SAPPER JOHN THOMAS JACKAMAN
3501A – 2nd Tunnelling Company
John (Jack) Thomas Jackaman was born in Port Augusta, South Australia, the son of Seaborn Travancor and Martha Jackaman. At age 24 years and four months, Jack signed the Attestation Papers for Service Abroad at Adelaide, S.A., on 21 January 1916, and was appointed to the Mining Corps on 26 January and assigned the Regimental number 3501. A Stock Drover by calling, Jack was 5ft 3in tall, weighed 122lbs, was of medium complexion with blue eyes and brown hair.
Jack named his sister, Amelia Jackaman of Railway Town, Broken Hill, New South Wales, as his Next of Kin. He spent time in No. 5 Tunnelling Coy at Langwarrin, in Victoria, between March and May 1916, before being transferred to the Miners Reinforcements training camp at Seymour on 24 May. He embarked from Melbourne on board R.M.S. ‘Orontes’ on 16 August, one of the 81 members of the 4th Reinforcements to the Mining Corps.
Disembarking at Plymouth, England, on 2 October, Jack proceeded overseas to France on 15 October 1916. Initially posted to the Australian General Base Depot, Jack was transferred to the 2nd Australian Tunnelling Company on 5 December, and was taken on strength of that unit of 10 December.
In January 1917, Jack was assigned a new Regimental Number, having an ‘A’ suffix added to his original number, thus becoming 3501A, Sapper Jackaman. Jack was attached to the 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company on 16 January, and in February found himself in hospital with bronchitis, a condition many of the Australian tunnelers succumbed to in the northern winter.
On 29 March 1917, Jack was wounded (details not known), rejoining his unit on 4 April. Jack continued working with his unit until 27 September 1918 when he enjoyed some well earned leave in Blighty until 14 October when he rejoined the unit.
After the Armistice, Jack continued to work with the unit, probably re-building roads and water supply infrastructure etc., as did the other Tunnelling Companies, until 6 June 1919, when he embarked for England from Havre, beginning his repatriation to Australia. Jack finally left England on 18 July on board ‘Takada’, bound for Australia, disembarking on 4 September 1919.
Jack Jackaman was discharged in 4th Military District, Adelaide, on 19 October, entitled to wear the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. For some reason, the medals were not issued, and Jack did not apply for them until July 1963, when they were promptly issued to him. He also had his Military documents forwarded to the Repatriation Department in the same month.
(Jacks’ father was born at sea on the ship ‘Travancor’ – hence his Christian names – Seaborn Travancor)
[ Jacks’ older brother, 3163 Private William (Bill) Robert Jackaman, served with the 27th Battalion, embarking from Adelaide on board HMAT A7 ‘Medic’ on 12th January 1916, having enlisted on 6 August 1915. He was killed in action at Flers on 5th November 1916. Although he was reported buried in the vicinity of ‘The Maze’ and ‘Blue Cut’, Guidecourt, Bill has no known grave, and is commemorated on the Villers-Bretonneux Memorial.
Red Cross statement by 4487 J. O’Hara 17 May 1917:
“In the advance at Flers we got into Fritz’s trench but were bombed out again. While sheltering in a shell hole a H/E shell blew him to pieces. I knew him personally. He was a very nice fellow. We were in same platoon. He was about 5’ 5”, nuggety build, clean shaven, 30 – 32.”
O’Hara later added “We went over at 9.10 a.m. and at 9.15 a.m. he was killed by a big shell and nothing was left of him.”
Red Cross statement by 19 Pte F.H. Bennett 27 September 1917:
“Cpl. Jackaman was a great friend of mine, he was called Billie. His number was about 3163, and he was in A. Coy 1 pltn. Before joining up he was a miner at Broken Hill and he lived there. He was the only man called Jackaman in the company. I was told by Sergt. Adair of A. Coy, who knew Jackaman well, that he had seen him killed by machine gun fire, on the 5th November at Flers. I never heard if his body was recovered and buried. We were unable to retain possession of our ground that day and were forced to retire and leave dead and wounded behind.”
Red Cross statement by 3140 W. Harding 15 August 1917:
“I knew him in Broken Hill before we enlisted. I last saw him in the German front line trench at Flers. He turned to the right and the rest of us were on his left. The bombers that were supposed to be on the right flank had been all killed or wounded so that he had no protection at all and walked right into the middle of it. We were forced to retire after holding the trench for a couple of hours. Lt Whyborn who was the leader of our platoon and who was also killed as we were coming called out to Jackaman not to go that way but it was too late.” ]
[ 3 of Jacks’ sons served in WW2 – Bill in the 2/27th Battalion; Arthur in the RAAF and Bob in the RAN
Profile constructed from Military records
and information provided by Mark Jackaman,
grandson of John Thomas Jackaman.
© Donna Baldey