Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Pte L. Jackson is really Leonard Walter Jackson who turned 14 in 1915. He enlisted but was found to be underage, so he found ways around this set-back most creatively for one so young.

As Pte Richard Leonard Mayhew No 2723 on 6/8/1915 said he was 18 years and 2 months, a draper. (Someone else has written and circled "15 years". Next of kin was - aunt AB Jackson Ellalong Rd, Neutral Bay. On this form he is described as 5' 8", 114lbs, chest 33", fair complexion, grey eyes, light brown hair, C of E. 6th Reinfts 17th Battn, transferred to 55th Battalion. Arrived England, injured left leg. 13/2/1917 discharged for being underage and RTA per Ulysses.. On his Victoria Barracks enlistment form he stated that his parents were dead. It seems unlikely that his mother knew of his enlistment under an alias.

He re-enlisted, again as Richard Walter Mayhew on 4/3/1918 born G;eve age 21 years and 3 months and claimed his birth date was 1st December 1896, single , next of kin a friend Mrs Annie Blanche Jackson, Ellalong Rd, Neutral Bay. He said he had been a cadet for four years. 5' 10 3/4", 140 lbs, chest 31" - - 36", medium complexion, blue eyes, brown hair, C of E.

As Mayhew Richard W (Sgt) before a J P at Liverpool with the new number 86816 of E Coy Recruits Depot he stated that his next of kin was Mrs AB Jackson in residence at c/- O. H. Hall, Commercial Hotel, Manilla St, Manilla. On the last page of this file there is a note that he died after discharge on 25/2/1944.

Funeral Notices Tuesday 26 February, 1946
1. Jackson - The relatives and friends of Mrs Angela Jackson and family 14 Dudley St, Penshurst are kindly invited to attend the funeral of her beloved husband and their dear father Leonard Walter Jackson (ex 1st AIF) to leave St Declan's Church Forest Rd, Penshurst this Tusday afternoon at 2.15pm for the Catholic Cemetery Woronora.
2. Jackson - Totally and Permanently Disabled Soldiers Association officers and members are….their late esteemed member Leonard Walter Jackson….

Enlisted under alias Richard Walter Mayhew 

Leonard Walter Jackson, known as Len, was born on 27th August 1901 at Glebe NSW, the 4th of 8 children born to his parents Joseph and Annie Jackson.  He had 2 older brothers, Harry and Dudley, and a sister Daisy who died in infancy.  His younger siblings were Digney, Mary, Arthur and Nellie.  He was educated at Neutral Bay Superior Public School NSW. 

When WW1 broke out his older brother Harry enlisted with the AIF in January 1915 aged 21.  He was assigned to the 13th Infantry Battalion and arrived at Gallipoli in May.  Len was 13 at the time and it would seem he wanted to follow in his brother’s footsteps but being under age didn’t deter him.  He enlisted at Victoria Barracks NSW on 6th August, 3 weeks before his 14th birthday but gave his age as 18 years 2 months.  He gave his occupation as a draper and gave his name as Richard Walter Mayhew to avoid detection.  He stated that his parents were deceased and that Annie B Jackson was his Aunt and was his next of kin when in fact Annie B Jackson was actually his mother.  Being under age he was supposed to have his parents consent but he didn’t tell them that he was enlisting.  He’s described as being 5ft 8ins tall with a fair complexion, grey eyes and light brown hair.  Perhaps his height and appearance made his age believable.  His service number was 2723, his rank Private and he was assigned to the 17th Infantry Battalion 6th Reinforcements. 

His brother Dudley, aged 19, enlisted a week after Len on 15th August having already been rejected 4 times at 4 different places because of poor eyesight.  However, he heard he could bribe his way into the army at Warwick Farm Camp so he and Len took the oath of allegiance together at Warwick Farm on 20th August 1915.  Dudley was assigned to the 20th Infantry Battalion and embarked from Sydney on 30th September so now all 3 brothers were in different units and because Len used a false name on his enlistment he couldn’t be transferred to the same unit as Harry or Dudley. 

A week after the Dudley and Len went into camp their parents were notified that Harry had been wounded on 10th August at Gallipoli.  It wasn’t long before Joseph and Annie realised hat Len had enlisted and so Joesph decided to go after him.  Joseph was a former policeman and had served in the Boer War 30 years earlier.  He was 53 years old and the legal limit for new recruits in 1915 was 45 so he was over age.  He enlisted on 13th September, 3 weeks after his 2 sons reported at Warwick Farm.  He gave his age as 44 years 11 months and was assigned to the 19th Battalion. 

The stories of all 4 Jackson men are intertwined so this biography is about all 4…a father and his 3 young sons who went to serve their King and country in war but not all would return home after the war. 

Len embarked from Sydney on 2nd November on HMAT Euripides and upon arrival in Egypt in December was admitted to the 4th Australian Auxiliary Hospital at Abbassia with mumps.  He was reunited there with Dudley who had been admitted to the same hospital with mumps in November.  They met up with Harry briefly in late December who had recovered from his wounds.  They didn’t know it at the time but this was to be the last time that all 3 brothers would spend time together. 

Len was discharged from hospital on 29th December and proceeded to Zeitoun Camp.  On 16th February 1916 Len transferred to the newly formed 55th Battalion at Tel-el-Kebir Camp.  This was part of the 14th Brigade, 5th Division.  The battalion moved to Ferry Post Camp on 28th March to take over the garrison from the 32nd Battalion.  This entailed a 3 day route march over 60km of desert in stifling heat carrying full packs.  Along the way 19 men fell out or went missing.  While posted at Ferry Post Len’s father transferred into his battalion on 3rd April.  No doubt this was a moving time for both of them and a huge relief for Joseph to be with his young son.  The battalion moved to Moascar Camp in mid-June then entrained for Alexandria where they embarked on HMT Caledonia on 22nd June.  They stopped over for a day at Malta then proceeded to France and disembarked at Marseilles on the 29th June. 

Meanwhile…Harry and Dudley were already in Northern France. 

The 55th Battalion entrained for Thiennes then moved into the frontline trenches at Bac-St-Maur on 11th July.  This position was 4 miles south of Armentieres and there was only 300 yards between their trenches and the enemy’s.  They were relieved and withdrew to their billets at Bac-St-Maur before returning to the frontline to take part in the Battle of Fromelles on 19th-20th July 1916.  This is how the Australian War Memorial described this battle…“It was a bloody initiation for Australian soldiers to warfare on the Western Front. Soldiers of the newly arrived 5th Australian Division, together with the British 61st Division, were ordered to attack strongly fortified German front line positions near the Aubers Ridge in French Flanders. The attack was intended as a feint to hold German reserves from moving south to the Somme where a large Allied offensive had begun on 1 July. The feint was a disastrous failure. Australian and British soldiers assaulted over open ground in broad daylight and under direct observation and heavy fire from the German lines. Over 5,500 Australians became casualties. Almost 2,000 of them were killed in action or died of wounds and some 400 were captured. This is believed to be the greatest loss by a single division in 24 hours during the entire First World War. Some consider Fromelles the most tragic event in Australia’s history.”

Casualties were heavy for the 55th Battalion…2 Officers and 35 other ranks killed, 4 died of wounds, 5 Officers and 149 other ranks wounded, 4 Officers and 139 other ranks missing.  Incredibly both Len and Joseph survived the battle.  The battalion was relieved and withdrawn to rest on the 21st July but went back into the frontline trenches the next day, however, because of the losses sustained Companies A and B were combined as were Companies C and D.  One company at Boutillerie Post and the other at Foray Farm.  They remained there until the 5th August when they were relieved and withdrawn to billets at Fleurbaix.  A month later they moved into the frontline trenches at Fleurbaix.  After being relieved 3 days later they marched to Bac-St-Maur the next day where they were taken by lorries to Outtersteene.  From there they proceeded to Pont Remy and arrived at Pommiers Redoubt Camp, south of Montauban, on 20th October.  They moved into the frontline trenches the next day and then were relieved and withdrawn 2 days later.  Part of the battalion moved back into the frontline trenches on the 30th October with the remainder joining them the next day.  The following day, 1st November, the battalion moved to Carlton Trench then 2 days later moved to Fricourt. 

Meanwhile…back home in Australia, Annie was informed by the Red Cross that Harry, a Sergeant, had been wounded at Mouquet Farm during the Battle of Pozieres.  He was taken prisoner and died on 15th August 1916 at a German dressing station at Ligny-Thilloy, 2km south of Bapaume.  He was buried at Ehrenfriedhof Cemetery just north of the village but was later reinterred at Valley Cemetery, Vis-En-Artois, France.  He was 23.  Poor Annie had the awful task of writing to Joesph, Len and Dudley to tell them of Harry’s death. 

On 4th November Len was admitted to the 13th Casualty Clearing Station, known as Edge Hill, at Dernacourt with ICT of the left leg…inflammation of connecting tissue.  This is caused by constant marching and living in the trench conditions for prolonged periods.  He was transferred by hospital train No. 7 the next day to No. 4 General Hospital at Camiers.  He was evacuated to England 5 days later from Calais by the hospital ship HMHS Dieppe.  He was admitted to Norfolk War Hospital at Norwich on 15th November then transferred to the No.1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield on 27th November. 

Meanwhile Len’s father Joseph was also admitted to the 13th Casualty Clearing Station with an undisclosed illness on the same day as Len.  He travelled by the same hospital train to the same hospital then by the same ship to be admitted to the same hospital in England.  When Joseph heard of Harry’s death he decided that in fairness to Annie, he and Len should return to Australia.  He told his authorities that he was over age and that Len was under age.  Consequently they were both sent to No. 2 Command Depot at Weymouth in preparation for return to Australia and discharge.  They embarked together from Plymouth on 13th February 1917 on HMAT Ulysses and disembarked at Sydney NSW on 12th April.  Len was discharged on 22nd May 1917, a week after Joseph was discharged. 

However, this didn’t deter Len at all.  He re-enlisted on 4th March 1918 at Victoria Barracks NSW under the same false name and this time he gave his age as 21years 3months.  He stated again that both parents were deceased and that his friend, Mrs Annie Blanche Jackson, was his next of kin but this was actually his mother.  He gave his occupation as a motor driver and stated that he’d previously served with the AIF and had been discharged medically unfit.  He gave his rank as Sergeant and was given the service number 86816.  He proceeded to Liverpool Camp and assigned to E Company Recruits Depot but was not required to serve overseas.  There is no record of discharge for the 2nd enlistment. 

Len’s brother Dudley returned to Australia in late 1918 having been wounded in the left leg and cheek on 31st August 1918 during the Battle of Mont St Quentin.  He was awarded the Military Medal in June 1919 for outstanding work as a Lewis Gunner during the Battle of Mont St Quentin.  Quite an achievement for someone who should never have been accepted to serve because of his poor eyesight and who had been rejected 4 times for enlistment before bribing his way into the army. 

After the war Len joined the Sydney Water Board and in the mid-1930s he became a member of the Permanently Disabled Soldiers’ Association.  That confirms that he had an ongoing disability from his leg problems caused during the war because membership was exclusively for those who had disabilities from injuries that occurred during their war service.  In 1931 Len’s father Joseph passed away aged 69. 

Len married Angela Cronin at Burwood NSW in 1936 and lived in Penshurst NSW where they raised their 3 daughters, Patricia, Margaret and Annette. 

Len passed away on 25th February 1946 at St George Hospital Kogarah NSW aged 44.  He was buried at Woronora Memorial Park, Sutherland NSW. 

Len is commemorated on Board 3 of the Mosman “With The Colours” Honour Roll along with his father Joseph and brother Dudley.  Len and Dudley are also commemorated on the Neutral Bay Superior Public School Honour Roll. 

Leonard Walter Jackson was awarded for service in WW1 the 1914-1915 Star, British War Medal and the Victory Medal.   

Respectfully submitted by Sue Smith 27th November 2023.

Sources

The Lost Boys by Paul Byrnes (book)