Frederick William Thornton
From Our Contribution
 | |
| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | not known 1894 |
| Place of Birth | Sydney, New South Wales |
| Death | 25 Feb 1917, aged 22 |
| Place of Death | 38th Casualty Clearing Station, near Corbie, France |
| Age at Enlistment | 21 years, 1 month |
| Description |
5'7" (1.m) tall ; 154 lbs 69.853 kg ; fair complexion ; grey eyes ; brown hair |
| Occupation | Butcher |
| Religion | Church of England |
| Address | Port Darwin, Northern Territory |
| Next of Kin | Father , Mr William Cane Thornton |
| Military Information | |
| Reg Number | 6107 |
| Date of Enlistment | 7 Feb 1916 |
| Rank | Private |
| Unit/Formation | 9th Battalion 19th Reinforcements transferred to 11th Battalion, 20th Reinforcements |
| Date of Embarkation | 8 Aug 1916 ‒ 23 Aug 1916 |
| Ship Embarked On | HMAT A50 Itonus to Fremantle |
| Date of Embarkation | 18 Sep 1916 ‒ 21 Nov 1916 |
| Ship Embarked On | HMAT A46 Clan McGillivray to Plymouth |
| Fate | Died of illness (Spinal Meningitis) |
| Monument |
Jarrahdale Honour Roll Australian War Memorial |
| Medals |
British War Medal Victory Medal |
Contents
Pre War
Appears to have left Jarrahdale for work in Darwin. AWM associated him with Jarrahdale.
War Service
Enlisted in Darwin and sent to Brisbane to undergo training at Chermside camp. Allocated to the 19th reinforcement draft for the 9th Battalion, trained with them and shipped out to England with them. However, when the ship departed Fremantle, he failed to re-embark. He was apprehended and was included with the 20th reinforcement draft for the 11th Battalion's draft on HMAT A46 Clan McGillivray.
On arrival in England was sent to the 3rd Training Battalion at Rollestone to prepare for service on the Western Front. Deemed ready, he proceeded overseas for France on 21 Dec 1916 aboard HMT Princesse Clementine from Folkestone.
From 22 Dec 1916 until 3 Feb 1917 he was held at the 1st Division's Base Depot in Étaples, and then on 7 Feb 1917 he joined the 11th Battalion in the field at Basentin-le-Petit where they were carrying out a range of working party duties until the afternoon of 12 Feb 1917 when they replaced the 12th Battalion in the reserve line. They spent the next eight days revetting and improving their trenches as well as carrying rations and ammunition to units to their front.
On 20 Feb 1917 Fred reported ill to the 1st Australian Field Ambulance who passed him on the same day to the 38th Casualty Clearing Station with suspected spinal meningitis. Fred died while still with the 38th CCS on 25 Feb 1917 of cerebra spinal meningitis..
Notes
Father and three siblings lived in Jarrahdale. "Well known at Jarrahdale" [1]
A death notice suggested that he died at London General Hospital of meningitis [2]
References
- ↑ "ILLUSTRATED SECTION". Western Mail. XXXII, (1,632). Western Australia. 6 April 1917. p. 23. Retrieved 21 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑ "Family Notices". The West Australian. XXXIII, (4,661). Western Australia. 10 March 1917. p. 1. Retrieved 21 September 2017 – via National Library of Australia.