Frederick David Mason Smith

Portrait of Frederick David Mason Smith, New Zealand Field Artillery

This Gunner in the Royal New Zealand Artillery has been identified by his grandson as Frederick David Mason Smith, service number 50898.

Frederick was born in Wellington on 25 February 1896. He grew up in the Wellington suburb of  Karori, and was almost 21 years old when he volunteered for  the NZEF on 8 February 1917. 

Frederick already had some military experience when he volunteered for overseas service, as he was employed by the Defence Department as a member of the Garrison Artillery and had previously served with the 5th Regiment in Wellington.

He trained as a Gunner with the Field Artillery, and embarked from Wellington with the 32nd Reinforcements on 21 November 1917. He marched into the Field Artillery's training depot at Ewshott in England on 8 January 1918 and was sent to France on 28 March.

Frederick was posted to No. 3 NZ Entrenching Battalion on 19 May, and served with them for nearly a month. On 15 June he was posted back to the Field Artillery and joined 103 Battery of the NZFA's First Brigade  the same day. He received a gun shot wound to his left hand on 8 October, and after treatment in France went to England.  Frederick eventually sailed from Southampton for the return voyage home on 4 October 1919, disembarking at Auckland on 15 November.

He was discharged from the NZEF on 14 December 1919. 

Frederick married Constance Priscilla Luxton in 1926. He was involved with the Returned Services' Association, and in the early 1940s was Secretary of the Hutt Valley branch.  Frederick died at Lower Hutt on 17 October 1971.