Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

BECK Alfred Petersen and BECK Lars Petersen
 
Alf and Lars Beck came from a large family of at least five brothers, each of which had the middle name of Petersen. The brothers travelled to Brisbane together to enlist, presenting themselves at the Brisbane recruiting depot in Adelaide Street, a short walk from Central Railway Station, on 18th February 1916.
 
Alf advised that he had been born in Maryborough. He was 24 years old, single and worked as a farmer. His brother Lars was 12 years older than Alfred. Lars was born at Pialba near Maryborough. At the time of his enlistment, Lars stated that he was a widower and father of four children. It is likely that Alfred and Lars were farming together in the Gooroolba district. Both men took a train to Enoggera where they were taken on by the 11th Depot Battalion for initial induction.
 
Many of the recruits from country areas found themselves in conditions that were quite alien to their normal life. Recruits slept in bell tents, 10 men to a tent with their feet towards the centre like spokes on a wheel. The close proximity of other people was not something either of the Beck brothers had been exposed to. In these conditions, infectious diseases could be easily transmitted.
 
Alfred Beck was admitted to the clearing hospital at Enoggera suffering from measles, an illness that he had probably never been exposed to before. The measles produced complications and Alfred died at Enoggera on 11th April. He was buried at the Brisbane General Cemetery at Toowong. It is likely that Lars was in attendance
 
Upon the death of his brother, Lars applied for home leave in order to attend to business matters regarding his farm and Alfred’s estate. Lars departed Brisbane by train on 16th April to travel via Maryborough to Degilbo and Gooroolba. It is likely that Lars was already unwell when he left Brisbane and never made it to Gooroolba. At Maryborough, Lars attended the Maryborough Hospital where he was admitted suffering from cerebro spinal meningitis. Nine days after the death of Alfred, Lars also died. His file contains a scribbled note by a doctor at Maryborough Hospital stating the date of death, 20th April 1916.
 
Arrangements were made for Lars’ body to be sent to Brisbane where he could be buried near his brother in the Toowong Cemetery. Lars’ children; Lars Thomas, Caroline Elizabeth, Lily Mary and Thomas George each received a war pension administered through the public curator. George Petersen Beck of Calliope near Gladstone took delivery of Alfred’s Memorial Plaque and Scroll but Lars’ mementoes became the property of his son, Lars Thomas. Neither Alfred nor Lars had been in the army long enough to have been issued with a regimental number, nor were they entitled to any war medals.
 
A third Beck Brother, Matthias Petersen Beck of Boonah also enlisted in the AIF. His name also appears on the Gooroolba War Memorial