MACLEAN, James Noel
| Service Number: | 20765 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 6 August 1917, Sydney, New South Wales |
| Last Rank: | Sapper |
| Last Unit: | 15th Field Company Engineers |
| Born: | Neutral Bay, New South Wales, Australia , 8 December 1900 |
| Home Town: | Dee Why, Warringah, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Sydney Technical High School, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Student |
| Died: | Natural causes, New South Wales, Australia , 18 October 1978, aged 77 years |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Sydney Technical High School WW1 Roll Of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 6 Aug 1917: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 20765, Sydney, New South Wales | |
|---|---|---|
| 16 Nov 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sapper, 20765, Field Company Engineers, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '5' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: SS Canberra embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
| 16 Nov 1917: | Embarked AIF WW1, Sapper, 20765, Field Company Engineers, SS Canberra, Sydney | |
| 13 Sep 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Sapper, 20765, 15th Field Company Engineers |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Sydney Technical High School
Biography - James Noel Maclean - 20765
James Noel Maclean was born in Neutral Bay, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on 8 December 1900 to father Rochlitz John Maclean and mother Bertha Louisa Soper. In childhood, he lived in Dee Why (1) however, following the death of his mother in 1903 (2), he grew up with his father, step-mother May Pritchard and his two step-brothers Granville Pritchard and Norman Pritchard Maclean. Maclean attended Sydney Technical High School.
James Noel Maclean attended Technical High School for 3 years from 1915 to 1917. He started attending at age 14, in class 1C, where he excelled in Algebra, Geometry and History, obtaining scores of 174, 166 and 85 respectively. Maclean was a fair sportsman, winning the Technical High School Junior 200 yards relay race in 1916 (3) and a Bronze Sports Medallion in 1917 (4), showcasing his sterling athletic abilities. He received his Intermediate Certificate in 1916, achieving a B standard in all of his subjects, which consisted of History, Mathematics, Physics, Woodwork and Metalwork (5). He attended his final year of Technical High School in 1917, class 3A (6) before enlisting in the army. Prior to enlisting, Maclean served the Cadets for 4 years, however, his reason for being discharged is unknown (7). He also contributed military service to the 27th Infantry as a part of the Citizen Military Forces in 1915 (8).
Maclean enlisted for the Australian Imperial Forces (AIF) on 6 August 1917 at Darlinghurst (10). In his medical examination, he claimed to be 18 years and 1 month old, when in reality he was 16 years and 8 months, which is under the enlistment age. This shows Maclean’s eagerness to join the military. Other attributes shown in his medical examination were that he was 5 feet and 6 ½ inches, had a chest measurement between 32 - 35 inches, had brown eyes, and brown hair and was born a Presbyterian. He was considered fit to serve and on 23 August, he was appointed to the Engineering Reinforcements 2nd Military District (11), in the 15th Field Company Engineers as a Sapper, with a service number of 20765.
He embarked on 16 November 1917 from Australia, on board the SS Canberra (12). As a Company Engineer in the 5th Division, James Maclean was involved in the attack and capture of Mont St Quentin, on the Western Front, between 31 August and 2 September 1918. Engineers were appointed to carry out river crossing operations, in this battle over the Somme river that overlooked the town of Péronne (13). The Australian Forces were able to push the Germans out of their positions in Mont St Quentin, which resulted in the death of around 17,000 Australians, however, caused the Germans to retreat to their last defensive line, the Hindenburg Line (14).
Maclean’s step-brothers also served with Granville Maclean serving as a lieutenant in the 5th Field Company Engineers and Norman Pritchard Maclean, who served as a gunner in the 1st Field Artillery Brigade (15). These siblings received praise for their fighting and were described as “A Family of Fighters” in the 1917 Construction and Local Government Journal (16).
On 5 July 1919, Maclean returned to Australia and was later discharged from the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) on 13 September 1919. Maclean married Hazel Marion Eldridge (18).
James Noel Maclean passed away on 8 October 1978, aged 77, from natural causes (19).
Endnotes
James Noel MACLEAN, Virtual War Memorial Australia
MACLEAN James Noel, Google Drive, verification.docx
R.McDonald, ‘The Chronicle of Sport’ in TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL JOURNAL, May 1916, page 22
R.McDonald, ‘The Chronicle of Sport’ in TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL JOURNAL, April 1917, page 34
‘Exam Results - Intermediate Certificate’ in The Sydney Morning Herald, 1917, page 12
MACLEAN James Noel, Google Drive, verification.docx
Ibid, ‘Australian Imperial Force’, maclean01.jpg
‘The AIF Project’ in UNSW Canberra
‘27th Australian Infantry Battalion’ in Australian War Memorial, 2024
MACLEAN James Noel, SPR James Noel MACLEAN 20765
‘Digital Item Page Gallery’ in National Archives of Australia, page 3
MACLEAN James Noel, SPR James Noel MACLEAN 20765
‘Australians in the Battle of Mont St Quentin 31 August to 3 Sept 1918’ in Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs, 2024
Ibid, ‘Australians in the Battle of Mont St Quentin 31 August to 3 Sept 1918’
MACLEAN James Noel, SPR James Noel MACLEAN 20765
‘A Family of Fighters’ in Construction and the Local Government Journal of Australasia, 1917, page 12
‘Digital Item Page Gallery’ in National Archives of Australia, page 24
MACLEAN James Noel, Google Drive, verification.docx
James Noel MACLEAN, Virtual War Memorial Australia
Bibliography
‘27th Australian Infantry Battalion’ in Australian War Memorial, viewed 2 September 2024, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/U56108#:~:text=After%20the%20First%20World%20War,kept%20the%20same%20numerical%20designations.
‘Australians in the Battle of Mont St Quentin 31 August to 3 Sept 1918’ in Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs, viewed on 5 August 2024, https://anzacportal.dva.gov.au/wars-and-missions/ww1/where-australians-served/western-front/hundred-days/battle-of-mont-st-quentin-1918\
‘confirmed’ in Doing our bit, Mosman 1914-18, viewed 5 August 2024, https://mosman1914-1918.net/people/11513/
‘Construction and the Local Government Journal of Australasia’, page 12, https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/109674532
‘Digital Item Page Gallery’ in National Archives of Australia, viewed 5 August 2024, https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Gallery151/dist/JGalleryViewer.aspx?B=1964183&S=1&N=24&R=0#/SearchNRetrieve/NAAMedia/ShowImage.aspx?B=1964183&T=P&S=1
‘Examination Results - Intermediate Certificate’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 1917, page 12, https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/1267232
Google Drive, MACLEAN James Noel, https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1tDpBTk621PAifmcBJfOA_rYUWVIfDvga
‘James Noel MACLEAN’ in Virtual War Memorial Australia, viewed on 5 August 2024, https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/317365
R.McDonald, ‘TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL JOURNAL’, Vol.2, April 1917, page 34, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JXJa3U4i_fIGF4BkUAQNKw09unyTtGjj/view
R.McDonald, ‘TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL JOURNAL’, Vol.1, May 1916, page 22, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CNj1K6YnQm5JyQFzqmxRnlEQW8iBRqTd/view
‘The AIF Project’ in UNSW Canberra, viewed on 5 August 2024, https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=184058
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