HOGAN, Cecil
| Service Numbers: | 1539, V80756 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 9 April 1915, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 23 Garrison Battalion (VIC) |
| Born: | Benalla, Victoria, 30 October 1896 |
| Home Town: | Albury, Albury Municipality, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Greta West State School |
| Occupation: | Butcher/Builder |
| Died: | Albury, New South Wales, 13 July 1951, aged 54 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Apr 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1539, Melbourne, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 28 Jun 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1539, 21st Infantry Battalion, HMAT Berrima, Melbourne | |
| 28 Jun 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1539, 21st Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '13' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Berrima embarkation_ship_number: A35 public_note: '' | |
| 29 Aug 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1539, 21st Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli | |
| 25 Jul 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 1539, 24th Infantry Battalion |
World War 2 Service
| 2 Oct 1939: | Enlisted Private, V80756, Wangaratta, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Jul 1943: | Discharged Sergeant, V80756, 23 Garrison Battalion (VIC) |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Aberfoyle Park High School
In 1915, at only sixteen years of age, Cec Hogan set off overseas to join the action with his mother’s consent. Like so many other young boys he was excited by the idea of travelling around the world, fighting for his country and decided to enlist. He lied about his age and wrote down that he was eighteen years and six months old. He was in the 21st battalion along with Australia’s youngest ANZAC, James Charles Martin, who was only fourteen years old. They became close friends. During his time at war, he engraved a brass shell with his best mate’s names on it, Jim’s name among them.
On the 2nd of September 1915 while Cec was aboard the SS Southland it was torpedoed. It was the first Australian troopship to be torpedoed in the Great War. For quite a while this was hidden from the citizens back in Australia. Cecil wrote to his sister, Kath, ‘I see there has been nothing about us being torpedoed yet, in the papers.’ Cec managed to get to safety and soon after arrived to fight in the trenches on September the 7th, 1915.
The 21st battalion joined the fighting in the trenches and settled into the realities of war. Cecil spent a lot of time digging mines. He received letters from his sister which he replied to quickly. During his time in the trenches he got sick twice and both times went down to the medical tent. He eventually recovered and noticed when Jim Martin was getting more and more sick. He was the one that encouraged him to go to the hospital tent.
After fighting on the western front, they arrived in France where Cecil nearly died from double pneumonia. He recovered and went on the fight the following battles. He continued to fight once the 21st battalion became too small merged with others, as the war was ending. When the war ended, he waited in Belgium to head back home.
In the time between the Great War and the Second World War, Cecil Hogan became a builder and designer in Albury, NSW. He married in 1925 to his wife Helen and had three children.
In 1939, Cec enlisted once more and served Australia as a guard at Prisoner of War camps.
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