Private Miller Mack (2949)
Miller Mack was born in 1894 in Murray Bridge, South Australia. The small town where he grew up as a child with his parents John and Margret Mack is called Raukkan, which is located near the Coorong of South Australia. When Miller Mack was older he moved to Point McLeay, South Australia; this was prior to enlistment and going to war (RSL Virtual War Memorial 2017).
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Miller Mack worked as a labour in his hometown before he enlisted in August of 1916. Like many young men from his community, he had to deny his Aboriginal heritage because the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) would not accept non-Europeans. However, as a young man, Miller Mack like many others no doubt found the opportunity to earn money to help their families by serving in the AIF, very appealing (RSL Virtual War Memorial 2017). Even young men under the age of 18 wanted to enlist, some were so keen to join they lied about their age so they could serve their country.
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Prior to leaving Australia the troops spent as much time as possible training before they set off overseas. Miller initially trained at Mitcham Camp which was located where Colonel Light Gardens is today (RSL Virtual War Memorial, 2017). During training Miller became quite unwell and spent considerable time in the Medical Centre till he recovered. Miller was allocated his service number 2949; every soldier was given a service number so that military authorities could identify individuals, especially if they were wounded or sadly killed in action.
Miller sailed for England on the HMAT Afric, (A19) leaving Adelaide on 6 November 1916 and arriving at Plymouth, Devon on 9 January 1917 (National Archives Australia, 2017). The HMAT Afric was used to transport soldiers from Australia to Europe. During the voyage Miller was very seasick and spent a great deal of time in the ship’s hospital recovering.
Miller Mack (2949) was a private attached to the 50th Infantry Battalion. On his arrival in England Miller spent considerable time in hospital recuperating, he eventually was sent to France attached to the 4th Battalion in May 1917, where he remained until being readmitted to a field hospital in July suffering from pneumonia (National Archives 2017). One can only imagine the appalling conditions in the trenches and how this would have contributed to his ill-health. Part of his, and other soldiers’ initial duties on arrival was digging trenches; this was so the troops had protection and somewhere to camp before they were to go and advance on the enemy; these duties no doubt this could have contributed to his poor health (National Archives, 2017). During his service Miller fought on the Western Front; he survived the war and returned home relatively unharmed, however he did die relatively soon after his arrival home of bronchial pneumonia; he was only 25 years old. Miller was awarded two medals for his service the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. He died on the 3rd of September 1919 in Adelaide South Australia (National Archives, 2017).
Sadly, at the time of his death, Miller Mack was buried in an unmarked grave in West Terrace Cemetery Adelaide. It was not until many years later that his family became aware of his resting place, like many young Indigenous soldiers, his service to his country had been forgotten. Michelle Lovegrove, his great niece discovered that his remains laid in an unmarked grave when she were searching for other deceased relatives. She found that he was buried a few short meters away from where his plaque was placed (Lovegrove, 2017). Miller Mack’s family were offered the opportunity for his remains to be exhumed and buried alongside other diggers in the nearby soldiers section in the West Terrace Cemetery; however, they felt that his remains should be buried on Ngarrindjeri land where he belongs.
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Reference List
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RSL Virtual War Memorial (2017) Private Miller Mack; Accessed 13/9/17 https://rslvirtualwarmemorial.org.au/explore/people/164828
Matthias, C., (2016) Premier’s ANZAC Spirit School Prize Essay – Private Miller Mack; Accessed 14/9/17 http://anzaccentenary.sa.gov.au/story/private-miller-mack/
National Archives Australia (2017) Private Miller Mack (2949) Service Record; Accessed 12/9/17https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/DetailsReports/ItemDetail.aspx?Barcode=1962055&isAv=N
Lovegrove, M (2017), ABC News, Miller Mack; Accessed 12/9/17
