Harold RYAN

Harold Ryan was born on 27 March 1877 in Walhalla, Victoria. His parents were James and Susan (née Cue) Ryan. He attended Scotch from 1895 to 1896. He was in the First XVIII football team that won the premiership in 1896.

Harold was a bank clerk when he enlisted on 17 December 1914 in Brisbane, Queensland. He served in the 3rd Battalion of the Australian Naval and Military Emergency Forces with the rank of Warrant Officer. His Regimental Number was 524.

Harold died on 28 September 1919 at Wellington, New Zealand. He was 42 years of age.

Service record

At 5 feet 5¾ inches (167 cm), 38 year-old Harold was a small man on enlistment as a Private in the Australian Naval and Military Emergency Forces (A.N. & M.E.F.) He was allotted to the 3rd Battalion of this force, which was also known as the "Tropical Force" because it had been specially enlisted for service in the tropics, but which arrived in New Guinea after the September 1914 fighting there. By May 1915 he was working in the Native Affairs Department at Rabaul, New Guinea, which qualified him for extra pay. On 1 July 1915 he was promoted to Sergeant in that role. On 1 February 1916 he was made Warrant Officer while performing administrative duty, the nature of which is unfortunately not clear from his records.

On 13 February 1916 Harold returned to Australia on furlough and was struck off the strength of the garrison. However, he returned on 4 May 1916 and was taken on strength of the garrison and once again worked for the Native Affairs department. On 2 April 1917 he embarked for Australia, for furlough and discharge. He disembarked at Brisbane on 14 April.

A letter he wrote from Manus Island in December 1916 was reprinted in The Maffra Spectator in January 1917. Maffra was his parents’ home town. In this letter he referred to being downed with ‘a severe bout of malarial fever’(see below). He was discharged ‘time expired’ on 13 May 1917, with an official note ‘Character Good’ (see below). By September 1919 he was living in New Zealand, and was about to return to Maffra when he died from the effects of malarial fever, which he had almost certainly contracted in New Guinea.

Harold Ryan is buried in the Kaori Cemetery, Wellington, New Zealand.

Photographs and Documents:

Newspaper report

From Harold Ryan’s service file

Sources:

1. ‘An Outpost of the Empire’, The Maffra Spectator,Thursday 18 January 1917
2. Australian War Memorial – Roll of Honour
3. Mishura Scotch Database. After much detective work, the school’s Archivist, Paul Mishura, conclusively identified Harold as a Scotch War death in 2015. His name was added to the Memorial Hall Honour Roll in 2015
4. National Archives of Australia – B2455, RYAN HAROLD
5. The AIF Project - https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=264462 [where his regimental number is given, incorrectly, as 96]