Person:Whiti Batley (1)

FULL NAME Gilbert Whiti Batley RANK LAST HELD Second Lieutenant FORENAME(S) Gilbert White SURNAME Batley WAR World War I, 1914-1918 SERIAL NO. 20493 PLACE OF BIRTH Taihape, Manawatu, New Zealand FIRST KNOWN RANK Sergeant OCCUPATION BEFORE ENLISTMENT Farmer NEXT OF KIN R.T. Batley (father), Moawhango, Taihape, New Zealand MILITARY DISTRICT Taihape BODY ON EMBARKATION New Zealand Rifle Brigade EMBARKATION UNIT 7th Reinforcements 4th Battalion, H Company EMBARKATION DATE 20 August 1916 PLACE OF EMBARKATION Wellington, New Zealand TRANSPORT HMNZT 63 VESSEL Navua DESTINATION Devonport, England NOMINAL ROLL NUMBER 138 PAGE ON NOMINAL ROLL 36 DATE OF DEATH 20 July 1983 YEAR OF DEATH 1983 BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES Possibly born in 1890 (?) Gilbert was the brother of Norman Batley who was killed in action in France. Gilbert survived the war and returned to Marry Madge Smith, Daughter of R W Smith the MP for Waimarino at the time. Their son Tony served with the Air Force in Guadalcanal in World War II. They farmed at Moawhango, near Taihape until Gilbert was about 80. POSTWAR OCCUPATION Farmer ARCHIVES NZ SOURCE Military personnel file SOURCES USED Nominal Rolls of New Zealand Expeditionary Force Volume II. Wellington: Govt. Printer, 1917