Walter Raymond Farnham

Walter Raymond Farnham

Personal Information
Date of Birth	24 Sep 1897
Place of Birth	Fremantle, Western Australia
Death	9 Oct 1922
Place of Death	Edward Millen Home, Victoria Park, Western Australia
Age at Enlistment	21 years, 6 months
Description	5'6½" (1.69m) tall ; 142lbs 64.41 kg ; fair complexion ; blue eyes ; brown hair
Occupation	Clerk
Religion	Church of England
Address	Station Master's House, Kelmscott, Western Australia
Next of Kin	Father , Mr. Joshua Farnham
Military Information
Reg Number	4436
Date of Enlistment	1 Oct 1915
Rank	Private
Unit/Formation	11th Battalion, transferred to 51st Battalion / 13th Brigade, 4th Division
Date of Embarkation	9 Oct 1915 ‒ Fremantle to Alexandria "Fremantle to Alexandria" contains an extrinsic dash or other characters that are invalid for a date interpretation.
Ship Embarked On	HMAT A7 Medic As a Stowaway
Date of Return	10 Jul 1916 ‒ 6 Aug 1916
Ship Returned On	HMAT A46 Clan McGillivray Port Suez to Fremantle
Fate	Returned to Australia
Monument	Kelmscott War Memorial (North panel)
Medals	1914-15 Star British War Medal Victory Medal

Pre War

On 2 Oct 1912 Walter was accepted as a cadet in the Western Australian Railways. On 9 Feb 1914 he was suspended and then dismissed for unsatisfactory conduct and for submitting a bogus letter re military leave. Walter had previously attempted to enlist but was knocked back on medical grounds.

War Service

Walter stowed away on the HMAT A7 Medic when it sailed for Egypt. Subsequently discovered during the voyage, he was enlisted at Ghezirah, Cairo, Egypt on 1 Oct 1915. His records indicate some time spent with the 3rd Field Artillery Brigade's 8th Battery before being taken on strength by the 11th Battalion. He appears to have served at Gallipoli in the 11th Battalions last month on the peninsular. During his time at Gallipoli, he was hospitalised on Lemnos in the 2nd Australian Stationary Hospital for several weeks in October 1915 with Rheumatic Fever. On his return to Anzac Cove he noticed shortness of breath when exerting himself.

On his return to Egypt he suffered an accidental bullet wound to his arm on 16 Apr 1916 and was admitted to 2nd Australian Stationary Hospital at Tel-el-Kebir. Walter was discharged to duty 3 days later on 19 Apr 1916. On 27 Apr 1916 Walter was posted to the 3rd Training Battalion before being posted to the 51st Battalion on 20 May 1916 . Five days after joining the 51st Battalion he was again hospitalised in 1st Australian Auxiliary Hospital, this time with a heart issues (myocarditis).

Assessed by the 3rd Australian Auxiliary Hospital on 28 May 1916, he was found to be unfit for duty, needing to be promptly returned to Australia. Walter departed Suez, Egypt via HMAT A46 Clan McGillivray on 10 Jul 1916, arriving in Fremantle on 6 Aug 1916 where he disembarked. Walter was then admitted to the 8th Australian General Hospital from 6 - 11 Aug 1916, before being discharged by the 5th Military District on 28 Aug 1916.

Post War

Awarded a pension which was increased on 21 Jun 1917 to 30/- fortnightly. At the time he was again residing with his parents at the Kelmscott Railway Stationmaster's house.

Married in 1921 to Janet Cowan. Janet appears to remarry in 1935 to James H McCulloch.

DEATHS - FARNHAM - On October 9, 1922, at his residence, 437 Albany-road, Victoria Park, Walter Raymond, dearly beloved husband of Janet Farnham, aged 25 years. A patient sufferer at rest.

A later entry speaks of the staff at the Edward Millen Home where obviously Walter was being cared for. (Purchased by the Commonwealth Government in 1919 Repatriation Department and it operated as a satellite of Hollywood Repatriation Hospital. It included a psychiatric wing. Later it was used as a sanatorium for those with TB)