John Francis McDOUGALL

Year of Birth:  1891

Place of Birth:  Beaudesert, Queensland 

Date of Enlistment:  23 December 1915

Date and Place of Embarkation:  20 April 1916, Sydney, New South Wales

Ship:  SS Hawkes Bay

Rank: Private

Unit(s):  47th Infantry Battalion

Regimental Number:  1688

Died:  7 June 1917

John Francis McDougall was born 7 October 1891 to John McDougall and Martha Louisa Pinwill and was the eldest of 9 children, Louisa born 1893, Robert 1895, Isabel 1897, Eugenie May 1900, Margaret 1902, Alexander 1904, Myra 1906 and Donald 1908.

Prior to 1913 John Francis was living at Woodside, Oxley and his occupation was a clerk and by 1913 he was working for the National Bank in Cairns as a clerk.

He was residing in Cairns when he enlisted and gave his age as 23 years 2 months and occupation as a Bank Clerk. His next of kin was his mother Mrs Martha L. McDougall, Beaudesert, Queensland. His height was 5 feet 7 inches and he weighed 140 pounds with fair complexion, blue eyes and fair hair. His religion was Presbyterian.

He spent 16 days in hospital with bronchitis in January 1917.

John Francis McDougall was killed in action in Belgium on the 7 June 1917 and was buried 750 yards east of Messines. John Francis is remembered at the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres Flanders, Belgium.

Photo courtesy Honouring Anzacs
The Beaudesert Times, 4 June 1920, p2

Online Resources

NAA: B2455, McDougall, John Francis, National Archives of Australia

Roll of Honour, John Francis McDougall, Australian War Memorial

Photograph of Ship SS Hawkes Bay, Honouring Anzacs 

Queensland Registrar of Births Deaths & Marriages

The Beaudesert Times 4 June 1920 p2

If you have a photograph or further information about this soldier you would like to share and add to his biography, please contact the Society at projects@cdfhs.org or leave a comment below. Thank you!

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