Gravestone of Sam Mitchell

In the Ross Cemetery on the West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island. Sam Mitchell was awarded the first Victoria Cross in Australasia, in Sydney on 24 September 1864. Between nine and ten thousand people attended the ceremony. The VC was awarded for carrying his mortally wounded commanding officer to safety under fire after being ordered to save himself. The battle occurred earlier that year in Tauranga, New Zealand.

Sam Mitchell was born in Bedfordshire in England in 1841 and joined the Royal Navy in 1857. After his discharge from the Navy in 1865, he emigrated to New Zealand and joined the gold rush on the West Coast. He settled on the Mikonui River where he farmed until drowning in the river in 1894. He was survived by his wife Agnes and ten children.