DOWELL, George Slater
| Service Number: | 19049 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Sapper |
| Last Unit: | 1st Field Company Engineers |
| Born: | Exeter, South Australia, date not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Lipson, Tumby Bay, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Lefevre Peninsula Public School, Port Adelaide, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Engineer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 17 September 1918, age not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Roisel Communal Cemetery Extension, France Roisel Communal Cemetery Extension, Roisel, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Tumby Bay RSL Portrait Memorials, Tumby Bay War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 31 Oct 1917: | Involvement Sapper, 19049, Field Company Engineers, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '5' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Euripides embarkation_ship_number: A14 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 31 Oct 1917: | Embarked Sapper, 19049, Field Company Engineers, HMAT Euripides, Sydney | |
| 17 Sep 1918: | Involvement Sapper, 19049, 1st Field Company Engineers, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 19049 awm_unit: 1st Field Company, Australian Engineers awm_rank: Sapper awm_died_date: 1918-09-17 |
A Soldiers Story
George was born on 4 Nov 1885 at Kew (a suburb of Melbourne, Vic) to George Dowell and Catherine Dowell (nee Reid). There were 2 children in the family, a boy and a girl, of which he was the youngest. His father died a month after George was born.
His mother remarried to John Furnell in 1889 and a further 2 children were born to the family (both girls) before they arrived in Tumby Bay aboard the S.S. "Ferret" on 14 Nov 1893 and then travelled to Stokes to work on Herbert Gale's farm. They remained in Stokes for a period of 6 years, where a further 2 children were born before the family moved to Lipson and lived in a house with an underground cellar adjacent to the Lipson Methodist Church: they later moved and became the first owner/managers of the newly opened grocery shop and post office in Lipson, where another child was born into the family.
George's mother became known in the local area as a respected mid wife and "first aider", apparently saving many lives as a result of her care.
George went to school at Stokes, the school being in the Provis family home/post office; the teacher was Miss Provis. On completion of schooling he worked locally at a number of jobs before opening a large carpenters shop opposite the Hall at Lipson in 1907, but it is not known where he gained the skills for his trade. The carpenters shop and Mr Blackwell's house in Lipson were burnt down about 1915.
George enlisted in the Army at Melbourne (Vic) on 15 Jan 1917 at the age of 31. At the time of enlistment he recorded his occupation as bridge superintendant, but again it is not known where he gained the skills for this profession. He also listed his mother as next of kin and gave his permanent address as Lipson.
On enlistment George was sent to Seymour (Vic) for training before being posted to 1st Army Troops, Australian Engineers. After a prolonged period of training he entrained to Sydney where he embarked aboard HMAT "Euripedes" on 31 Oct 1917 bound for Devonport (UK), arriving on 22 Nov 1917. The extended period of training must have been successful as he was promoted to Corporal on 20 Dec 1917, less than 1 month after arriving in the UK!
On 5 Feb 1918 he was admitted to 3 Camp Hospital (UK) with influenza. He was discharged from hospital a month later and after a short period of recuperation he embarked for Rouelles (Fr), arriving on 13 Apr 1918. Two weeks later he was taken on strength by his unit, 1st Army Troops, Australian Engineers.
On 17 Sep 1918 George was killed in action during the third battle of Ypres in France whilst working as a sapper and miner on one of the many "saps" or tunnels used during this battle.
He is buried at Roisel Communal Cemetery extension, 6 3/4 miles (10Km) north east of Peronne
Submitted 8 April 2020 by Geoffrey Stewart
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