John Hugh Zealand GEDDES

Regimental number8/726
Date of birth12 May 1894
Place of birthBurnett's Face, Westport
ReligionPresbyterian
OccupationPost and Telegraph cadet
Address3 Lipman Street, Wellington
Marital statusSingle
Age at embarkation20.3
Height5' 6"
Weight136 lbs
Next of kinMother, Mrs Harriet Geddes, Millerton
Previous military serviceSchool Cadets (2 years); Senior Cadets (1 year)
Enlistment date14 August 1914
Place of enlistmentWellington
Rank on embarkationPrivate
Enlistment statusVolunteer
Unit nameNew Zealand Expeditionary Force, Main Body, Otago Infantry Battalion
Embarkation detailsUnit embarked from Wellington on 16 October 1914
Members of the Otago Infantry Battalion, Main Body, left Wellington on 16 October 1914 on two ships, HMNZT 9 'Hawke's Bay' and HMNZT 5 'Ruapehu'. From the Nominal Roll it is not possible to determine on which ship an individual embarked.
Final rankPrivate
Final unitOtago Infantry Regiment
FateDied of wounds 9 May 1915
Age at death from cemetery records19
Place of burialNo known grave
Commemoration detailsThe Lone Pine Memorial (Panel 75), Gallipoli, Turkey

The Lone Pine Memorial, situated in the Lone Pine Cemetery at Anzac, is the main Australian Memorial on Gallipoli, and one of four memorials to men of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Designed by Sir John Burnet, the principal architect of the Gallipoli cemeteries, it is a thick tapering pylon 14.3 metres high on a square base 12.98 metres wide. It is constructed from limestone mined at Ilgardere in Turkey.

The Memorial commemorates the 3268 Australians and 456 New Zealanders who have no known grave and the 960 Australians and 252 New Zealanders who were buried at sea after evacuation through wounds or disease. The names of New Zealanders commemorated are inscribed on stone panels mounted on the south and north sides of the pylon, while those of the Australians are listed on a long wall of panels in front of the pylon and to either side. Names are arranged by unit and rank.

The Memorial stands over the centre of the Turkish trenches and tunnels which were the scene of heavy fighting during the August offensive. Most cemeteries on Gallipoli contain relatively few marked graves, and the majority of Australians killed on Gallipoli are commemorated here.

Miscellaneous information from
  cemetery records
Son of William and Harriet Geddes, of Millerton, Westport, Greymouth. Native of Coalbrookdale.
Other details

War service: Egypt, Gallipoli

Embarked Wellington, 16 October 1914; disembarked Alexandria, Egypt, 3 December 1914.

Died of wounds received at the Dardanelles, HS 'Southland', at sea, 9 May 1915.

Total war service: 269 days (of which 206 were abroad).

Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal
Miscellaneous detailsNominal Roll Vol. 1: Otago Infantry Batln/Main Body
SourcesArchives New Zealand (Wellington), Agency AABK, Series 18805, File 16785331