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Pte. Angus Duncan "Dunc" McCallum
Australian Imperial Force 16th Battalion
from:Cottesloe, Western Australia
Great Uncle Dunc (as he was known) was born on 10 September 1880. Before the Great War, Dunc McCallum worked as a soap maker, clerk and labourer. He tried to enlist on 27 July 1915 but was rejected because of weakness of the heart and cardiac murmur.
He re-applied in March 1916 and was enlisted on 21 August that year at the age of 35. After basic training at Blackboy Hill, he was assigned to the 20th Reinforcements of 16 Btn and the unit finally departed Fremantle on the HMAT Suffolk on 13th of October 1916. After a short training period in the UK the unit crossed to France on the Princess Clementina on 28th of December 1916 where they undertook more rigorous training.
Finally Dunc was taken on strength in the field on 11th of February 1917 at Bazentin. The 16th Battalion were in the thick of things at the Battle of Bullecourt (the black day of the AIF) on 11th of April 1917. There were significant casualties killed and wounded with 300 captured. Total 16 Btn losses on that day alone were 17 officers (from a total of 20) and, 623 other ranks (from a total of 797). Dunc was one of those casualties, having been wounded by shrapnel in his left knee. He was interned firstly in Dulmen POW camp until August and then transferred to Hembahn, Munster II Camp where POWs were assigned to work on farms and forests and often enjoyed a superior diet to the civilian population.
After the Armistice, Dunc was allowed generous leave in the UK until he was repatriated to Australia on 5th March 1919 and arrived in Albany on the SS Nevasa on 13 April. He spent 6 days in the sick bay suffering from myalgia on the journey home and was discharged as medically unfit on 3rd June 1919. He married Whilemina Denyer later that year, joined the WAGR (keeping it in the family) and was on the staff at Swanbourne Station as a railway porter for 16 years. He was described as a man of remarkable personal charm with a kindliness of character which won him close friendships. Dunc passed away peacefully after a long illness in 1950. He was buried at Fremantle Cemetery in a non-military grave. The Office of the Australian War Graves Commission recently have commissioned an official plaque in the Garden of Remberance plus a small plaque to be placed on Dunc's existing grave.
