SAPPER JOHN PLUNKETT
1127 - 3rd Tunnelling Company
Born in Landsborough, Victoria in 1882, John was the eldest son of John and Matilda nee Morris. His siblings also born in Victoria were: Ann, born 1880; William Frank, born 1885; Edward, 1887; Geoffrey Alfred, 889 (died Victoria in 1974 aged 84); Henry Arthur, 1891; James, 1894; Alfred Roy, 1895; Florence Matilda, 1898 (m. George Frazer) and Ellen, born 1900 (married 1921 Werner H Karlsen at Wellington WA).
On 25 November 1915 at Kalgoorlie, John completed an ‘Application to Enlist in the Australian Imperial Force’, giving his address as Main Camp, Kurrawang. He underwent a medical examination at Kalgoorlie which recorded that he was 5ft 10¾ins tall, weighed 168 lbs, had a dark complexion, brown eyes and brown hair. His faith was recorded as Roman Catholic. He was found to be ‘fit for active service’.
On 2 December 1915 John completed the ‘Attestation Paper of Persons Enlisted for Service Abroad’, stating that he was 33 years and 3 months of age, single, and a Miner by trade. He named as his Next-of-Kin his mother Matilda Plunkett of Holyoake, West Australia, and allotted three-fifths of his pay for her support. He signed the Oath to ‘well and truly serve’ on the same day at Blackboy Hill Camp, near Perth, West Australia, and was appointed to the Miners Corps by the Commander of the Helena Vale Camp.
The original No.3 Company consisted of Company Headquarters and 3 Sections recruited in the 5th M.D. (Western Australia). The major portion of No.3 Company was recruited by 2nd Lt. L.J. Coulter, A.I.F. who was sent from N.S.W. to W.A. for that purpose.
Recruiting for the Miners’ Corps began officially on December 1st, 1915. The recruits were placed for basic training the following day at the Helena Vale camp at Blackboy Hill, W.A. as the Corps was being established. No.3 Company, with a strength of 1 Officer and 274 Other Ranks embarked from Fremantle, W.A. on December 18, 1915 and sailed to Sydney, NSW on board the troopship SS Indarra.
On Boxing Day (Dec 26th), 1915 the Unit arrived in Sydney and marched into Casula Camp, near Liverpool, NSW. They were joined by the 4th Section of the Tasmanian Miners, bringing the establishment strength up to 15 officers and 349 Other Ranks under the command of 2nd Lieutenant L.J. Coulter. Mining Corps Units from all Military districts came together at Casula to complete training as a Corps.
John embarked on Ulysses at Sydney, New South Wales, for the European theatre with the Australian Mining Corps on 20 February 1916.
At a civic parade in the Domain, Sydney on Saturday February 19, 1916, a large crowd of relations and friends of the departing Miners lined the four sides of the parade ground. Sixty police and 100 Garrison Military Police were on hand to keep the crowds within bounds. The scene was an inspiriting one. On the extreme right flank, facing the saluting base, were companies of the Rifle Club School; next came a detachment of the 4th King’s Shropshire Light Infantry, then the bands of the Light Horse, Liverpool Depot, and the Miners’ on the left, rank upon rank, the Miners’ Battalion.
Following the farewell parade in the Domain, Sydney, the Australian Mining Corps embarked from Sydney, New South Wales on 20 February 1916 on board HMAT A38 Ulysses.
The Mining Corps comprised 1303 members at the time they embarked with a Headquarters of 40; No.1 Company – 390; No.2 Company – 380; No.3 Company – 392, and 101 members of the 1st Reinforcements.
Ulysses arrived in Melbourne, Victoria on 22 February and the Miners were camped at Broadmeadows while additional stores and equipment were loaded onto Ulysses. Another parade was held at the Broadmeadows camp on March 1, the Miners’ Corps being inspected by the Governor-General, as Commander-in-Chief of the Commonwealth military forces.
Departing Melbourne on 1 March, Ulysses sailed to Fremantle, Western Australia where a further 53 members of the Corps were embarked. The ship hit a reef when leaving Fremantle harbour, stripping the plates for 40 feet and, although there was a gap in the outside plate, the inner bilge plates were not punctured. The men on board nicknamed her ‘Useless’. The Miners were off-loaded and sent to the Blackboy Hill Camp where further training was conducted. After a delay of about a month for repairs, The Mining Corps sailed for the European Theatre on 1 April 1916.
The ship arrived at Suez, Egypt on 22 April, departing for Port Said the next day; then on to Alexandria. The Captain of the ship was reluctant to take Ulysses out of the Suez Canal because he felt the weight of the ship made it impossible to manoeuvre in the situation of a submarine attack. The Mining Corps was transhipped to B1 Ansonia for the final legs to Marseilles, France via Valetta, Malta. Arriving at Marseilles on 5 May, most of the men entrained for Hazebrouck where they arrived to set up their first camp on 8 May 1916.
A ‘Mining Corps’ did not fit in the British Expeditionary Force, and the Corps was disbanded and three Australian Tunnelling Companies were formed. The Technical Staff of the Corps Headquarters, plus some technically qualified men from the individual companies, was formed into the entirely new Australian Electrical and Mechanical Mining and Boring Company (AEMMBC), better known as the ‘Alphabetical Company’.
John was absorbed into the newly formed 3rd Australian Tunnelling Company (3ATC). He spent 10 days in No.4 Stationary Hospital, Arques from 5 to 15 June 1916 receiving dental treatment, rejoining his unit on 12 July.
John attended the general listening course at First Army Mine School, ending 5 January 1917, achieving a ‘fair’ result. He reported sick on 17 February and was treated at the 50th Australian Field Ambulance; 33rd Casualty Clearing Station and the 57th General Hospital at Etaples before being discharged to the Australian General Base Depot at Etaples on 17 March. He rejoined his unit on 29 March 1917.
The war dairy of 3ATC for the month of April 1917, at pages 37-41, records the Boring Log for Seaforth tunnel for the week ending 9 April 1917. John is listed as a member of No.1 Team. The report gives a good description of the work in which he was involved.
1127 Sapper John Plunkett died of his wounds (gas poisoning) at the 1/1st North Midland Field Ambulance on 30 April 1917. He was buried at Fosse 10 Communal Cemetery Extension, Sains-en-Gohelle at Plot 1 row C grave 22.
LEST WE FORGET
PRIVATE JAMES PLUNKETT
4277 – 11th INFANTRY BATTALION
James Plunkett was 21 years and 8 months of age when he completed the ‘Attestation Paper of Persons Enlisted for Service Abroad’ on 18 September 1915. He also named his mother as his Next-of-Kin. James was 5ft 6ins tall and weighed 147 lbs. He had a dark complexion, grey eyes and dark hair and was of the Roman Catholic faith.
A medical examination at Bunbury, Western Australia found him to be ‘fit for active service’ and he was appointed to the 13th Reinforcements of the 11th Infantry Battalion on 14 December 1915 at Blackboy Hill, near Perth.
He embarked at Fremantle, Western Australia on HMAT A30 Borda on 17 January 1916, disembarking at Suez on 9 February 1916. On 29 March he embarked at Alexandria on HMT Transylvania to join the British Expeditionary Force, disembarking at Marseilles on 5 April 1916, where he joined the 1st Divisional Base Depot at Etaples on 8 April.
He joined the 11th Battalion 17 May 1916 and on 20 April he was admitted to the 2nd Field Ambulance suffering mumps. He was transferred through the 1st Australian Casualty Clearing Station to the 7th General Hospital at St Omer, where he was hospitalised until 12 June, rejoining his Battalion on 18 June.
James’ B103 Form records nothing further until he is reported missing in action on 15 April 1917.
The War Diary of the 11th Battalion for April 1917, at pages 25 and 26, contain the ‘Report by C.O., 11th Battalion on Enemy Attack on morning of 15th April 1917’.
James Plunkett has no known grave.
He is commemorated on the Villers-Brettoneux Memorial.
He is also commemorated at Panel 63 of the Commemorative Area, Australian war Memorial, Canberra, and in a Plunkett family website.
According to the Western Australia death records, John Plunkett, father of John and James, died in 1918.
It is not clear from his records as to whether war memorabilia due to the Next-of-Kin ever got to Matilda before her death in 1922.
In April 1957 certificates of death for both John and James were provided to the Public Trustee, Perth in regards to the estate of their mother Matilda.
© Donna Baldey 2013
ADDENDUM
Not known to be related:
586 Sergeant William Plunkett D.C.M., CdeG
M.G. Section, C Company, 11th Battalion
Born Liverpool, England. Age 32 at enlistment in 1914 at Blackboy Hill, WA..
Killed in action 16 April 1917
no known grave
William is commemorated on the Villers-Brettoneux Memorial
William is also commemorated at Panel 63 of the Commemorative Area,
Australian war Memorial, Canberra.