Born in Dowlais around 1896, John Dunn (known as Jack) joined the Territorials before the war, and on the outbreak of war was sent to the Western Front with the South Wales Borderers. On the evening of 31 October 1914, Jack single-handedly saved eleven wounded men, while under heavy German fire. As recalled by Thomas Harris, a Merthyr soldier who was saved by him, the wounded men had been left behind when the 2nd Battalion Welsh Regiment withdrew from their lines in Gheluvelt. Jack Dunn carried Thomas Harris and ten others, one by one, to the safety of a house behind the line which had been transformed into a hospital. Thomas Harris wrote a number of letters commending Jack for his bravery, and suggesting that his deeds were worthy of a medal. This is a note from the Commanding Officer of the South Wales Borderers, showing that investigations were made to try to corroborate the story. However, Thomas' initiative was unsuccessful as any potential officer-witnesses were dead, and thus Jack's heroics remained unacknowledged. An article published in the Merthyr Express after John Dunn's death at the age of 68 went under the headline "He Should Have Been a VC".