James Theodor Gretchinsky

Russian spelling Яков Федорович Гречинский

Born 23.10.1886    Place Gorodnia, Chernigov, Ukraine   Ethnic origin Russian   Religion Russian Orthodox

Father Gretchinsky, Feodor    Mother Gretchinsky, Mary Nicanorovna

Residence before arrival at Australia was sub-lieutenant in the Russian army and fought in the Russo-Japanese war

Arrived at Australia

            from Vladivostok    on 25.04.1913    per Yawata Maru      disembarked at Brisbane

Residence before enlistment Bingera plantation, Brisbane

Occupation 1914, 1916, 1949, 1954 electrical engineer; 1917 watchman, greaser on 'Borda', 1933-43 engineer

Service

service number 1353   enlisted 24.12.1914   POE Longreach, Qld

unit 9th Battalion   rank Private

place Egypt, 1915

final fate RTA 10.06.1915       discharged 13.08.1915 MU

Naturalisation 1920

Residence after the war 1916-1919 Sydney, Perth, Kalgoorlie, Sydney, Newcastle, Sydney, Cobar, Uralla, Egypt,

1919 Sydney

Wife 1915 married Helen Whitfield; later married Violet Mary (nee McMurdy) Gretchinsky

Died 24.09.1956 Qld

Materials digitised naturalisation (NAA)

digitised service records (NAA)

application to enlist in AIF (NAA)

Investigation Branch file  1    2  (NAA)

alien registration 1      2  (NAA)

From Russian Anzacs in Australian History:

For some the process of Russianisation resulted in the loss or suppression of their original culture, which they grew up with; but many others developed, and maintained double (sometimes even triple) ethnic identities.[...] James Theodor Gretchinsky [...] was born in Gorodnia, in Ukraine (where it borders both modern-day Belarus and Russia). He applied to become an interpreter in the military censor’s office, stating that he spoke ‘Russian, Polish, and Courland, and one or two Russian dialects, also French and Japanese’ — by ‘Russian dialects’, he obviously means the Ukrainian and Byelorussian which would been spoken around him as he was growing up.

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