John Harold Lindoy

First Name: 
John
Middle Name: 
Harold
Last Name: 
Lindoy
Alternate Spelling: 
Jack
Date of Birth: 
Wednesday, January 2, 1895
Mother's Name: 
Mary Lindoy
Father's Name: 
John Lindoy
Date Enlisted: 
Saturday, December 4, 1915
Unit: 
1st battalion
Company: 
E Company
Service: 
Infantry
Awards: 
British War Medal
Victory Medal
Date of Death: 
Saturday, September 26, 1964
Place of Death: 
Greenslopes Repatriation Hospital, Brisbane, Queensland
Details: 

John (Jack) Harold Lindoy was born on 2 January 1895 at Narellan; the family moved to Dapto the following month. His parents, John and Mary lived at New Dapto Rd, Wollongong throughout the war. Jack was a member of the North Wollongong Surf Club and played rugby league. He was described as a bit of a lad with a quiet, wry sense of humour.

Jack was unable to enlist early in the war due to the strict regulations; he was only 163cm (5”4) tall, 5cm shorter than the army requirements at the time. He was able to enlist on 4 December 1915 due to the need for more reinforcements which resulted in the army lessening its restrictions. He then joined the Waratah March on its way to Sydney.

Jack’s training at the Liverpool Army Camp was brief due to his previous involvement as a member of the Citizens Forces. He was assigned to E Company of the First Australian Infantry Battalion and embarked for Europe.

The company arrive at Marseilles on 17 May and went straight to the front to reinforce the 1st Battalion at Etaples. Jack was not at the front for long before he was wounded at Pozieres on 23 July, 1916. He lost his left eye and sustained extensive injury to his body. He was so seriously wounded that he could not receive treatment in France and was subsequently sent to hospital in Birmingham, England.

He returned to Australia on the SS Karoola. On his return to Wollongong, Jack was given a reception at the Town Hall (15/12/16). It was just over a year since he had enlisted and he was one of the first Waratahs to return to Wollongong.

Jack was a founding member of the Wollongong RSL and held executive positions during the Second World War. He never married and the effect of his war wounds affected his physical and emotional health. Jack lived mostly in Wollongong until his mother died. In 1952, he moved to Queensland and died at the Greenslopes Repatriation Hospital in Brisbane on 26 September 1964.

Sources: 
AWM, Embarkation Rolls – John Harold Lindoy, Australian War Memorial Canberra, 2014, http://www.awm.gov.au/people/rolls/R1812771/ viewed 9 December 2013.
NAA: B2455, LINDOY JOHN HAROLD
'Our Soldiers,' Illawarra Mercury, 5 December 1916, p.2.
'Our Soldiers,' Illawarra Mercury, 8 December 1916, p.2.
'Welcome Home' Illawarra Mercury, 19 December, 1916, p.2.

Images

Image depicts article clipping about John Lindoy's return with injuries.
Image depicts a two column article clipping from the Illawarra Mercury.