MORRIS, Harry
| Service Numbers: | 1384, 1314 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 30 November 1914 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 4th Light Trench Mortar Battery |
| Born: | Bendigo, Victoria, Australia, 1896 |
| Home Town: | Bendigo, Greater Bendigo, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Camp Hill Primary School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Coachbuilder |
| Died: | Accidental Injuries, France, 5 September 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
Daours Communal Cemetery Extension, France Plot IV, Row E, Grave No. 20, Daours Communal Cemetery Extension, Daours, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Bendigo Great War Roll of Honor, South Melbourne Great War Roll of Honor |
World War 1 Service
| 30 Nov 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1384, 8th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Feb 1915: | Involvement Private, 1384, 8th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '9' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Clan McGillivray embarkation_ship_number: A46 public_note: '' | |
| 2 Feb 1915: | Embarked Private, 1384, 8th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Clan McGillivray, Melbourne | |
| 25 Apr 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1314, 8th Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli | |
| 5 Apr 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 14th Infantry Battalion | |
| 24 Aug 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 4th Light Trench Mortar Battery |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Harry Morris of Bendigo served at the landing on Anzac with the 8th Battalion and survived unscathed until struck down with illness during September 1915. He transferred to the 14th Battalion with his brother in 1916 and fought at with that unit Pozieres. He transferred to the 4th Light Trench Mortar Battalion and survived for 2 and a half years on the Western Front until 31 August 1918; when cycling he was hit by a motor car in the village of Coisy, about 8 kilometres from Amiens. He suffered severe head injuries and died five days later.
His older brother 3419 Pte. Charles Morris 14th Battalion AIF, was killed in action at Bullecourt 11 April 1917, age 23.
He wrote a letter home in September 1915 which was printed in the Bendigonian, 'Private Harry Morris, 8th Battalion, writes to his friends in Bendigo from the trenches as follows :--'"I suppose you know that poor 'Jack' Anderson has been killed; it as quite a blow to me when I heard it. Some shells landed on our trenches and one killed Jack. Another one knocked the sandbags down from where I was ob-serving. I was lucky to escape, but some dirt came down on top of me. It's just eleven weeks to-day since we landed here. I have been in the trenches three weeks this time, and will soon go for a spell of four or five days, which we all need, as we have had some very trying times late-ly. We had a small gift from the Over-seas' Club, which was greatly appreciated by us. It consistcd of a cake of choco-late, four cigarettes, and some tobacco. It's a great place for flies here. We can't eat or sleep properly because of them. Even while I am writing I have to keep brushing them away all the time. My birthday was spent in a very different way to the others. I had the presents thrown at me this time in the form of shells ('Turkish delight').'' Private Morris's brother, Charlie, is at present in camp at Geelong.