ANTHONY, Norman John
| Service Number: | 4672 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 23 October 1915, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 25th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Toowoomba, Queensland, 4 November 1893 |
| Home Town: | Toowoomba, Toowoomba, Queensland |
| Schooling: | East Toowoomba State School |
| Occupation: | Jeweller |
| Died: | Died of wounds, Heilly, France, 7 November 1916, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
Heilly Station Cemetery |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Toowoomba Roll of Honour WW1, Toowoomba War Memorial (Mothers' Memorial), Windsor War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 23 Oct 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 4672, Brisbane, Queensland | |
|---|---|---|
| 12 Apr 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 4672, 25th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: RMS Mooltan embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
| 12 Apr 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 4672, 25th Infantry Battalion, RMS Mooltan, Sydney | |
| 5 Nov 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 4672, 25th Infantry Battalion, 'The Winter Offensive' - Flers/Gueudecourt winter of 1916/17, GSW (legs) |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Paul Watson
Norman was the youngest of four - the tailender. Being a small framed lad, he was well suited to his trade of jeweler where he worked in Toowoomba before enlistment. He would have seen the hundreds of young men in the "Cooee marches" from the outback country areas and those who came to Toowoomba from NSW to join the AIF.
While at Enoggera Army Camp in Brisbane, Norman met Margeret Johnstone who he married the same year. Her nephew Henry was in training with Norman in 25 Bn. Norman and Margaret had just six months together before he sailed to England together with Henry.
Both Norman and Henry were in the trenches together near Ypres in Belgium and later on the Somme. Norman advanced into battle on the Somme the night of his birthday. He was shot within minutes in a hale of machine-gun fire at "The Maze" (battle of Geuedecourt) on 5 Nov 1916, while Henry (different Company) survived that day and the entire war. Margaret received her fateful telegram on 11 Nov 1916 (their first wedding anniversary). For Margaret, after the war, Armistace Day would be a lasting reminder of sadness and loss. At Heilly, Norman shares a grave and headstone with a Scottish artilleryman James Morrison, who died from wounds in the horrendous artillery duel fought that day between the heavy guns on both sides.
RIP Norman Anthony and James Morrison, who lie side by side, never forgotten by their families.
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