World War 1 and the Family

Starting a blog this April means the family military history cannot be ignored.

In my childhood Anzac Day mostly passed me by though I recall Anzac Services at High School which seemed to be an occasion for veterans to come and tell us what a great time they had in the war though they did miss their deceased mates. Going to Anzac Day Services wasn’t part of my family tradition.

However, I remember that if home on 11 November, Mum always made sure we stopped at 11 a.m. and remembered the loss of life, the damaged lives, the victory won at great cost.

As I hear other stories, my immediate family was lightly touched by World War 1. Only six relations I knew of left Australia. 

Uncle Bill Shannon

William Arthur Shannon) was in France the longest and was the worst affected. His Service Records can be seen here. 

Roy & Gert Harris
Gert later married Bill Shannon.

They aren't very informative. They either jump from him leaving Fremantle on 12 Dec 1916 with the 9^th/4^th Division Signals Company having trained to be a Sapper to him being awarded the Military Medal on 6 Aug 1918 or add a little additional information then jump from him arriving in Abbeville, France on 11 Sep 1917 and going into the field with the 4^th Sig Coy on 15 Sep 1917 to the award of Military Medal, for bravery in the field, on 6 Aug 1918. There is no mention of him being wounded and his Medical History in the Army is missing. I understand he was wounded and was the family member clearly marked by the war.

A. J. Harris and R. W. O. Harris

Uncle Jack (Alfred John Harris) and Uncle Roy (Robert WalterOsment Harris) both enlisted in 1917. They arrived in France very close to the end of the war. There were two difficult jobs for months after the end of the war. One was dealing with the wounded – and Uncle Jack transferred to a Medical Unit. The other was dealing with the dead – and Uncle Roy was transferred first to a Burial Unit and later to a Grave Registration Unit.

The links on their full names are their Service Records.

Great Uncle Charlie

Charles Alfred Hawkins, the eldest brother of Grandma Clark, my paternal grandmother, enlisted on 28 Jun 1915 and served with the 3^rd Pioneer Battalion. His Record of Service seems far more interested in him going A.W.L. overnight in Cape Town and also overnight in France than in his actual military activity. 

The impression I gained of him from his nephews was that he was a wheeler and dealer always having something to sell or swap on the battlefield so I suspect these were just the times he was caught A.W.L.

Charlie appears to have been in France from 24 Nov 1916 to 27 Jan 1919 except for a fortnight’s leave in England in Feb 1918.

Albany and Maston Bell

See the next post for their interesting stories and reflections.