Collegian Eric Hector Goodfellow served with the 28th Battery, IX Brigade, Royal Field Artillery in France and Mesopotamia. In the early hours of 8 March 1916, British forces under the command of Lieutenant General Aylmer attacked the Turkish stronghold of Dujaila Redoubt on the banks of the Tigris river. On the day of the attack, Goodfellow was the Forward Observation Officer (FOO) for his battery and was with the infantry in the front line directing the fire of his unit's guns. Wounded early in the attack, Goodfellow carried on regardless but was killed when he stood up to get a better view of the Turkish position.
Born in Auckland in April 1892, Goodfellow was the youngest of Thomas Goodfellow and Jane Maclaurin’s six children.His father was the son of one of Auckland’s first settlers, William Goodfellow, who emigrated from Scotland in 1841. At the time of his birth, Goodfellow’s family lived on Dominion Road but in 1902 they purchased a property in Golf Road, One Tree Hill, known as ‘The Brae’, which would remain the family home until the 1950s. The family also owned a property on Waiheke Island where they spent their summer holidays, fishing and sailing.
Goodfellow attended Auckland Grammar School from 1906 to 1909. He was a member of the school cadets and captained the First XV in his final year. Records show that Goodfellow was enrolled as a medical student at Auckland University College (AUC) in 1910. At that time, Auckland did not have a medical school but students could undertake their first year of study towards a medical degree at AUC, then complete their studies at Otago or an overseas university. Goodfellow did not continue his studies immediately but spent the next three years working as a clerk in Hamilton where his elder brother William owned several businesses, including the rapidly expanding Waikato Co-Operative Dairy Company. While working in Hamilton, Goodfellow joined G Battery of New Zealand Field Artillery as a member of the Territorial Forces.
Source: , Special Collections, University of Auckland Libraries and Learning Services.
