McLEOD, Keith Douglas
(Ftr) Keith Douglas McLeod
Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod 178 an Engineer from Kanowna Road, Largs Bay, South Australiaprior to enlistment 27th March 1915, he embarked with the 1st Royal Australian Naval Bridging Train from Melbourne, Victoria, on board A39 Port Macquarie on 4 June 1915.
| Regimental number | 178 |
| Religion | Church of England |
| Occupation | Engineer |
| Address | Kanowna Road, Largs Bay, South Australia |
| Marital status | Single |
| Age at embarkation | 22 |
| Next of kin | Mother, Mrs Frances McLeod, Kanowna Road, Largs Bay, South Australia |
| Enlistment date | 27-Mar-15 |
| Date of enlistment from Nominal Roll | 14-May-15 |
| Rank on enlistment | Able Bodied Driver |
| Unit name | 1st Royal Australian Naval Bridging Train |
| AWM Embarkation Roll number | MIS34.12.1.RANBT1 |
| Embarkation details | Unit embarked from Melbourne, Victoria, on board A39 Port Macquarie on 4 June 1915 |
| Rank from Nominal Roll | ABD |
| Unit from Nominal Roll | 6th Field Artillery Brigade |
| Fate | Killed in Action 5 July 1916 |
| Age at death from cemetery records | 23 |
| Place of burial | Berks Cemetery Extension (Rosenberg Plateau Plots) (Plot II, Row C, Grave No. 4), Ploegsteert, Belgium |
| Panel number, Roll of Honour, | |
| Australian War Memorial | 14 |
| Miscellaneous information from | |
| cemetery records | Parents: James and Frances Tate MCLEOD, Kanowna Road, Largs Bay, South Australia |
THE LATE SERGEANT McLEOD.
Mr. James McLeod, of Largs Bay, was officially informed on Friday night that his son, Sergeant Artificer Keith Douglas McLeod, was killed in action in France on July 6. Sergeant McLeod enlisted in the Naval Bridging Train, which left Adelaide in March, 1915, and proceeded to Egypt. He went through the Gallipoli campaign, and afterwards, having severed his connection with the Bridging Section, was attached to the artillery, in which he was given the rank of sergeant-artificer. He was 22 years of age, and was a grandson of the late Professor Ralph Tate, of Adelaide. He learnt the trade of an engineer at Forwood, Down, & Co.'s establishment and the School of Mines, of which he was a student. He was well-known in yachting and rowing circles, having first come into pro- minence as a cox. of the Port Adelaide Rowing Club. Later he joined the Torrens Rowing Club, of which he became a stroke, and he also served as coach of the Ladies' Rowing Club on the Torrens. He was a fine swimmer, and, as a member of the Semaphore Lacrosse Club, he made a name for himself in that branch of sport. He was of a genial disposition, and was respected by a very wide circle of friends.http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/6456999
Mrs Francis McLeod request for her son'sKeith Douglas McLeod possessions
Honours
Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod was later awarded the 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal Trio which were sent to his Mother Francis by Base Records Melbourne in 1922. His Mother was tragically Killed in a Rail Accident in September 1922 and his medals were returned unclaimed. Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod's medals were reissued to his Brother on the 27 of July 1923.
The 1914-15 Star rewarded operational service within a theatre of war between the commencement of hostilities on 5 August 1914 and 31 December 1915. Almost 2.3 million Stars were awarded throughout the Commonwealth, of which 82,000 were awarded to Australians serving in an Australian unit.
The British War Medal 1914-1920 was awarded to members of British and Imperial forces for service between the outbreak of hostilities on 5 August 1914 and the Armistice on 11 November 1918, although eligibility was extended to include service in various theatres up to 1920. There were 338,000 medals in silver awarded to Australians.
The Victory Medal 1914-1919 was awarded to members of British and Imperial forces for operational service only, between 5 August 1914 and 11 November 1918, although eligibility was extended to include service in various theatres during 1919. There were 336,000 medals in silver awarded to Australians.
1914-1915 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal Trio
International Commemoration
Berks Cemetery Extension - Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod is buried in the Berks Cemetery Extension (Rosenberg Plateau Plots) (Plot II, Row C, Grave No. 4), Ploegsteert, Belgium, the extension is separated from Hyde Park Corner Cemetery by a road. The extension was begun in June 1916 and used continuously until September 1917. At the Armistice, the extension comprised Plot I only, but Plots II and III were added in 1930 when graves were brought in from Rosenberg Chateau Military Cemetery and Extension, about 1 kilometre to the north-west, when it was established that these sites could not be acquired in perpetuity. Rosenberg Chateau Military Cemetery was used by fighting units from November 1914 to August 1916. The extension was begun in May 1916 and used until March 1918. Together, the cemetery and extension were sometimes referred to as 'Red Lodge'.
Berks Cemetery Extension now contains 876 First World War burials.
Within Berks Cemetery Extension stands the PLOEGSTEERT MEMORIAL, commemorating more than 11,000 Commonwealth servicemen who died in this sector during the First World War and have no known grave. The memorial serves the area from the line Caestre-Dranoutre-Warneton to the north, to Haverskerque-Estaires-Fournes to the south, including the towns of Hazebrouck, Merville, Bailleul and Armentieres, the Forest of Nieppe, and Ploegsteert Wood.
Those commemorated by the memorial did not die in major offensives, such as those which took place around Ypres to the north, or Loos to the south. Most were killed in the course of the day-to-day trench warfare which characterised this part of the line, or in small scale set engagements, usually carried out in support of the major attacks taking place elsewhere.
Memorial to the Missing at the Royal Berkshire Cemetery Extension
National Commemoration
Australian War Memorial Canberra - At the heart of the Memorial building is the Roll of Honour: a long series of bronze panels recording the names of over 102,000 members of the Australian armed forces who have died during or as a result of war service, warlike service, non-warlike service and certain peacetime operations.
Location on the Roll of Honour - Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod's name is located at panel 14 in the Commemorative Area at the Australian War Memorial (as indicated by the poppy on the plan).
State Commemoration
South Australia National War Memorial on North Terrace "TO THOSE WHO NOBLY STRIVING NOBLY FELL THAT WE MIGHT LIVE"
Keith Douglas McLeod’s name is commemorated on the large honour rolls lining the walls of the crypt inside the South Australia National War Memorial on North Terrace, which was unveiled by the State Governor on Anzac Day 1931. Inside the crypt, bronze panels contain the names of the 5,511 South Australians who fell in the war.
Local Commemoration
The Semaphore War Memorial was dedicated in 1925 to honour all of those from the district who fought in the war, such as Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod.
The Semaphore War Memorial on the Esplanade was dedicated in 1925 to honour all of those from the district who fought in the war. A temporary ‘Memorial Arch’ of wood and iron was first erected at the entrance to the Semaphore Jetty bearing the banner title, ‘For King & Empire’. On 27 April 1924, four foundation stones for the new memorial were laid at the approach to the jetty – one on behalf of the citizens of Port Adelaide district, one for the RSSILA, one on behalf of the parents of the fallen men, and one on behalf of the widows and orphans.
The stone for the parents of those who fell, such as Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod was laid by Mrs Magnus Wald. The late Magnus Wald had been owner of Glanville Hall, proprietor of the South Australian Stevedoring Company and member for Scarborough Ward 1898-00.
This foundation stone for the Semaphore War Memorial was laid at the approach to the jetty on 27 April 1924 by Mrs Magnus Wald on behalf the parents of those who fell. .
They were also most likely among the several thousand people who attended the actual unveiling of the Semaphore War Memorial the following year.
The following year, a granite obelisk was erected on the foundation stones, with an electric ‘turret type’ clock and topped by a marble Angel of Peace with wings outspread. The local newspaper noted, “all the names of those who enlisted from the district or who made the supreme sacrifice cannot be placed on the monument” so it instead bears a simple commemorative plaque.
Semaphore & Port Adelaide RSL
For the 2015 commemoration of the Anzac Centenary, the Semaphore & Port Adelaide RSL has created a virtual Honour Board listing the names of over 2,000 local men who volunteered to serve in World War 1. Among them are counted Fitter Keith Douglas McLeod from Largs Bay who served in the AIF 9th Field Artillery Brigade, in Gallipoli and France.
