William Edward Reed

William Edward Reed

Western Mail 11 Jun 1915 page 4s
Personal Information
Date of Birth	not known
Place of Birth	Jarrahdale
Death	8 Aug 1917
Place of Death	Messines, Belgium
Age at Enlistment	23 years, 4 months
Description	6'6¼" (1.m) tall; weight 133 lbs (kg); dark complexion, hazel eyes, dark brown hair.
Occupation	mill hand
Religion	Church of England
Address	Jarrahdale, Western Australia
Next of Kin	Father Mr Edward Francis Reed
Military Information
Reg Number	120
Date of Enlistment	8 Sep 1914
Rank	Lance Corporal
Unit/Formation	16th Battalion B Company / 4th Brigade, 4th Division
Date of Embarkation	22 Dec 1914 - 1 Feb 1915
Ship Embarked On	HMAT A40 Ceramic
Fate	Wounded in Action 26 Apr 1915 Gallipoli Wounded in Action 6 Aug 1917 Messines Killed in Action 8 Aug 1917 Messines
Monument	Jarrahdale War Memorial Jarrahdale Honour Roll Menin Gate Memorial ANZAC Memorial Park (Byford) Australian War Memorial
Medals	1914-15 Star British War Medal Victory Medal

Pre War

Electoral Roll entries - 1915 mill hand Jarrahdale

War Service

Bill entered Blackboy Hill camp on 8 Sep 1914 and was allocated to the 16th Battalion. In October he was allocated to B Company.

On 12 Apr 1915 he embarked in Alexandria for Lemnos and then Gallipoli. With the rest of the 16th Battalion he landed at Anzac Cove in the evening of 25 Apr 1915, and was wounded in action the next day, receiving severe concussion. On 2 May 1915 he boarded HMT Galeka, before the next day being transferred to HMHS Delta for either Malta and then England, or England direct, as on 12 Nov 1915 he was paid at Weymouth.

An entry in his military records dated 21 Feb 1916 advises that he had forfeited 59 days pay under "RW" for absence, which related to his absence from camp from 7 Dec 1915 until 4 Feb 1916. Seemingly also punished with 14 days Confined to Barracks so would appear to have occurred during his recuperation in England.

Returned to Alexandria in Egypt on HMT Kingstonian from Devonport, England on 5 Mar 1916. On arrival in Egypt, Bill was immediately admitted to the 15th General Hospital in Alexandria where he received treatment for Class B laryngitis before transferring 22 Mar 1916 to the Glymenopoulo Convalescent Depot. Further health issues emerged, with a return to hospital, this time the 17th General Hospital in Alexandria on 4 Apr 1916, before on 2 May 1916 when he was transferred to the 1st Australian Dermatological Hospital in Abbassia with VD, before returning to duty at Tel-el-Kebir 14 days later.

Bill embarked on HMT Ionian in Alexandria on 7 Jun 1916 for Marseilles, France, arriving there on 14 Jun 1916 and was then sent to the 4th Australian Division Base Depot in Étaples.

On 26 Jul 1916 in Étaples, Bill was charged with Falling out of the line of march without a permit. Penalty was the loss of 5 days pay. He set out from Étaples to rejoin the 16th Battalion on 31 Dec 1916, and managed to do so on 2 Jan 1917.

On 20 May 1917 Bill was appointed Lance Corporal, and on 6 Aug 1917 he was wounded in action a second time, but remained on duty. This had almost immediate tragic consequences as on 8 Aug 1917 Bill was Killed in Action at Messines and buried 600m north east of Messines. However, his grave could not later be identified and he is therefore commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres (Iper).

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  Menin Gate Memorial 2015 photo
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  2015 photo L. Reynolds

External Links

• AIF Project
• RSL Virtual War Memorial