Hunt for descendants of 'most courageous' soldier

A historian is working to trace the descendants of a World War One soldier who he believes is "arguably the most courageous man ever born and raised in Suffolk".

Several years ago Gerald Main started researching the names on Hintlesham's war memorial and came across, John Samuel Gant.

Gant, known as Jack, had been born in Whatfield in 1887 and lived in Hintlesham before he emigrated to Australia. He joined the Australian Infantry in 1916 and served in France, where he earned the Military Medal for Gallantry.

Main, a former BBC broadcaster who lives in Suffolk, hopes to find Gant's descendants, as part of a project to create a lasting tribute to him in Hintlesham.

Main discovered Gant had worked as an assistant shepherd in Suffolk before he saved up £17, left his family behind and sailed over to Canungra in Queensland, Australia, where he got a job as a farm labourer.

"Perhaps his next big courageous decision was when they heard about the Great War, he decided that he would do his bit and sign up for the Australian Infantry and become a Commonwealth soldier," Main told BBC Radio Suffolk's Sarah Lilley.

He said: "He signed up and ended up back on a ship. He must have been sick to death of sailing around the world by that stage."

In 1916 Gant sailed to northern France to serve on the Western Front, but the following year he was shot and badly wounded.

After spending three months in a London hospital, he was sent back to France and in 1918, was involved in an attack on a very important part of the German trench defences during the Battle of Mont Saint-Quentin.

Gant was a company runner and, for 18 hours non-stop he ran across the battlefield, avoiding machine gun fire, to transfer messages between the different companies.

Main said he had been "central" to the success of the attack and was awarded his medal as a result. However Gant was shot again later that year and died of pneumonia just eight days after the armistice.

In an article about Gant by the Canowindra Historical Society and Museum, it suggests it was unlikely that he would have known of his commemoration before he died. His medal was sent to his father in 1920 but was returned to London unclaimed.

Gant was buried at Ste. Marie Cemetery in France and is commemorated on the Australian National Memorial in Canberra.

Main has worked with a historian in Australia to discover more about Gant's life, but they have struggled to find any photos of him.

If a picture is found, Main said he is in touch with an Australian artist who is willing to create an image of Gant in uniform for Hintlesham.

"This guy [Gant] is probably the most courageous person who ever stepped foot in Suffolk," Main said.

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