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Trooper Thomas David Fincham
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TitleTrooper Thomas David FinchamSummaryA soldier in World War One. DescriptionThomas was born at Southbridge on 18th April 1897, eldest son of John and Agnes Gordon. He received his education at the Southbridge and West Melton Schools and the Christchurch Technical College. He was an enthusiastic footballer, representing the College in the first fifteen. Upon leaving College he followed farming pursuits on his father's farm at West Melton and was working as a teamster. He had previous military experience serving two years with the Canterbury Yeomanry Cavalry. He was 5ft 8 in tall with a dark complexion, brown eyes and dark brown hair.
Thomas enlisted on 18th April 1917 and was assigned to the 31st Reinforcements, Mounted Rifles Brigade. He embarked for Suez on 13th November on board the Tofua arriving just before Christmas on 21st December 1917. He marched in to the Training Regiment and depot at Moascar on the same day and was posted to the Canterbury Mounted Rifles Squadron on 27th January 1918. He was transferred to the Mounted Rifles Brigade on 11th April and on joining them in the field posted to 10th Squadron on 17th April. He fought with them through the Palestine campaign. On 6th May he was sent sick to hospital, admitted to the 65th casualty clearing Station with septic sores and sent on to the 36th Stationary hospital at Gaza on the 8th May. From there he was sent to Kantara, Abbassia, and finally the Aotea Convalescent Home in Heliopolis being discharged to duty on 2nd July, reporting to the depot at Moascar on 3rd. Once again he was sent to join the Mounted Rifles Brigade in the field on 27th and on 29th July he was posted to 10th Squadron. Unfortunately this was in the Jordan valley where the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade and the Anzac Mounted Division were tasked with preventing the Ottoman Fourth Army from interfering in the opening stages of the battle for Amman. They were designated as ‘Chaytor Force’. The Jordan River valley, besides being extraordinarily hot and dusty, was also an area known to harbour falciparum malaria carrying mosquitos. An outbreak of malaria coincided with Pandemic influenza, now thought to be an A/H1N1 strain. In the Egyptian Expeditionary Force of 315,000 soldiers, 773 died from malaria and 934 from influenza–pneumonia. Disease casualties outnumbered those due to combat by more than 37 to 1. Thomas was one of these, being admitted to hospital on 7th October at the height of the outbreak. He was transferred to the 76th Casualty Clearing Station and then on to 36th Stationary Hospital at Gaza and finally to the 71st General Hospital at Giza, Cairo by hospital train, designated as seriously ill. He died there 3 days later on 7th November of Malaria and Pneumonia. He was buried in the Cairo War Memorial Cemetery the next day. In New Zealand Thomas is remembered on the West Melton Roll of Honour and the CPIT War Memorial.
At the outbreak of the First World War, Cairo was headquarters to the United Kingdom garrison in Egypt. With Alexandria, it became the main hospital centre for Gallipoli in 1915 and later dealt with the sick and wounded from operations in Egypt and Palestine. General Headquarters, Middle East Command, was set up in Cairo shortly before the Second World War, remaining there throughout the war years. In January 1941, a Royal Air Force Sector Headquarters for Fighter Defence Canal Zone was established. Cairo was again a significant hospital centre during the Second World War. Cairo War Memorial Cemetery was formerly part of the New British Protestant Cemetery, but plots B, D, F, H, K, M, O, P and Q were ceded to the Commission in 1920. Some graves were brought into these plots from elsewhere in the Protestant cemetery and later, 85 First World War graves were concentrated from Minia War Cemetery, 200 km south of Cairo, where maintenance could not be assured. One burial of the Second World War was moved from Old Cairo Old Latin Cemetery for the same reason. There are now 2,057 Commonwealth casualties of the First World War and 340 from the Second World War buried or commemorated in the cemetery. A small number, known to have been buried in other civil cemeteries in Cairo but whose graves are now lost, are commemorated by special memorial. Burials in the following civil cemeteries are now alternatively commemorated in Cairo War Memorial Cemetery: Cairo (Basatin) Jewish Cemetery Old Cairo Jewish Cemetery Cairo Maronite Cemetery Cairo Civil International Cemetery Old Cairo New Latin Cemetery
First NameThomas DavidLast NameFinchamFamilySingleEldest son of John and Agnes GordonDate of Birth18 April 1897Place of BirthSouthbridgeDate of Death7 November 1918Place of DeathCairo, EgyptCause of DeathDied of Sickness
Thomas enlisted on 18th April 1917 and was assigned to the 31st Reinforcements, Mounted Rifles Brigade. He embarked for Suez on 13th November on board the Tofua arriving just before Christmas on 21st December 1917. He marched in to the Training Regiment and depot at Moascar on the same day and was posted to the Canterbury Mounted Rifles Squadron on 27th January 1918. He was transferred to the Mounted Rifles Brigade on 11th April and on joining them in the field posted to 10th Squadron on 17th April. He fought with them through the Palestine campaign. On 6th May he was sent sick to hospital, admitted to the 65th casualty clearing Station with septic sores and sent on to the 36th Stationary hospital at Gaza on the 8th May. From there he was sent to Kantara, Abbassia, and finally the Aotea Convalescent Home in Heliopolis being discharged to duty on 2nd July, reporting to the depot at Moascar on 3rd. Once again he was sent to join the Mounted Rifles Brigade in the field on 27th and on 29th July he was posted to 10th Squadron. Unfortunately this was in the Jordan valley where the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade and the Anzac Mounted Division were tasked with preventing the Ottoman Fourth Army from interfering in the opening stages of the battle for Amman. They were designated as ‘Chaytor Force’. The Jordan River valley, besides being extraordinarily hot and dusty, was also an area known to harbour falciparum malaria carrying mosquitos. An outbreak of malaria coincided with Pandemic influenza, now thought to be an A/H1N1 strain. In the Egyptian Expeditionary Force of 315,000 soldiers, 773 died from malaria and 934 from influenza–pneumonia. Disease casualties outnumbered those due to combat by more than 37 to 1. Thomas was one of these, being admitted to hospital on 7th October at the height of the outbreak. He was transferred to the 76th Casualty Clearing Station and then on to 36th Stationary Hospital at Gaza and finally to the 71st General Hospital at Giza, Cairo by hospital train, designated as seriously ill. He died there 3 days later on 7th November of Malaria and Pneumonia. He was buried in the Cairo War Memorial Cemetery the next day. In New Zealand Thomas is remembered on the West Melton Roll of Honour and the CPIT War Memorial.
At the outbreak of the First World War, Cairo was headquarters to the United Kingdom garrison in Egypt. With Alexandria, it became the main hospital centre for Gallipoli in 1915 and later dealt with the sick and wounded from operations in Egypt and Palestine. General Headquarters, Middle East Command, was set up in Cairo shortly before the Second World War, remaining there throughout the war years. In January 1941, a Royal Air Force Sector Headquarters for Fighter Defence Canal Zone was established. Cairo was again a significant hospital centre during the Second World War. Cairo War Memorial Cemetery was formerly part of the New British Protestant Cemetery, but plots B, D, F, H, K, M, O, P and Q were ceded to the Commission in 1920. Some graves were brought into these plots from elsewhere in the Protestant cemetery and later, 85 First World War graves were concentrated from Minia War Cemetery, 200 km south of Cairo, where maintenance could not be assured. One burial of the Second World War was moved from Old Cairo Old Latin Cemetery for the same reason. There are now 2,057 Commonwealth casualties of the First World War and 340 from the Second World War buried or commemorated in the cemetery. A small number, known to have been buried in other civil cemeteries in Cairo but whose graves are now lost, are commemorated by special memorial. Burials in the following civil cemeteries are now alternatively commemorated in Cairo War Memorial Cemetery: Cairo (Basatin) Jewish Cemetery Old Cairo Jewish Cemetery Cairo Maronite Cemetery Cairo Civil International Cemetery Old Cairo New Latin Cemetery
First NameThomas DavidLast NameFinchamFamilySingleEldest son of John and Agnes GordonDate of Birth18 April 1897Place of BirthSouthbridgeDate of Death7 November 1918Place of DeathCairo, EgyptCause of DeathDied of Sickness
Connections
Military Service
Memorial or CemeteryCairo War Memorial CemeteryCPIT War Memorial West Melton Roll of HonourOccupation before EnlistingTeamsterRegiment or ServiceNew Zealand Mounted RiflesEnlistment Details18th April 1917Service Number50698 Embarkation13th November 1917TransportTofuaReinforcement31st ReinforcementsCountryNew Zealand
Attribution
Researched ByL. M. Seaton
Trooper Thomas David Fincham. Selwyn Stories, accessed 10/11/2025, https://selwynstories.selwynlibraries.co.nz/nodes/view/414
