William John (Bill) Hart

Personal Information
Date of Birth	unknown
Place of Birth	Leicester, England
Death	24 Nov 1974, 1984
Place of Death	Roleystone, Western Australia
Age at Enlistment	24 years, 9 months
Description	5'7¼" (1.71m) tall; weight 168 lbs (76.2 kg); fair complexion, fair hair
Occupation	miner
Religion	Church of England
Address	Leonora, Western Australia
Next of Kin	Wife Mrs Lina Ross Hart (nee Wearn)
Military Information
Reg Number	656
Date of Enlistment	23 Sep 1914
Rank	Sergeant
Unit/Formation	16th Battalion, D Company / 4th Brigade, 4th Division
Date of Embarkation	22 Dec 1914 - 1 Feb 1915
Ship Embarked On	HMAT A40 Ceramic
Date of Return	11 Jan 1919 - 17 Feb 1919
Ship Returned On	SS Osterley
Fate	Wounded in Action 3 May 1915 at Gabe Tepe, Gallipoli Wounded in Action 7 Aug 1915 at Hill 971, Gallipoli Wounded in Action 30 Aug 1916 at Mouquet Farm Returned to Australia
Medals	1914-15 Star British War Medal Victory Medal

Pre War

12 months previous service with Leicestershire Yeomanry.

War Service

Enlisted in Leonora and sent to Blackboy Hill camp. As an original member of the 16th Battalion he commenced his training at Blackboy Hill camp, but on 21 Nov 1915 they entrained in Midland for Fremantle where they boarded two small ships for Melbourne in order to complete their Australian training at the Broadmeadows camp, joining up with South Australians who contributed 50% of the combined unit.

On 22 Dec 1914 they boarded HMAT A40 Ceramic in Port Melbourne and sailed for Albany where they joined with 15 other transports to form the second Convoy. Having left Albany on 30 Dec 1914, they arrived off Alexandria on 1 Feb 1915. Once ashore they were transported to the Heliopolis camp on Cairo's outskirts.

The 16th sailed from Alexandria for Lemnos Island on 11 Apr 1915, and at noon on 25 Apr 1915 they set out for Anzac Cove where they landed in the early evening.

William participated in early fighting and on 3 May at Gabe Tepe he received wounds to the upper extremities of his right thigh. Taken offshore to HMT Dongala, where it was decided to keep him there rather than sending him on to Lemnos as his wound was healing quickly.

Back ashore he rejoined the 16th until he was again wounded on 7 Aug 1915 as part of an attack on Hill 971, this time shell wounds to the left thigh and both shoulders. His injury required him to be evacuated to Egypt on HMHS Ascania where he entered No2 Australian Convalescent Depot in Heliopolis before a transfer to Zeitoun.

On 18 Oct 1915 he embarked again for Lemnos to rejoin his unit on 23 Oct 1915, to find that he was promoted Corporal in his absence [9 Aug 1915]. On 30 Dec 1915 the 16th Battalion returned to Alexandria aboard HMHS Ascania, now acting a troop ship..

On 21 Dec 1915 he was admitted to hospital in Ismailia with jaundice and was unable to resume duty until 27 Jan 1916 when he set out to rejoin the 16th Battalion at Zeitoun. He was promoted Sergeant on 22 Mar 1916, and on 1 Jun 1916 he along with all others in his unit became members of the British Expeditionary Force to serve on the Western Front.

Involved in the fight around Pozieres and Mouquet Farm, on 30 Aug 1916, just as they were about to be relieved, Bill received a gunshot wound to his shoulder. Treated by the 3rd Casualty Clearing Station, and then the 2nd Australian General Hospital in Boulogne, he was evacuated to England aboard HS Jan Breydel.

In England he was admitted to a hospital in Ramsgate on 1 September before transferring to the 3rd Auxiliary Hospital in Dartford. Released, he attended the School of Instruction at Aldershot where he was retained as an instructor until he returned to France on 1 Jun 1918.

Married in the UK. As an original 1914 participant, he is awarded furlough, and took 75 days in the UK in preference to heading home early. Offered a late December ship home with wife Lina Ross.

Discharged 10 Mar 1919 at 5th Military District

Post War

Electoral Roll entries from 1925 - 1972 list William as living on Urch road Roleystone, as an orchardist. He also worked at various mine sites. Lina Hart died 14 Aug 1989 in Ferndale, aged 97.

William served with the Militia during WW2 as Group Leader of the Kelmscott - Roleystone unit (which Ivor Birtwistle also served with). Son William John 'Jack' Hart (b. 1923 d. 3 Nov 2005) and daughters Helen (Nell) and Margaret (Peg) each served in the RAAF during WW2.

His apparent residual injuries from the war were a fine miniature shiny piece of shell splinter in the dead centre pupil of his dominant eye which precluded him from driving, shrapnel scars across his back which caused a period of paralysis, a raspy voice and a characteristic cough, the effects of German mustard gas.

External Links

• AIF Project
• RSL Virtual War Memorial