William Edward GIBSON

Regimental number13/188
Date of birth10 August 1891
Place of birthLondon, England
ReligionChurch of England
OccupationFarm labourer
AddressStonehurst, Symonds Street, Auckland
Marital statusSingle
Height5' 11.5"
Weight160 lbs
Next of kinW Gibson, 22 Mafeking Road, Plaistow, London E, England
Previous military serviceServed for 3 years in the 15th Middlesex Engineers, British Army; time expired.
Enlistment date19 August 1914
Rank on embarkationTrooper
Enlistment statusVolunteer
Unit nameNew Zealand Expeditionary Force, 2nd Reinforcements, Auckland Mounted Rifles
Embarkation detailsUnit embarked from Wellington on board Verdala on 14 December 1914
Final rankTrooper
Final unitAuckland Mounted Rifles Regiment
FateKilled in Action 27 July 1915
Place of burialNo known grave
Commemoration detailsThe Lone Pine Memorial (Panel No 71), 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.

Other details

War service: Egypt, Gallipoli

Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal
Miscellaneous detailsNominal Roll Vol. 1: Auckland Mounted Rifles/Second
SourcesArchives New Zealand (Wellington), Agency AABK, Series 18805, File 16785916

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