The first New Zealand death of WW1

The first official casualty of World War one for New Zealand was Sapper Robert Hislop.
And he was nowhere near the front.
Indeed, Robert was close to home - guarding the Parnell railway bridge in Auckland.
The First World War saw more than 120,000 men enlist and about 100,000 of those - mostly young men - went overseas. One in five did not return.
But back home there were any number of men who stayed, often used to guard assets, even lay mines in harbours to protect our shores.
Robert Arthur Hislop was one. He was an employee of the Railways Department and a member of the North Island Railway Battalion.
Like many others he was sent out to guard what were considered strategic assets.
On August 13, 1914, Robert was doing just that, making sure the bridge was safe when he fell.
He fell between the sleepers on to the road way below fracturing both femurs.
He was found and taken to hospital but his injuries were too severe and he died.
Robert was the son of Robert Hunter Hislop and Jane Hislop and until shortly before his accident had lived in Christchurch. He had only recently moved to Auckland.
It took more than 100 years for him to be officially recognised as New Zealand’s first casualty of the war.
Hislop received a military funeral, a cortage was assembled under Lieutenant Colonel Hartley with two companies of the North Island Railway battalion, the New Zealand engineers and members of the Expeditionary Force from Epsom Camp along with the Garrison Artillery Band.
His body was conveyed from the railway station by train then to the cemetery.
Robert’s gravestone featured the battalion’s badge, and his name appeared in the Railways Department roll of honour. But he had not enlisted in the NZEF and was never assigned a service number, which perhaps explains why his name was not entered on the official national roll of honour.
In 2014 Hislop was one of six servicemen added to the official roll after the New Zealand Defence Force determined that he had died as a result of war service.
He is buried in Waikumete Cemetery.​