Biography of Francis Noel Smith
Summary A biography of Francis Noel Smith, service no. C5472, one of six biographies of Canterbury veterans of World War II written by Kim Newth.
When Noel Smith joined the New Zealand Division of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) in 1939 at age 17, he had no boating or sailing experience. After completing a relief tour aboard an armed merchant cruiser in the Pacific, the young man set sail with the Second Echelon on the grand troopship Aquitania. As well as serving on patrol boats and coastal convoys, Noel went on to endure hazardous Arctic convoy work and a daring landing at the Port of Algiers that almost cost him his life.
- View the Biography of Francis Noel Smith as PDF [679 KB]
- Listen to the interview with Francis Noel Smith, part 1 [8 MB]
- Listen to the interview with Francis Noel Smith, part 2 [11.6 MB]
- Listen to the interview with Francis Noel Smith, part 3 [76.3 MB]
Collection location Digital collection; private collection.
Publication information Published
Additional information
Kim Newth applied for and received the Canterbury History Foundation: 2014 Canterbury Community Historian Award after seeing the photographic record created by the New Zealand Institute of Professional Photographers for their nationwide WWII Veterans Portrait Project. These portraits were gifted to the RSA and form an archive of images for veterans, families, communities and New Zealand's generations to come. With the award Kim Newth was able to add biographies to some of the portraits, to uncover stories behind the faces. Christchurch members of NZIPP helped put Kim in touch with some of the veterans they photographed.
The collection includes the biographies written by Kim Newth, interview files, and some images.
Related pages
Biographies
- View biography of James (Jim) Roland Calder. Service No: C5464 RNVR NZD.
- View biography of Jack Marshall, DFC. Service No: NZ391865.
- View biography of Francis Noel Smith. Service No: C5472.
- View biography of Evan "Snow" Williams. Service No: 639543.
- View biography of Owen William Wilson. 2NZEF Service No: 442436.
- View biography of Kenneth Raymond Wright. Service No: 445257.
Source
This material has been supplied to Christchurch City Libraries by Kim Newth.
Rights statement
Biographies, interviews and images supplied to Christchurch City Libraries.
This material has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research). Material may be available for reuse.
Reproduction
This material has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. Please contact Christchurch City Libraries if you have any questions relating to the use of this material. It is the responsibility of the user to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.
