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John Simpson Kirkpatrick was born in South Shields and as a boy worked with donkeys on the beach.

During World War One, while serving with the Australian army at Gallipoli, he used a donkey to rescue hundreds of wounded soldiers and later became a military hero in Australia although he鈥檚 little known in his home town.

The death of his father forced John to go to sea to provide for his mother and sister. When war broke out he was working in Australia and joined the Australian army hoping he would be sent back to Britain for training and could visit his family.

Instead, he ended up at Gallipoli as a stretcher bearer. He befriended a donkey to rescue many wounded men, carrying them day and night amid shrapnel, and from the fighting in Monash Valley to the beach at Anzac Cove.

He was killed by machine gun fire carrying two wounded soldiers less than a month after arriving in Gallipoli.

Although he won no medals for his bravery at Gallipoli, there have been many calls for him to be awarded a retrospective Victoria Cross.

Location: Sea Road, South Shields, Tyne and Wear NE33 2LD
Image from awm.gov.au

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