Private Tressillian Herbert Coombs of Blackwood

Tress Coombs was a son of Thomas Coombs and Emily Adelaide Coombs (nee Humby), and was born at New Glenelg in 1893. When Tress was young his family moved to Woodleigh Rd, Blackwood, and he attended Cherry Gardens and Coromandel Valley Public Schools. As a young man he was a keen cricketer, playing for both Blackwood Cricket Club and the Coromandel Valley 2nd XI, and was a useful bowler. He was also a member of the Blackwood Rifle Club and was actively involved with the Blackwood, Belair and Coromandel Boy's Club.

He was one of the first men from the Blackwood area to enlist, signing his papers on 24 August 1914, less than three weeks after war was declared. He enlisted at Morphettville, where the 10th Battalion was being raised, and he was allotted to B or "Beer' Company, along with Pte FW Jones, another Blackwood man. He was presented with a pocketbook at a farewell by the Coromandel Valley Cricket Club on 9 September. After a few weeks training the battalion embarked on the 'Ascanius' on 20 October and sailed for the Middle East. By December 1914 the battalion was camped in tents at the foot of the Pyramids in Egypt. Training continued till early April 1915 when the battalion moved to Alexandria and then to the island of Lemnos in the Aegean Sea.

'Beer' Company along with C or 'Cork' Company of the 10th Battalion were in the first wave ashore at Gallipoli in the early hours of 25 April 1915. During the confused, hard fighting that day, Tress Coombs was wounded in the leg and evacuated on an improvised hospital ship to Cairo, where he arrived on 30 April. By that time nearly half of the battalion had become casualties. He recovered quickly, returning to Gallipoli on 18 July, just as the unsanitary conditions were resulting in many cases of dysentery. By mid-August half the remaining battalion members had been evacuated with diahorrea. Tress himself was hospitalised on 12 August with diahorrea, and put aboard the hospital ship 'Valdavia', but died of enteric fever (also known as typhoid or paratyphoid fever) on 16 August 1915. He was buried in the East Mudros cemetery on the island of Lemnos, Greece.

Tress Coombs' name is inscribed on the State National War Memorial, the Blackwood Soldiers Memorial, and the Coromandel Valley Primary School Roll of Honour.

Lieutenant Llewellyn Weston Claude Leak of Upper Sturt

Llewellyn Leak was the eldest son of Daniel Leak and Cleopatra Annie Leak (nee Winwood) of Upper Sturt. Llewellyn was born in 1887 in Unley and attended the Unley Public School. After he finished school he passed the civil service exam and worked as a railway traffic auditor with the South Australian Railways. He was an accomplished cellist and a member of the Musicians Union. In 1909 he was elected honorary treasurer of the Holdfast Bay Yacht Club. He was also a keen cyclist with the North Adelaide Cycling Club. He was a Lieutenant in the militia before he enlisted, as well as a prominent member of the Adelaide Rifle Club.

He enlisted at Adelaide on 19 January 1916, and almost immediately was sent to non-commissioned officers school and provisionally promoted to Sergeant. After spending time training reinforcements at Mitcham Camp he was sent to attend the 3rd Officer Training School at located at Duntroon in the Australian Capital Territory. Whilst he was at Duntroon he received news that his younger brother Lance Corporal Hugh Phillips Leak of the 10th Battalion had been killed in action at Pozieres. Llewellyn graduated with the rest of No.5 Platoon in August 1916 and returned to Adelaide.

On 1 October 1916 he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, and spent the next year or so again training reinforcements at Mitcham Camp. On 9 December 1916 Llewellyn married Stella Gladys Evans at his grandparents house at Glenelg. Stella was the fourth daughter of David Evans of Upper Sturt, a sister of Douglas Evans (also on this blog) and the couple lived at Upper Sturt. Llewellyn entrained for Melbourne on 27 October 1917, and embarked with the rest of the 20th reinforcements to the 27the Battalion on the 'Aeneas' on 30 October 1917. Whilst he was at sea on 23 December 1917, his wife Stella gave birth to a son, Weston Hugh Leak.

After some more training in England, he crossed the Channel to France and finally joined his unit on 10 April 1918, taking up over command of 13 Platoon, 'Don' Company, 27th Battalion which was resting near Albert, France. Cecil Oswald, whom he had gone through officer training with back in Australia, joined the battalion the same day. The Battalion spent the rest of April and May in fairly quiet sectors, rotating through frontline, support and reserve areas.

The following month the battalion was part of the successful 7th Brigade attack at Morlancourt on 10 June, when the unit killed over 130 of the enemy, and captured one officer and 80 men, as well as 13 machineguns and two trench mortars. On 8 July, Llewellyn was promoted to Lieutenant, and at the end of the month he was sent to the Australian Corps Bombing (Grenade) School to attend a short training course.

On 2 September 1918 the 27th Battalion was ordered to capture the villages of Allaines and Haut Allaines near Peronne. During the attack, 'Don' Company was the leading right hand company, and German machineguns on high ground to the right of the advancing troops caused a large number of casualties, including all but two of the officers of 'Don' Company. Llewellyn Leak was one of the officers wounded, in his case in the chest and throat. He was evacuated first to the 6th Field Ambulance then the 5th Casualty Clearing Station. His condition on arrival at the casualty clearing station late on 2 September was described as 'very grave'. He hung on for two more days, but died of his wounds at 7.15pm on 4 September 1918. Soldiers that had served under his command later described him as a 'brave soldier' who was 'loved and respected by his men, with whom he was very popular'.

He was buried in the Proyart communal cemetery extension on 5 September 1918. A few years later his remains were exhumed and laid to rest in the Heath Cemetery at Harbonnieres.

Stella Leak died in 1976 at the age of 81. During the Second World War, Llewellyn and Stella's son Weston served as a Lieutenant with the 2nd/6th Field Ambulance.

Llewellyn Leak's name is inscribed on the State National War Memorial and honour boards in the Glenelg Town Hall, North Adelaide Cycling Club, Adelaide Railway Station and the Upper Sturt Methodist (now Uniting) Church.

Scope of Project

I have been thinking about how to keep the project manageable in terms of numbers (I now have just short of 300 names), but also limiting it to a defined geographical area that makes sense in terms of the pattern of settlement and transport links of the district pre-war.

Due to the key importance of Blackwood Station as a transport hub and the coach services that serviced the surrounding district I have decided that the project will cover the area traced by Main Road from Belair to Coromandel Valley (with a short branch down Shepherd's Hill Road to Eden Hills), Cherry Gardens Road through Cherry Gardens, Ironbank Road through to Upper Sturt and Upper Sturt Road back to Belair, including settlements on either side of those roads. This will include the settlements of Ironbank and Scott Creek but not Dorset Vale or Chandler's Hill. I am looking for an old map to confirm the boundaries of these settlements as they were defined at the time.

Ironbank Methodist Sunday School Honour Roll

On 6 July 1919, Mr George Laffer MP presided over the unveiling of an honour roll at the Ironbank Methodist Sunday School by a Dr Dawkins. The honour roll included the names of all former students of the Sunday School who had served in the First World War. The names were:

Claude Ahrens
Albert Brown
Gordon Brown
Harry Brown
John Carthew
Lancelot Carthew
Alexander Coats
Alick Coats
Arnold Coats
Britton Coats
Charles Coats
Frank Coats
Gilbert Coats
Norman Coats
Reuben Coats
David Davies
Cecil Edwards
Douglas Evans
Frederick Evans
Thomas Evans
Frederick Gates
Henry Gates
Jack Hancock
Charles Hill
Cleveland Hill
John Hill
Rowland Hill
Henry Holland
Percival Holland
Clifford Jacobs
William Batt
Hal Jacobs
William Pole
Herbert Slater
Alfred Uren
William Warland

This information is drawn from an article from page 9 of the Adelaide Advertiser, 11 July 1919.

Sergeant Douglas Evans, MM, CdeG (Belgian) of Upper Sturt

Douglas Evans was a son of David Evans of Upper Sturt. As a boy he attended Sunday school at the Methodist Church at Iron Bank. Before the war he worked as a gardener and lived in Upper Sturt.

He enlisted on 3 April 1916 at the age of 29, and after a period of training in England joined the 48rd Battalion in France in December 1916. During early months of 1917 the battalion rotated in and out of the trenches near Gueudecourt. During 1917, the 48th Battalion fought in the disastrous First Battle of Bullecourt in France in April where the battalion's casualties totalled 14 officers and 421 other ranks. After being thrown in by companies to support the brigade attack at Messines in June, the battalion received reinforcements, and had some rest behind the lines. The battalion's next major action was the First Battle of Passchendaele in Belgium in October, where over half the battalion became casualties. In late October Douglas spent two weeks on leave in England then a stint at the ANZAC Corps training school. After rotating in and out of the trenches during the winter of 1917/1918 with the battalion, Douglas was promoted to Lance Corporal in February 1918. This promotion marked the beginning of a remarkable six months for Douglas.

The 48th Battalion played a crucial part in stopping the German Spring offensive in front of Amiens in late March and early April 1918, and following the attack on Monument Wood in early May, Douglas was promoted to Corporal. The battalion took part in the Battle of Amiens in August 1918, and following that battle Douglas was again promoted, this time to Sergeant, as the battalion helped drive the Germans back to the Hindenburg Line. Douglas was now the Scout Sergeant of the 48th Battalion, responsible for reconnaissance, patrolling and laying of 'jumping off' tapes for attacks. During a spell in mid September 1918, his commanding officer recommended him for a mention in dispatches for his performance as Scout Sergeant, describing him as a brilliant patrol leader who displayed daring and skill especially during night patrols.

Eleven days later the battalion was in the first wave of attacks on the outposts of the Hindenberg Line opposite Bellenglise, after which his commanding officer wrote that he had displayed conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty, untiring energy and disregard for personal safety, which inspired all men working with him. He was subsequently awarded both the Military Medal and the Belgian Croix-de-Guerre for his actions during the period from February to September 1918. He was granted leave in England in early November 1918, but returned to the battalion in France until he started his return voyage to Australia in April 1919. He arrived back in Adelaide in August, and was discharged in September 1919.

He returned to Upper Sturt after the war, and during the Second World War was living in Crafers when he enlisted as a Sergeant in the 4th Battalion of the Volunteer Defence Corps, in which he served until October 1945.

Trooper Oswald Vincent Pearson of Blackwood

Oswald Pearson was the only son of George and Marion Ann Pearson (nee Gravestock) and was born in Riverton in 1892. After attending school at Rose Park, he joined the firm of Elder, Smith and Co. working for four years at the Adelaide head office in Currie Street before moving to the country. He trained as a wool-classer at the School of Mines and Industries whilst working at head office. He worked in various locations, including Broken Hill, before taking over the management of the Snowtown office in 1914. In that same year, his mother re-married, his father having died some years before. His mother and two sisters lived in Blackwood with Oswald's step-father, James Dawson McLean. After war was declared, Oswald was very active in raising patriotic funds to support the war effort, auctioning goods donated for that purpose on Australia Day 1915.

Oswald had tried to enlist in Broken Hill in 1914, but after moving to Snowtown he successfully passed the medical examination in October 1915 and was allocated to the 14th reinforcements to the 3rd Light Horse Regiment. he embarked at Adelaide on 10 February 1916 on the 'Warilda', but on the voyage from Adelaide to Fremantle he contracted meningitis. He disembarked at Fremantle on 15 February 1916, and was admitted to No.8 Base Hospital at Fremantle, but died four days later.

He was buried in Fremantle cemetery, and his name is inscribed on the Blackwood Memorial, the Roll of Honour at the Australian War Memorial and the Elder Smith honour board at their head office in Currie Street, Adelaide. His name is also inscribed on a plaque in the South Australian Garden of Remembrance, Centennial Park.

Private Frank Palmer Smith of Coromandel Valley

In 1896, the year Frank Palmer Smith was born, his parents Jacob Adam and Mary Ellen 'Nell' Smith (nee Mincham) bought a block of land along the Sturt River in Coromandel Valley where they established a dairy. Their home was built by John Weymouth and it still stands on The Knoll Crescent. Frank attended the Coromandel Valley Public School, and as a boy enjoyed roller skating and playing the piano, for which he won several prizes. He also served for a year in the senior cadets. In 1912 he passed the civil service exam and began work as a clerk. Before the war he assisted with gymnasium classes at the Blackwood, Belair and Coromandel Boys’ Club.

He enlisted on 11 September 1914 at the age of 19, joining 'Cork' Company of the 10th Battalion at Morphettville and boarding the troopship 'Ascanius' on 20 October 1914. By December 1914 the battalion was camped in tents at the foot of the Pyramids in Egypt. Training continued till early April 1915 when the battalion moved to Alexandria and then to the island of Lemnos in the Aegean Sea.

About 2pm on the afternoon of 24 April 1915, Frank, loaded down with his pack and rifle, climbed on board the British battleship the 'Prince of Wales', along with the rest of 'Cork' and 'Beer' companies of the 10th Battalion. The 'Prince of Wales' then slipped out of Mudros Harbour, along with other ships carrying the rest of the first wave that was to land on Gallipoli.

Around 7pm that evening the battalion were told they could rest until 11pm. Those that were able to sleep were woken at midnight, and they were all given a welcome cup of hot cocoa by the ships' crew.

At 1am the ships stopped so the soldiers could start climbing down rope ladders into lines of rowing boats moored alongside the battleship. By 2.35am the rowing boats were full, and the battleship set off again with the lines of rowing boats attached to its sides. At 3 am the moon set and the sky grew very dark. At 3.30am the boats cast off from the battleship to be towed in threes towards the distant shore by small steamboats.

It was so dark that they would probably not have been able to see the lines of boats being towed alongside. Perhaps they could have just made out the boat behind or in front. The water was smooth as satin. It was a cool peaceful night. There was still no sign of any sort that the Turks had seen them. Close to the shore, the steamboats cast off the lines of boats, and they began to row.

About 4.29am a figure appeared silhouetted on a cliff overlooking the beach and a shot rang out, whizzed overhead and plunged into the sea. Moments later, as the boats reached the stony beach, Frank and his mates slipped over the side and waded ashore, weighed down by their equipment. Bullets struck sparks off the stones on the beach, and men were killed and wounded in the boats, in the water and on the beach. Those that hadn’t been hit ran across the stony beach to the cover of a sandy bank. They started to scale the steep hill in front of them, some driving their bayonet into the dirt to give them a handhold, as the Turks kept shooting at them with rifles then machine guns, the fire getting heavier and the casualties mounting every minute.

Sometime on that first ANZAC Day, Frank Smith was shot through the left foot. Four agonising days later he finally made it to a hospital in Cairo.

He survived his wound, but it was bad enough that he was repatriated to Australia and discharged as medically unfit in November 1915. He had spent little more than a year in the AIF. His older brother John enlisted a year after Frank, and died of arsenic poisoning whilst training in Egypt in May 1916.

After the war Frank worked on the family farm, eventually taking it over when his father died. He met Muriel Mcintosh at a dance, they married in 1928, and had four children, twins that died shortly after they were born, and Patricia and John. Frank and Muriel were devoted to each other. In 1935, Muriel died when John was only three months old, and it hit Frank very hard. Patricia went to live with her grandparents Jacob and Mary, and John, who was disabled, went to live with an aunt closer to Adelaide. Frank continued to work the dairy farm. Sadly, Frank’s suffering wasn’t over. When John died at the age of twenty two, Frank went down the Sturt River and in his grief dug a dam which today is known as the John Wesley Smith Memorial Lake. It is located within the Frank Smith Reserve, just behind the Coromandel Valley Primary School off Magarey Road. Frank didn’t want the land broken up, so when he sold it to the Mitcham Council he made sure it would be kept as one lot, which is why the community is still able to enjoy it today.

Frank is remembered by his family as a kind man, who played the piano beautifully. He was an active member of the Blackwood RSL. Early in the Second World War he enlisted in the Army for home service, and sometime that year he married Hilda Priest. In 1944 he tried to enlist in the RAAF.

Frank died at the Repatriation Hospital at Daw Park on Ash Wednesday 1983 at the age of 87 and was buried in the Derrick Gardens at Centennial Park. His daughter Pat is still alive, two of his grandsons still live on the Knoll at Coromandel Valley, and his granddaughter Heather works at the Blackwood Library. His name is inscribed on the Blackwood Soldiers' Memorial.

Private Archibald Percy Choat of Cherry Gardens

Archie Choat was the third of the seven sons of Joseph Choat and Alice Mary Choat (nee Broadbent). He was born in 1897 at Cherry Gardens, but the family moved to Clarence Park before he was old enough for school. He attended Goodwood Public School and was working as a farm labourer for the Duncan family at 'Gum Creek' near Clare before he enlisted.

As he was only 18 years old, he needed his parent's permission to enlist alongside his older brothers Ray and Wesley on 12 July 1915, and all three were allocated to A (or 'Ack') Company of the SA/WA-recruited 32nd Battalion with sequential regimental numbers.

Embarking from Adelaide on 18 November 1915, the Battalion disembarked at Suez on 18 December 1915, and after training in Egypt sailed for France in June 1916. On 19 July 1916 the inexperienced battalion was thrown into the poorly planned Battle of Fromelles. During the night of 19/20 July 1916 Ack Company of the 32nd Battalion was cut-off by German counter-attacks and Archie and his brother Ray were killed. Their brother Wesley was wounded by shrapnel and captured by the Germans. Archie's body was found and buried at the Rue-Petillon Military Cemetery, France. His name is inscribed on: the State National War Memorial, the Goodwood Primary School honour board, the Goodwood Anglican Church Monument, the Unley Town Hall honour roll and the family grave at Mitcham Cemetery.

After his death his parents and friends wrote to the Red Cross and the Department of Defence and placed family notices in the Advertiser remembering Archie. Among the letters and messages, his parents said their 'hearts were rent, and well nigh broken'. His brother Wesley escaped from the German prison camp and received the Military Medal in recognition of his bravery in doing so. It was common for family and friends to include a short poem in notices placed in the newspaper, and the following poem was the one chosen for Archie by his friend 'Olly':

rest on in peace, o warrior brave
now your task is o'er
all your best you gladly gave
to help us win the war
but the last post now has sounded
you've laid aside your sword
and god has called you from us
to your noble-won reward

Photograph: Courtesy State Records of South Australia

Private Victor Rupert Sydney Boothey of Blackwood

Vic Boothey was born at Blackwood in 1882, but his family must have moved to Mount Gambier before the turn of the century. In February 1905, the Advertiser reported that Vic was riding his bicycle from Kalangadoo to Mount Gambier when he was overtaken by a bushfire in a stringybark forest. Surrounded by fire and nearly suffocated by smoke he just managed to escape. Three months later Vic was again the subject of an article in the Advertiser when he almost severed his ear in a bicycle accident. Apparently he was a keen cyclist who competed in road races in the south-east.

Vic was living at Kingscote, Kangaroo Island and working as a motor mechanic when he travelled to Adelaide to enlist in January 1916 at the age of 32. He played for the Kingscote Football Club. His next of kin was his sister Beatrice, who lived in Mount Gambier.

After spending most of 1916 undergoing signals training and being transferred from one set of reinforcements to another, Vic was eventually allocated to the 6th reinforcements to the 43rd Battalion and embarked at Adelaide on the 'Berrima' in December 1916. After disembarking at Devonport, Vic spent time training in England before shipping out to France in late September and joining the 43rd Battalion at the 'Toronto' camp near the Ypres salient in Belgium on 8 October 1917.

The day after he joined the battalion it marched to the front line and entered the support trenches in the rear of the 44th Battalion. Over the next few days the 43rd Battalion was shelled heavily, including with gas shells, and on 12 October 1917 Vic was evacuated with gas-related wounds. He rejoined his unit on 22 November, and in late January went to hospital sick. He attended a two week training course in late February 1918, and not long after he returned to the Battalion it was rushed south to the Somme to help stop the German spring offensive. After a short rest, on 24 May 1917 the 43rd Battalion re-entered the frontline near La Bizet, and two days later Vic was gassed for the second time. He quickly recuperated, rejoining the Battalion on 8 June 1918 when it was in reserve near Villers Bretonneux.

After stints in the reserve and support trenches the unit was withdrawn for training alongside tanks, and on 4 July 1918 participated in the highly successful Battle of Hamel. During the training for and conduct of this attack a company of American troops were attached to the 43rd Battalion. During the battle the unit advanced 1700 yards, and captured over 300 prisoners and 20 enemy machineguns. On 8 August 1918 the unit participated in the hugely successful Battle of Amiens, and during the remainder of August helped drive the Germans back to the Hindenburg line.

Vic was granted leave in the UK between 29 August and 16 September, and after he returned the Battalion was committed to the capture of the Hindenburg Line on 30 September 1918. This was the last action of the 43rd Battalion in the war.

After the fighting ended on 11 November, the battalion wintered in the Picardy region of northern France, and in 1919 began returning to Australia in drafts for demobilisation and discharge. Vic was transferred to the 5th Australian Mechanical Transport Company from 12 March to 3 July 1919, before embarking on the 'Persic' in July and disembarking in Adelaide on 27 August 1919. He was discharged on 4 October 1919 and it is believed that he returned to Kangaroo Island.

His name is inscribed on the Kangaroo Island Council and Dudley District (Penneshaw) honour boards on Kangaroo Island. He died on 23 June 1950 at the age of 67 and was buried at Centennial Park.

The Broadbent clan of Cherry Gardens

Just finished doing the basic research on the six Broadbent boys from Cherry Gardens. They appear to have all been brothers or cousins:

Private Albert George Broadbent, 5th Pioneer Battalion: killed in action at Bullecourt, France 10 May 1917. Brother of Marshall Broadbent below.

Private Ralph Leslie Broadbent, 43rd Battalion, killed in action near Messines, Belgium 31 July 1917

Sapper Marshall Broadbent, 3rd Tunnelling Company, survived the war but died in an explosives accident at the Golden Horseshoe mine near Kalgoorlie, WA in 1940. Brother of Albert George Broadbent above.

Private Leland Keith Broadbent, 48th Battalion, survived the war and died aged 82 in 1980. Brother of Lindsay (Reg) Broadbent and Rowland Broadbent below.

Private Lindsay Reginald Broadbent, 32nd Battalion, wounded twice, lost one or both legs as a result, survived the war, died aged 85 in 1975. Brother of Leland Keith Broadbent above, and Rowland Broadbent below.

Corporal Rowland Broadbent, 11th Field Ambulance, gassed, survived war, Methodist clergyman, died in 1947 aged approximately 66. Brother of Leland Keith and Lindsay Reginald Broadbent above.

There is also Sapper Harry Franklin Broadbent, MM of the 2nd Divisional Signals Company who survived the war but apparently took his own life a few years later. Harry was a brother of Marshall and Albert George Broadbent above, but I can't find a link with Cherry Gardens for him.

I will be writing to the 'Cherry Chatter' team at Cherry Gardens to see if there is any more they can add.

Private Albert George Broadbent of Cherry Gardens

Albert Broadbent was a son of Harry Broadbent and Agnes Broadbent (nee Mackereth) and was born at Cherry Gardens, SA in 1879. He attended Cherry Gardens Public School, but the family must have moved to Western Australia around the turn of the century. Before he enlisted Albert was a farm labourer, well sinker and miner and was living in Dowerin, WA.

He enlisted on 3 April 1916 at the age of 36, and was allocated to the 6th reinforcements to the 5th Pioneer Battalion which embarked at Fremantle, WA on 30 October 1916. After two months training in England Albert joined the 5th Pioneer Battalion on 7 March 1917. Two months later, two days before his 37th birthday, Albert and the rest of 'Don' Company, 5th Pioneer Battalion took over a camp occupied by the 2nd Pioneer Battalion near Bapaume, France. On the night of 9/10 May 1917 and during the following day, while the Second Battle of Bullecourt raged nearby, artillery shells hit the camp, including one shell that made a direct hit on one of the 'Don' Company tents. That single shell killed 12 members of 'Don' Company and wounded a further 23. One of those killed was Albert Broadbent.

Albert was buried in the Vaulx Hill Cemetery (the picture of Albert's grave was taken by Don Watton of Cherry Gardens). His name is inscribed on the Cherry Gardens War Memorial, the Cherry Gardens Methodist (Uniting) Church roll of honour (as AC Broadbent), a stained glass window in the Cherry Gardens Methodist (Uniting) Church, and the Cherry Gardens, Iron Bank, Dorset Vale Districts honour roll.

On 17 March 1919 a photograph of Albert George Broadbent was unveiled at the Cherry Gardens Public School alongside photographs of ten other former students who paid the supreme sacrifice.

Photograph: Courtesy of Don Watton

Lieutenant Horace Lionel Billing of Coromandel Valley

Horace Billing was born in Mount Gambier, SA on New Year's Eve 1891 to Clara Eleanor Billing. He attended school in Mount Gambier, finishing his high school days in 1910. He worked as a student teacher at several schools over the next few years, including Mount Templeton, Hummock's Hill (Whyalla) and Thebarton. In December 1915 he received his senior certificate from the Public Examinations Board and it is believed he was teaching at Coromandel Valley Public School when he enlisted in March 1916.

Horace attended non-commissioned officer training in Adelaide in May and June 1916 and was allocated to the 6th reinforcements to the 50th Battalion in October 1916. He sailed for the UK in late October 1916 as an acting sergeant (probably due to his age and status as a teacher), but reverted to the ranks upon arrival in England a few days before his 25th birthday. His leadership skills must have been obvious as he was promoted to provisional corporal after a few days and attended more non-commissioned officer training before he was sent to France where he joined the 50th Battalion on 13 May 1917. Less than two weeks later Horace was promoted to lance corporal, and he served during the Battle of Messines from 7-12 June 1917. In July he was promoted to corporal, and in September the battalion was again heavily engaged during the Battle of Zonnebeke on 26 September 1917. A few weeks later he was sent for officer training, and after further training rejoined his unit on 17 April 1918 as a second lieutenant, and was allocated command 10 Platoon, 'Cork' Company.

Early on the morning of 24 April 1918, the German spring offensive hit the frontline east of Villers-Bretonneux. 10 Platoon were roused from their billets in the village of Daours at 5am to participate in a counter-attack to recapture the town, but didn't move off until after 11am. As they marched to link up with the 49th Battalion, 'Cork' Company was hit by a number of German 'whizz bang' shells, one of which struck very close to Horace causing a serious head wound. He was promoted to lieutenant on 14 May whilst he was recuperating, and rejoined the 50th Battalion on 12 June 1918 whilst they were back in the frontline near Daours. On 8 July the Battalion was involved in the Battle of Hamel, then between 8-10 August they attacked along the Bray-Corbie Road as part of the Battle of Amiens. Horace went on leave in the UK in September, followed by a further training stint at the gas school before the war ended.

After the war ended Horace was initially detached as a finance officer at the Australian Corps School before being granted six months leave to attend language courses at the Sorbonne in Paris and at Rome University. Before he embarked to return to Australia he also visited schools in Scotland. He finally returned to South Australia in February 1920 and his appointment as an officer was terminated in April 1920. At first he lived in Malvern with his mother, but was moved around to various locations as a school teacher then school inspector. During the Second World War Horace served as a lieutenant in the 4th Garrison Battalion between June 1940 and February 1944. He was living in Lamaroo when he volunteered. In the 1950's the Billings lived in both Goodwood Park and Mount Pleasant, and they were living at Glengowrie when his wife Irene died in 1969. Horace marched with his former battalion comrades on ANZAC Day, often catching up over a drink at the Crown and Sceptre hotel afterwards. Horace passed away on 6 December 1976 at the age of 84 and was cremated at Centennial Park. His name is inscribed on the Coromandel Valley Public School roll of honour and the Unley Town Hall Honour Board.

Photograph: Courtesy of State Records of South Australia

Private Thomas William Alley of Belair

Tom Alley was the son of William Alfred and Thirza Alley and was born at Belair in 1897. He attended Brownhill Creek Public School and worked as a gardener. Tom served in the junior and senior cadets before the war.

He enlisted on 24 August 1915 at the age of 18, and although he sailed with the 13th reinforcements to the 16th Battalion in January 1916, he was subsequently transferred to and joined the 48rd Battalion in Egypt in early April 1916. After spending some time in the trenches guarding the Suez canal, the battalion entrained for Alexandria and sailed to Marseilles in early June. Over the next month the 48th Battalion was engaged in static trench warfare, generally spending two weeks in then two weeks out of the frontline. However, between 5 and 7 August 1916 the 48th Battalion held ground in the village of Pozieres during what has been described as the heaviest artillery barrage ever experienced by Australian troops. During those three days the 48th Battalion suffered 104 killed, 418 wounded and 76 missing. Sometime on the second day of that barrage Tom was wounded in the left leg and didn't rejoin his unit until 11 September 1916. The day Tom returned to the battalion it was in reserve, and his commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Ray Leane arranged for the picture hall in the village of Poperinghe to screen a movie for the men. Two weeks later the battalion returned to the frontline for another stint in the trenches.

After the terrible winter of 1916/17, the 48th Battalion fought its first major action of 1917 during the Battle of Bullecourt on 11 April when the battalion captured a section of the Hindenburg Line but was forced to withdraw due to the failure of the supporting tanks. In June the battalion participated in the second stage of the Battle of Messines. Later that year the 48th Battalion were involved in the abortive attack on Passchendaele on 12 October 1917 when more than half the battalion became casualties. Tom was wounded again on 20 October 1917 as the battalion moved into support trenches, but he stayed on duty.

From mid-February until early July 1918 Tom went absent without leave twice, and with a stint in hospital and some time undergoing punishment following a court martial he didn't rejoin his unit until early July 1918. In late September, after a further stint of absence, he was promoted to lance corporal and detached to the brigade signals school for training until early November 1918. Between January and May 1919 Tom went absent without leave on four separate occasions, and was court martialled once again. He finally sailed for Australia in July, arriving in Adelaide in August and was discharged in October 1919.

After the war Tom apparently lived in Torrensville for some time, and died on 30 September 1989 at the age of 93 and was buried at Centennial Park. His name was inscribed on the Roll of Honour at All Hallows Anglican Church on Coromandel Parade, Blackwood, and the Brownhill Creek Public School Roll of Honour. When she sent his photograph in to the State Library in the 1920's, his mother Jean described him as 'a dinkum Digger'. Translated into today's language (as much as that is possible), I think that means he was 'a bit of a lad'.

Photograph: Courtesy of State Records of South Australia and Miss Jean Alley of Belair

Private Ralph Leslie Broadbent of Cherry Gardens

Ralph Leslie Broadbent was a son of Henry Field Broadbent and Mary Hill Broadbent (nee Hughes), and was born at Wandearah, SA (south of Port Pirie) in 1895. He attended Victor Harbor Public School, was a keen sportsman and worked as a farmer before the war.

He enlisted on 16 June 1916 at the age of 20, and after a short stint in a training unit in England, joined 'Cork' Company of the 43rd Battalion in France in January 1917. After several months of static trench warfare, Ralph fought in his first major action during the Battle of Messines in June 1917.

On 31 July 1917, the first day of the Third Battle of Ypres, the 43rd Battalion was ordered to capture six German posts near Warneton, Belgium. 'Cork' Company was tasked to capture three of the posts, and took many casualties during the capture of one located in a ruined windmill. During the attack or the subsequent German and Australian counter-attacks, Ralph was killed in action. 44 members of the battalion were killed that day. His body could not be located after the battle, and his name is inscribed on panel 27 of the Menin Gate Memorial near Ypres, Belgium, along with many other Australians with no known grave.

After the war the town of Whyalla (previously called Hummock's Hill) named a street (Broadbent Terrace) in his honour. His name is also inscribed on the State National Memorial, the Whyalla memorial and the Cherry Gardens Methodist Church Roll of Honour. In describing her son for the Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Mary Broadbent quoted from a letter sent to her by Ralph's platoon commander in which he described him as 'a splendid companion to have nearby when things were hot, who always set a splendid example of cheerfulness, even under most adverse conditions'.

Photograph: Courtesy State Records of South Australia