during the WW1. James’ was donated to Auckland Museum by his family and now hangs as a public tribute to his supreme sacrifice.Public - Phil - Researcher - 19 February 2017 - Military Personnel File.
O. E. Burton. “The Auckland Regiment”, p. 29.
Alastair Kennedy. "Chinese ANZACS". Wellington: NZ Chinese Association, 2015.
Manawatu Standard, 22 January 1910. Retrieved from https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/MS19100122.2.23 - Date of birth is given on enlistment form as 17 July 1894.Public - Karl Nicholas - Researcher - 15 April 2015 - Military personnel file
http://ndhadeliver.natlib.govt.nz/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?dps_pid=IE19495405
- Son of Mr. and Mrs. James George Paterson, of Fairburn Rd., Otahuhu, Auckland. Of Chinese descent.
About death
- Death
- 25 Apr 1915 AWMM
- Date of death
- —
- Age at death
- —
- Place of death
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- Cause of death
- Killed in Action AWMM
- Death notes
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- Cemetery
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- Cemetery name
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- Grave reference
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- Obituary
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- Memorial name
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- Memorial reference
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Memorial
- Memorial name
- Lone Pine Memorial, Lone Pine Cemetery, Anzac, Turkey AWMM
- Auckland War Memorial Museum, World War 1 Hall of Memories AWMM
Related objects
Sources
- External links
- Military personnel file
https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search/#/entity/aims-archive/R20799329
Further Reference - A Street Near You record
https://astreetnearyou.org/person/720392/-
Further Reference - Commonwealth War Graves Commission Casualty record
https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/720392
Further Reference
- Military personnel file
- References
- New Zealand Army Expeditionary Force. (1914-1919). Nominal Rolls of New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Volume I. Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
Page No: 567 - Kennedy, A. (2015). Chinese Anzacs : Australians of Chinese descent in the defence forces 1885-1919 (revised to include New Zealand-born Chinese of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force 1914-1919) (2nd ed). Wellington: New Zealand Chinese Association.
- Beattie, P.J. & Pomeroy, M. (2013-2020). Onward : portraits of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (vols 1-5). Auckland, New Zealand: Fair Dinkum Publications
Vol. 5: Includes portrait - Roll of Honour, Auckland Province (digital copy), 1914 - 1919. Auckland War Memorial Museum Library. MS-2016-2.
- Waite, F. (1919). The New Zealanders at Gallipoli. Auckland, N.Z.: Printed and published under Authority of the New Zealand Government by Whitcombe & Tombs.
- New Zealand Army Expeditionary Force. (1914-1919). Nominal Rolls of New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Volume I. Wellington, N.Z.: Govt. Printer.
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