| Personal Details |
| Name: | Dr John Alexander Graham |
| Type: | Staff |
| Born in camp? |
No |
| Died in camp? |
No |
| Gender: | male |
| Race: | white |
| Occupation: | doctor |
| Camp occupation: | doctor |
| Notes: | To be paid extra duty pay of 3/- pd from 10 Nov 1900. 'The amount will be calculated for the period during which Mr Graham acted as Sanitary Officer to the Refugee Camp.'
c.March 1901: Has been employed attending the sick of various contingents from Jagersfontein; since European families have gone away, has shared with Capt Bray, RAMC in attending the natives.
8/5/1901: MB, CM
Medical Register, 1900, p.1447: Scotland: 3 Garthland Place, Paisley; MB CM Glasg 1896; (University Glasg); Med Exam Iron Trades Employers' Insur Co; late Resident MO Paisley Infirm and Fev Hospital.
From William de Villiers ryeroad@mweb.co.za
______________
Dr. John Alexander Graham
Born in Paisley, Renfrew, Scotland, the son of Dr Thomas Graham and his wife, Henrietta Catherine K Graham, 1875
Trained at the University of Glasgow
Graduated as a Bachelor of Medicine and Master of Surgery, 1896
Appointed Resident Medical Officer, Paisley Infirmary and Fever Hospital, whereafter joined his father as a general practitioner in private practice. By 1898 young Dr Graham was living and practising medicine with his father at No. 3, Garthland Place, Paisley, and acting as a medical examiner for the Iron Trades Employers’ Insurance Company.
Applied, unsuccessfully, for an appointment under the Colonial Office, September 1899
Contracts himself to serve as a Civil Surgeon with the British Army during the South African War, 1900
Served for twelve months with the British forces on operations in the Cape Colony and Orange Free State
Appointed a member of the Edenburg Board of Health, April 1901
Appointed to the staff of the Directorate of Refugee Camps in the Orange Free State, 1901
Appointed Senior Medical Officer, Vredefort Road Refugee Camp, July 1901
Ordered to proceed to Winburg Refugee Camp on the closure of Vredefort Road Camp, 27 May 1902
Repeated application for an appointment under the Colonial Office – preferably in British Guiana or Fiji, “unless there are to be Imperial Medical appointments in this country,” 18 June 1902
A reply was sent to Graham on 29 August 1902 by G. Pratt Yule, Medical Officer of Health for the Orange River Colony to the effect that “the only civil appointments of this nature are those are those of District Surgeons. A small retaining fee is given, for which certain duties require to be undertaken, and payment at a fixed rate is made for all other work. The holding of such an appointment does not preclude private practice.”
The Superintendent of Winburg Refugee Camp was ordered to give Dr Graham one month’s notice and to thank him for the good work he had done as a medical officer in the refugee camps, 22 August 1902
Previous order cancelled, and Superintendent of Winburg Refugee Camp ordered to send Dr Graham ‘at once’ as Senior Medical Officer to the Bethulie Refugee Camp, 28 August 1902
Dr Graham leaves Winburg for Bethulie, 30 August 1902
Applies, unsuccessfully, from Bethulie Refugee Camp, to the Medical Officer of Health for employment as District Surgeon in Smaldeel, or in Winburg, Edenburg or Ladybrand, 29 September 1902
Relinquishes appointment under the Directorate of Refugee Camps, January 1903
Awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal with bars Cape Colony, Orange Free State, and South Africa 1901
Registered as a medical practitioner with the Medical and Pharmacy Council of the Orange River Colony, 8 January 1903
Settled in Dewetsdorp, Orange River Colony
Enquired of the Secretary of State for the Colonies “if there is any intention on the part of the Colonial Office [sic] of granting a medal or other memento for service in the Refugee Camps during the late war,” 26 August 1904
Graham’s enquiry went to the High Commissioner, Lord Milner, and from him to the Secretary of State, Lord Lyttelton, then to the Lieutenant-Governor of the Orange River Colony, and from him to Lord Milner’s Military Secretary, and on to the Chief Staff Officer, South Africa, before an answer was provided by the Private Secretary to the Lieutenant-Governor to the effect that “the Commander in Chief whilst fully recognising the valuable work done by the Civilian Staffs of the Refugee Camps, had decided that their duties were not of such a nature as to entitle them to the award of the South African War medal. I am to add that it is not proposed to grant any special decoration in respect of the services to which you refer.” In the meanwhile, the Private Secretary had made a private enquiry of the Resident Magistrate at Smithfield, Captain Trollope, whether he remembered Dr. Graham. The answer was an emphatic “Yes! as far as I can remember Dr John Graham was rather a bad lot” Perhaps he was already making a reputation for himself as a trouble maker!
Married in Bethulie to Miss Annette Christine Klijnveld, 1908 (Miss Klijnveld, born in 1876, was the daughter of Hermanus (“Herman”) Klijnveld and his wife, Charlotte Caroline Pellissier.)
Graham’s only child, Catherine Charlotte Graham, born, 11 July 1908
Appointed District Surgeon, Bethulie
Graham’s wife, Annette, dies, 2 August 1915
According to the Medical, Dental & Pharmacy Directory of South Africa, 1924 there were two medical practitioners in Bethulie – Drs J A Graham and J T Mynhardt, together with one dentist, and one pharmacist.
Moved to live at Parkside West, Mossel Bay, Cape Province [date unknown]
Retired to live in Cape Town
By 1944 Dr Graham was living with his daughter at “Bellaire”, No. 155, Main Road, Greenpoint in Cape Town.
Died in the Belmont Nursing Home, Bantry Bay in Cape Town, 24 August 1948.
See espcially files in the National Archives (Free State)
CO 92, reference 3281/02
CO3431, file 8337
SRC 41, reference A1365
SRC 44, reference A1842
PHD2, letter 500/02 (7 October 1902) |
| Unique ID: | 94 |
| Camp History |
| Name: | Winburg RC |
| Date appointed (as staff): | 10/11/1900 |
| Name: | Vredefort Road RC |
| Date departure: | 27/5/1902 |
| Reason departure: | transferred on breaking up of the camp |
| Destination: | Winburg RC |
| Name: | Winburg RC |
| Date arrival: | 27/5/1902 |
| Date departure: | 28/8/1902 |
| Reason departure: | transferred |
| Destination: | Bethulie RC |
| Name: | Bethulie RC |
| Date arrival: | 28/8/1902 |
| Sources |
| Title: | SRC 13 |
| Type: | Correspondence |
| Location: | VAB |
| Reference No.: | 13 |
| Dates: | Sept 1901 |
| Notes: | RC5021, 21/9/1901, Oath taken by JA Graham |
| Title: | SRC 44 |
| Type: | Correspondence: appointments |
| Location: | VAB |
| Reference No.: | 44 |
| Dates: | Aug-Sept 1902 |
| Notes: | A1842, 28/8/1902, Telegram, CSRC to SRC, Winburg |
| Title: | SRC 02 |
| Type: | Correspondence |
| Location: | VAB |
| Reference No.: | 02 |
| Dates: | Feb 1901-7 Mar 1901 |
| Notes: | RC277 |
| Title: | SRC 41 |
| Type: | Correspondence: appointments |
| Location: | VAB |
| Reference No.: | 41 |
| Dates: | May-June 1902 |
| Notes: | A1365, 27/5/1902, CSRC to SRC, Vredefort Road |
| Title: | SRC 02 |
| Type: | Correspondence |
| Location: | VAB |
| Reference No.: | 02 |
| Dates: | Feb 1901-7 Mar 1901 |
| Notes: | RC277 |
| Title: | SRC 07 |
| Type: | Correspondence |
| Location: | VAB |
| Reference No.: | 07 |
| Dates: | May 1901 |
| Notes: | RC1836, 8/5/1901, Weekly health report |
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British Concentration Camps