Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

From Ballarat & District in the Great War

Pte Clarence (Clare) Alfred ABBOTT
 
According to statistics collated for the Great War, the AIF suffered one of the highest rates of casualties of all combatants – approximately 60 percent of active personnel were either killed, died of wounds or disease, were wounded in action, taken prisoner or hospitalised as a result of active duty. Those who survived carried the shadows of the experience for the rest of their lives. Clare Abbott had only a brief experience of trench warfare, but he came home with a permanent “souvenir” of his time on the Western Front.

Born at Scarsdale on 29 August 1896, Clarence Alfred Abbott was the third child of Arthur William “Bill” Abbott and Sarah Caroline Maude Kemp. His middle name he owed to his father’s older brother and he was to be predominantly known as Clare. The family lived at Blackhill, one of the many small areas dotted around the town.

Both Arthur and Caroline were born at Smythesdale. They brought an interesting ancestral assortment to the mix – the Abbott family came from Kent in the south of England, whilst the Kemps came from County Cavan in Ireland. Caroline’s mother, Sophia Jane Bennett, was born at Hobart; she was the daughter of convicts – her father, William Bennett, who originated from Romford in Essex, was convicted of highway robbery, and sentenced to transportation for the term of his natural life. He later married Welshwoman, Jane Price, whose conviction for fraud had resulted in her being sent to Van Diemen’s Land for seven years. It was an interesting, if not unusual, ancestry for the Abbott children.

Clare Abbott received his basic education at the Scarsdale State School under head teacher Peter J. Wolfe. During the winter of 1907, just before Clare’s 11th birthday, the school was closed due to an outbreak of diphtheria. The fear of this disease was well-founded, especially amongst the very young, and such drastic measures were not uncommon.

Sundays were given over to worship, with the extended Abbott family attending the St John’s Church of England at Scarsdale.

The Smythesdale-Scarsdale district had chiefly grown out of the discovery of gold in the 1850’s, but eventually became more reliant on agriculture as the mining boom waned. Nevertheless, mining continued to provide a significant level of employment in the years leading up to the Great War and young men, like Clare Abbott, found work in the mines dotted around the goldfields of the Woady Yaloak River valley.

On 6 March 1916, Clare travelled into Ballarat where he presented the recruiting officer with his application to join the Australian Imperial Force. The paperwork was signed by both his parents, whose consent was required due to Clare being underage. He made a point of chosing to name his mother as his legal next-of-kin.

Clare had no difficulty passing the medical officer’s examination – he easily met the enlistment requirements, being 5-feet 7-inches tall and having an expanded chest measurement of 35-inches. He was reasonably slight at just 10-stone in weight and had normal eyesight. His left arm also bore the marks of several vaccinations. In completing the physical description required, it was recorded that Clare had a fair complexion, with grey eyes and light brown curly hair.

Having been passed fit, Clare went into camp at Ballarat on 10 March. It was proudly reported in the Grenville Standard the following day by Recruiting Sergeant J. A. Whitney, a Linton farmer, that Clare and several other local soldiers had been successful in joining the AIF.

After spending a short leave pass with his family, Clare returned to the Ballarat Showgrounds camp on 25 March, where he was posted to the 14th Depot Battalion. On 6 April, he was transferred to the newly raised 39th Infantry Battalion with the regimental number 392. A month later he was assigned to B Company of the unit.

Those who have regularly read my posts will be aware that the 39th quickly became known as Ballarat’s adopted battalion. When the unit began preparations to leave for the Front, the local people sought to farewell the men in style. A special gathering, attended by 350 men of the 39th, was held at the Christ Church Cathedral Hall on Tuesday 9 May. On the following Thursday, a more secular and even more memorable public farewell was staged at the Coliseum, which was packed to capacity – numbers being put at a staggering 7000 people. Chairman of proceedings, Mr F. R. Coldham, who spoke on behalf of the Citizens’ Committee, wished ‘Godspeed to the battalion, which went to the Front carrying with it the name of Ballarat.’

For Clare Abbott, there had already been a special farewell at the Scarsdale Town Hall on Wednesday 29 March. He shared the platform with Privates Leslie Veal, Patrick Griffin, Henry Martin and E. R. Laidler, along with Corporal William Brister, who had returned wounded from the Dardanelles. There was a large attendance and ‘much enthusiasm was manifested during the deliverance of stirring patriotic speeches…’
In the wee small hours of 27 May, the men of the 39th Battalion began preparations to leave Ballarat.

‘…In fog and frost, but with the band playing lively airs in quick time, the 39th Battalion, under Colonel Rankine, D.S.O., marched at an early hour this morning from the camp to the Western station, and there entrained for Melbourne.

Needless to say, it was stinging cold morning, and as the first half of the regiment had to be on board the train at four o'clock, and the second at half-past five, the reveille sounded very early indeed. A hot breakfast was served to the men, and shortly after three o'clock the band headed the first half along Drummond street and via Sturt and Lydiard streets to the station. The smart march warmed the men up, and the regiment sang lustily what time the band was not playing. The band excelled itself; it's programme included "Australia will be there," "The girl I left behind me," "95," "Will ye no come back again," "The Marseillaise," "Auld Lang Syne," and other tunes, and sleepy citizens, aroused by the playing, singing and cheering, wondered for a moment what the noise was all about. Some of them resumed their slumbers; others, wishing to give the "boys" a fine rally, dressed and went down to the railway station.

It was surprising how many people did brave the nipping frost. Though they were not allowed to go on the station, a crowd of farewellers gathered in the vestibule and chatted with the soldiers.

As the first train drew out a roar of cheering that was heard over half Ballarat burst from the 1200 soldiers and the visitors, and the band "let itself go" with tremendous effect. The second train departed an hour later, and it being a little more reasonable time there was a larger crowd of people to see them off.

It was not all cheering though; the soldiers bore themselves manfully, but the sight of a quiet, sad face here and there in the crowd steadied many of the men as they marched on to the station. When the second train had gone, taking the balance of the Ballarat regiment on its way to the fighting front, there was no disposition on the part of the onlookers to delay their own home-going. The atmosphere was not conducive to gossiping and the station was soon emptied of people…’

After reaching Port Melbourne, the men quickly boarded HMAT Ascanius. They sailed at 1:20pm.
The Ascanius travelled via Cape Town in South Africa, reaching Table Bay on 18 June. Then, in convoy with the troopships Medic, Warilda and Demosthenes, they proceeded on their way to England four days later with an escort provided by the armed merchant cruiser, HMS Laconia.

As the convoy approached British waters, the risk of submarine attack became a real and present danger. All onboard were required to wear their lifebelts continuously and sentries were posted throughout the day and night. In the early hours of 13 July, Clare Abbott was one of the men on duty when he committed the egregious military offence of falling asleep at his post. Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Rankine awarded him a punishment of 24-hours detention.

After a little over seven weeks at sea, the Ascanius reached Plymouth Sound just before noon on 18 July. The troops then travelled by train through to camp at Larkhill, which was to be their home for several long months. It wasn’t until the 23 November that the men finally sailed for France. Clare Abbott set foot on French soil sometime shortly after 7:30am on 24 November.

It is well documented that the men of the 3rd Australian Division had been looked on with derision by the battle-hardened troops of the other divisions, earning such soubriquets as “Monash’s Darlings,” “The Neutrals,” and, of course, the “Larkhill Lancers.” As a result, Clare and his comrades were more than a little keen to prove their mettle.

The first major battle for the 39th Battalion came at Messines on 7 June 1917. It was also to be Clare’s last. He suffered shrapnel wounds to the right knee, face and wrist, and was admitted the 9th Australian Field Ambulance the following day before being transferred to the 2nd Casualty Clearing Station at Bailleul. An ambulance train then conveyed him through to the 20th General Hospital at Camiers on 9 June.

On 5 July, Clare wrote to Constable William Youdan, of the Ballarat City Police Station,
‘…I suppose you know I was wounded. I was put out of action on 8th June at Messines, after being in the advance about thirty hours. Just my luck!
Unfortunately, I am put out of action for good. I was shot through the right knee with shrapnel and there is every probability of my leg being permanently stiff. But I was very lucky to get off so lightly.

I have not seen my two brothers for months. I suppose they are in the advance lower down the line…'

His brothers were indeed ‘lower down the line’ on the Somme – older of the trio, Arthur William, had enlisted at the beginning of the war (17 August 1914) and was serving with the 8th Battalion. Their younger brother, Harold Rupert (known as “Mick”) had joined up on 30 March 1916; he was with the 6th Battalion.
Although the wounds were only considered slight, the damage to Clare’s knee caused enough concern that he was invalided to England on 28 July. He made the crossing onboard the Hospital Ship Stad Antwerpen and was admitted to the General and Red Cross Hospital at Chelmsford in Essex where he was to spend a month receiving treatment.

Following a brief stay at the 1st Australian Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield, Clare was discharged to furlough on 12 September. The decision had already been made to repatriate him home to Australia. He spent his last few weeks in England at the No2 Command Depot outside Weymouth.

Clare reached Scarsdale on New Year’s Day 1918. The townspeople quickly organised a very special welcome home, which was held at the Scarsdale Town Hall on Tuesday 8 January. With the brown and red colours of the 39th Battalion – mud over blood – adorning the walls and decorating the chairs and platform, the atmosphere was both happy and patriotically stirring. Clare was presented with an inscribed gold medal on behalf of the citizens of Scarsdale. He also received a Scarsdale Old Boys’ medal from local identity, Mr Henry B. Elsey. A musical programme cheerily completed the evening.

After being discharged from the AIF on 25 February, Clare was granted a pension of 30-shillings a fortnight in recognition of the damage done to his knee.

Still intent on doing his bit, however, Clare took part in a wood-chopping working bee at Blackhill on 11 May. The funds raised were to aid the work of the local branch of the Red Cross. He did not return to mining, finding work as a general labourer instead.

On Saturday 29 May 1920, Clare competed in a ‘very successful euchre tournament,’ which was held at the Smythesdale Mechanics’ Institute. Two trophies were donated by Miss Walton, of Smythesdale, and Mr Whiteside, of Ballarat. The winners were Clare Abbott and Miss Ruth Jarvis – Clare’s future wife.

Clare and Ruth were married four years later in 1924. They then moved to the Latrobe Valley, where they made their home in the old town area of Yallourn North then known as Brown Coal Mine, which was also the name of the large open cut mine. The model town was built to house the employees of the State Electricity Commission who worked in the mine, the power station and briquette factory.

The Abbotts finally celebrated the birth of their first child, Clarence Raymond, on 7 February 1927.
A second son, Ronald Frank, was born in 1934 when they were living in Parkside Street, Yallourn. Sadly, the little boy died on 18 January 1935.

Over the ensuing years, the small family moved a number of times – other than Parkside Street, they also lived in Hillside Street, and then the rural area of Haunted Hills. The area, which was midway between Moe and Morwell, had earned its name due to stockmen claiming their cattle were easily alarmed by nocturnal noises. This was then changed to Herne’s Oak, a delightful take on Shakespeare’s play, The Merry Wives of Windsor, in which Herne’s ghost appeared by an oak tree, startling the cattle. Herne’s Oak was to be their home for many years.

The discovery of a rich coal seam beneath Herne’s Oak ultimately led to the town’s demise, but subsequent work resulted in Clare Abbott taking on the role of a plant attendant.

After retiring, Clare and Ruth moved into a new home in Darlimurla Avenue in Newborough East. They had been married just short of sixty years when Ruth died on 25 January 1983. Clare died the following year on 2 September. They were buried together in the Springvale Botanical Cemetery.