SANGSTER, Leslie Fairbairn
| Service Number: | 879 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 23 January 1917, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Last Rank: | Sapper |
| Last Unit: | 2nd Divisional Signal Company |
| Born: | Dookie, Victoria, 1896 |
| Home Town: | Hamilton, Southern Grampians, Victoria |
| Schooling: | King Street State School, Melbourne High School & University of Melbourne |
| Occupation: | School Teacher |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 18 August 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
Heath Cemetery, Picardie Grave Ref. Plot IV Row F Grave 3, Heath Cemetery, Harbonnieres, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Heathcote Fire Brigade Pictorial Honour Roll, Parkville Old State College Memorial Windows |
World War 1 Service
| 23 Jan 1917: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 879, 2nd ANZAC Cyclist Battalion, Melbourne, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 11 May 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 879, 2nd ANZAC Cyclist Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Shropshire embarkation_ship_number: A9 public_note: '' | |
| 11 May 1917: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 879, 2nd ANZAC Cyclist Battalion, HMAT Shropshire, Melbourne | |
| 30 Mar 1918: | Transferred AIF WW1, Sapper, 2nd Divisional Signal Company | |
| 18 Aug 1918: | Involvement AIF WW1, Sapper, 879, 2nd Divisional Signal Company, "The Last Hundred Days", --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 879 awm_unit: 2nd Australian Division Signals Company awm_rank: Sapper awm_died_date: 1918-08-18 |
Help us honour Leslie Fairbairn Sangster's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Elizabeth Allen
Leslie Fairbairn SANGSTER was born in 1896 in Dookie, Victoria - after finishing High School he completed his teacher training at Melbourne Universtiy and became a High School Teacher & Sports Master
His parents were William Beaton SANGSTER who came from Coplandhill, Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland & Margaret Strain DAVIDSON who came from New Zealand - they had married on 9th September 1890 in the Presbyterian Manse in Brunswick, Victoria
He had 4 years previous service with the Senior Cadets before he enlisted in Melbourne on 23rd January, 1917 with the 2nd Cyclist Battalion, 10th reinforcements who embarked from Melbourne on HMAT Shropside on 11th May, 1917
On 30th March, 1918 he transferred to the 2nd Division Signal Company, Australian Engineers & became a Sapper
Leslie was Killed in Action on 18th August, 1918 at Harbonnieres when he was hit by a shell - he was first buried in Bayonvillers British Cemetery and later reinterred in Heath Cemetery
He is honoured on the Australian War Memorial and the Hamilton War Memorial in Victoria - he was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal
Leslies grandfather John DAVIDSON who was a Scotsman was in the Charge of the Light Brigade in the Crimean War and was awarded the Queens Medal.
The photo of Leslie was a Studio Portrait taken in Victoria in 1917 and is from the Australian War Memorial Photo Collection
Click images to start slideshow.