William Charles WESTBURY

Badge Number: 9300, Sub Branch: Pinaroo
9300

WESTBURY, William Charles

Service Numbers: 2452, 421
Enlisted: 25 August 1914
Last Rank: Lance Sergeant
Last Unit: 50th Infantry Battalion
Born: Mt Gambier South Australia, 1878
Home Town: Port MacDonnell, Grant, South Australia
Schooling: MacDonnell Bay School, South Australia
Occupation: Farmer, labourer
Died: Tetanus , Pinnaroo, South Australia , 20 February 1936
Cemetery: Pinnaroo Cemetery, S.A.
Memorials:
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Boer War Service

1 Oct 1899: Involvement Gunner, 2452, 3rd New South Wales Mounted Rifles

World War 1 Service

25 Aug 1914: Enlisted AIF WW1, Private
20 Oct 1914: Involvement Private, 421, 10th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Ascanius embarkation_ship_number: A11 public_note: ''
20 Oct 1914: Embarked Private, 421, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ascanius, Adelaide
11 Nov 1918: Involvement Lance Sergeant, 421, 50th Infantry Battalion

Boer War Service

William Charles Westbury from Mount Gambier, South Australia.
Served in the Boer War in South Africa as Trooper 632
'F' Squadron 4th Troop South Australian Sixth Contingent (Imperial Bushmen).
Departed Port Adelaide on Transport 'Warrigal' 6th April, 1901.
Returned Port Adelaide on 'Merchant Castle' 27th April, 1902.
Promoted to rank of Corporal
Awarded Queen's South Africa Medal with clasps: South Africa 1901; South Africa 1902; Orange Free State and Transvaal.

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life

Subject: Uncle Willy


William Charles Westbury
Born 1887 ?
At age 27 ( could be 37 he had gone also to Boer war!), from Pinnaroo Train ? to Adelaide,
( other papers show 37 yrs., 5 foot 9 and half inches, Chest 35 inches , 165 pounds Brown eyes , Grey complexion)
Enlisted 25th August 1914, No 421 10th Battalion A Company
( Later L/Sargent 50th Battalion)
Disembarkation (Adelaide??) 1/7/1914
Fremantle sailed off to war Ascanius 25/10/1914
Gallipoli 1914 to 1917
Wounded Dardanelles 9/5/1915
Next of kin advised wounded 14/5/1915
Harefield Hospital 17/6/1915
Next of Kin advised in hospital 27/6/1915
Sister Sarah Westbury hand written letter enquiring 23?/9/1915
Received letter 25/9/1915
Re-joined unit 29/7/1915
13/8/1917 pink letter from Doctor re Sick List
Sick Dysentery 8/9/1915 Malta transport Nile…
….15/9/1915
Returned to Adelaide
Wounded and sick
Disembarkation RUNIC 1/7/1917
Discharge date 27/8/1917 Medically unfit
Keswick Barracks 30/8/1917 papers
Total Service 2 years 3 days GOOD Character
Returned to Pinnaroo won running races 3.5 miles in summer heat
27 February 1919 ( no newspaper records )
and same again on 21st March 1919 ( no newspaper records )
Listed on Honour roll Pinnaroo in beaten copper plaque
Died
and buried Pinnaroo 21/2/1936 age ? 49? ??
Cemetery row 6 in 4th place

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Showing 2 of 2 stories

Biography contributed by Robert Kearney

South Australian Indigenous Soldier, - Served in the Boer War and First World War

For further reading please see the Australian War Memorial Blog to the left of this page written by Michael Bell, in consultation with Ken Jones, grandson of William Charles Westbury, our sincere thanks to them and to Peter Bakker for his dedication and tenacious research.

 

Biography contributed

Biography written by Neva van Raalte, St Francis de Sales College, SA is attached as a document. Winning entry for 2017 Premier's Anzac Spirit School Prize.