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this story was gathered and submitted to the WW2 Peoples war by Oliver Murphy

Kevin Teevan
Captain, Royal Army Medical Corps,
Attached to the 6th Field Ambulance,
Western Africa Medical Corps
Died 29 November 1942

Kevin Teevan was born on 3 March 1914, the son of Dr and Mrs Teevan of Barnstown, Dundalk. He was the youngest of five boys. He had two sisters, one of whom died in infancy. He was educated by the Christian Brothers in Dundalk

When the family moved house (to 9 Sunbury Gardens, Dartry Road) Kevin was sent to Belvedere College, Dublin. He enrolled in October 1928. It was said that he was a bubbly and effervescent young boy and a "barrel of laughs." From a very early age, he was obsessed with rugby. He was engrossed with all of the statistics, the players, the rules of the game and this translated into a notable talent on the field of play. He captained his local National School team for four years, even as a child, years younger than his team-mates. He was remembered as ‘the best winger you could ever see, and even with his diminutive stature he could outwit the Goliaths that faced him.’

With all of this ability, it was only natural that he would follow his father into what was at the time one of the premier rugby schools in the country. He entered mainly on this basis for, though a steady worker, he was no intellectual heavyweight and was loath to commit to serious study. However, despite this he ‘managed to charm his way into even the coldest hearts in the teachers' lounge. He was cheerful, unassuming and popular and as a result was seen by all as a great young man.’

After joining Belvedere in 1928, it was only a matter of time before he managed to work his way onto the Senior Cup Team. He was a small, sturdily-built, keen winger. He first managed to achieve a place on the Under-17 team (despite being two years younger than those he played alongside), then finally in 1932 received his chance to line out with the Seniors against Blackrock. They won that game, and went on to have a very successful season with Kevin at the heart of the squad. Unfortunately they lost 3-0 to Newbridge in the cup. The Belvederian of 1932 describes Teevan as ‘a very plucky player with an elusive run. A slow starter, however, and defence not always irreproachable.’

Kevin Teevan left Belvedere in 1932 for UCD, where he studied medicine. He excelled in the subject, and took to it with ease - he qualified as a doctor in 1938, a year ahead of time. He practised as a doctor in England. While working at Leeds Royal Infirmary, he met a nurse, Mary Mullins, whom he married in 1942. On one occasion, while working as a GP in Liverpool, he went out on his rounds. He came home to find that his house had been bombed in a German air-raid.

Three months after his wedding, he joined the Royal Army Medical Corps. With his capacity for hard work, natural courage and cheery good nature he was a popular captain. He was sent to Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone (a country in Western Africa) was in British hands. Its main port and capital city was Freetown. This port was a key site for ships to gather and to make the last leg of their journey to England in protected convoy. Such was the importance of Freetown, that in 1942 there was a garrison of over 30,000 troops there. Because of the danger of malaria and other diseases, Sierra Leone was known as ‘The white man’s grave’.

In 1942, Kevin Teevan contracted polio. As a doctor, he was able to document his own disease, which he realised would almost certainly be fatal, given the conditions in Sierra Leone at the time. He died of the disease on 29 November 1942.

At this time, Kevin’s mother and father lived with Kevin’s sister Nora and her husband Myers in Mobhi Road. Kevin’s mother was playing the piano when she heard of her son’s death. The piece she was playing was ‘The Spinning Wheel’, a favourite of Kevin’s. She was still playing when the telegram, telling of his death, arrived at the house. She closed the piano and never played it again.

Kevin Teevan was 28 years old at the time of his death. He is buried in grave 4 D 19 at Freetown ‘King Tom’ Cemetery.

We are grateful to his nephews, Kevin Myers and Diarmuid Teevan for their help in writing this history.

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