Ancestor Details

Name of Ancestor: Duncan James McLennan

Ancestor's date of birth: 13/03/1879

Ancestor's date of death: 31/07/1959

Cause of Death: Old Age

Service Number: 513

Colony or State of enlistment: VIC, Place of Enlistment: Banyena

Unit: Victorian Imperial Bushman

Rank attained in Boer War: LCPL (Bugler), Date Effective: Detail unavailable

Highest Rank attained (if served after war): No evidence of post Boer War Service

Murray Page: 271

Contingent: Fourth Victorian

Ship: Victorian, Date of Sailing: 01/05/1900

Memorial details: Boer War Memorial Melbourne

Awards/Decorations: Queen's South Africa Medal with clasps.

Personal Characteristics: He never talked about the war.

Reasons to go and fight: Adventure, Loyalty to Empire, he had his own horse.

Details of service in war: May 1900 - April 1901 in Rhodesia, west Transvaal under Cape Colony under Henniker including relief of Philipstown (11 February 1901), capture of Boer guns at Read's Drift (23 February), and capture of Boer patrol near Doornkloof (1 March 1901).

Service and life after the Boer War: Duncan McLennan lost the sight in one eye (war injury). He was sent to London for treatment (19/4/1901). He kept a diary of his time in England and Canada. He and a mate (possibly Lightfoot from Brisbane) had a great time in London, visiting relations in Scotland. They sailed to Canada 15.6.01. They travelled across Canada to Vancouver and sailed home to Australia on SS. Aorangi 27.7.01. They arrived Sydney 20.8.01. After discharge Duncan took up land near Berriwillock, Vic.and became a farmer. His first marriage was to Florence Alice Walker 21.6.1905. They had seven children-all deceased. Alice died 1921. Duncan married again to Marianne Frances McBean 6.7.1923. They had two children, Douglas Graham and Isabel Mavis McLennan (b.1928) Unfortunately my brother Douglas is in care in Bendigo Vic, and can no longer communicate. Duncan moved to Sea Lake Vic. and was a travelling wool/skin buyer (Sea Lake, Ouyen, Walpeup). He was the first president of the Sea Lake RSL. However, he resighed from the RSL when the Boer War soldiers were not recognised. He never rejoined the RSL. We have no photos of Duncan in uniform. I believe there was a house fire before I was born so any photos of him in uniform would have been destroyed. Last Anzac day in Melbourne, my husband and two daughters marched in the ANZAC Day march with the Boer War contingent.

Descendant Details

Name of Descendant: Isabel Mavis Anderson, Balnarring VIC

Relationship to Ancestor: Daughter

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