John Flynn

John Flynn

Personal Information
Date of Birth	Not known
Place of Birth	Benalla, Victoria
Death	23 Oct 1944, aged 72
Place of Death	East Cannington, Western Australia
Age at Enlistment	41 years, 1 month
Description	5'7" (1.70m) tall ; 133lbs 60.328 kg ; fresh complexion ; blue eyes ; brown hair
Occupation	Labourer
Religion	Roman Catholic
Address	William street, East Cannington, Western Australia
Next of Kin	Wife , Mrs Bridget Flynn
Military Information
Reg Number	6988
Date of Enlistment	24 May 1916
Rank	Private
Unit/Formation	11th Battalion, 23rd Reinforcements
Date of Embarkation	29 Dec 1916 ‒ 16 Feb 1917
Ship Embarked On	HMAT A35 Berrima
Date of Return	27 Sep 1917 ‒ 12 Nov 1917
Ship Returned On	HMAT A29 Suevic
Fate	Returned to Australia - medical reasons
Monument	Gosnells Road Board Honour Roll
Medals	British War Medal

War Service

John entered camp on 24 Jul 1916 and was in training with the 6th reinforcement draft for the 44th Battalion until 9 Aug 1916 when he was transferred to the 23rd draft for the 11th Battalion. On 4 Sep 1916 this was changed to the 22nd draft for the 11th Battalion, and then on 25 Sep 1916 to the 7th reinforcement draft for the 5th Pioneer Battalion. Finally on 8 Nov 1916 he was back with the 23rd draft for the 11th Battalion, before he embarked with them for England.

On arrival in England he was sent to the 3rd Training Battalion at Durrington to prepare for France and Belgium. However, on 10 Mar 1917 he was admitted to the Fargo Military Hospital with mumps and then pneumonia and was not released until 20 Apr 1917. In addition to his illnesses, John was also treated for a hernia, and as a result of him declining an operation to resolve it, he was sent home for discharge. John did not serve on the continent, and therefore was not eligible for the Victory Medal.

On his return to Australia, he spent a period in the 8th Australian General Hospital at Fremantle from 12 - 21 Nov 1917. John was discharged by the 5th Military District 6 Dec 1917.

Post War

Electoral Roll entries: 1917 - 1943 William street, East Cannington, labourer.