George Ezra Bunney
From Our Contribution
 Cropped photograph of Mr George Bunney at the Roleystone Progress Association picnic in 1921. Birtwistle LSL PH214 | |
| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | c1884 |
| Place of Birth | Leicestershire, England |
| Death | 23 Jan 1942 |
| Place of Death | Kelmscott, Western Australia |
| Age at Enlistment | 32 years old |
| Description |
5' 6" (1.68m) tall ; 143 lbs 64.864 kg ; dark complexion ; brown eyes ; dark brown hair |
| Occupation | Farmer |
| Religion | Church of England |
| Address | Kelmscott, Western Australia |
| Next of Kin | Wife , Mrs Annie Bunney |
| Military Information | |
| Reg Number | 3050 |
| Date of Enlistment | 17 Apr 1916 |
| Rank | Lance Corporal |
| Unit/Formation | 10th Light Horse Regiment, 23rd Reinforcement transferred to 3rd Machine Gun Squadron / 3rd Light Horse Brigade, ANZAC Mounted Div. |
| Date of Embarkation | 22 Jan 1917 ‒ 16 Feb 1917 |
| Ship Embarked On | HMAT A45 Bulla Fremantle to Suez |
| Date of Return | 17 Jul 1919 ‒ 17 Aug 1919 |
| Ship Returned On | HMHS Dunluce Castle Suez to Fremantle |
| Fate | Returned to Australia |
| Monument | Kelmscott War Memorial (West panel) |
| Medals |
British War Medal Victory Medal |
Contents
[hide]Pre War
Prior to emigrating to Australia, George was a member of Prince Albert's Own Yeomanry for 4 years. He was also a painter. His nephew Sid Bunney said in an oral history interview in 2000: "Uncle George, from what I can gather, he was a painter and decorator ... When he came out here he tried to have this business going, and I can remember he used to mix all the paints by hand. In those days you couldn’t go and just buy a packet of Dulux or whatever ... Evidently, he’d get the contract or whatever to paint a house or something like that. But at that stage I don’t think he made much of a profit out of it so he probably turned himself around and started to get into the motoring business".
War Service
Enlisted in Katanning, and was initially allocated to the Engineers for training (two months) before transferring, first to the 22nd reinforcement draft for the 10th Light Horse on 15 Aug 1916, and then the 23rd draft on 6 Nov 1916. George travelled overseas as part of the 23rd reinforcements to the 10th Light Horse Regiment.
On arrival in Egypt the 23rd reinforcements were sent to an isolation camp in Moascar for two weeks before being taken on strength. On 3 Apr 1917 George was detached to the School of Instruction at Zietim for 2 weeks and on returning to his unit he was transferred to the 3rd Machine Gun Squadron.
On 16 Aug 1917 he was promoted to Driver after enjoying a break at a rest camp in Shellal until 1 Jun 1917. On 15 Jan 1918 George reported to the 3rd Light Horse Field Ambulance with haemorrhoids before being transferred to the 74th Casualty Clearing Station, and then via Ambulance Train to the 45th Stationary Hospital in El-Arish. Later on 6 Feb 1918 he was transferred to the Katana Base Hospital and then on 12 Feb 1918 to the 14th Australian General Hospital in Port Said before being discharged on 12 Mar 1918 to spend time in a rest camp.
Recovered on 27 Mar 1918 he was sent to Moascar and the School of Instruction before joining his unit again on 23 May 1918. Back with them, he was deemed to be surplus and moved to the 3rd Light Horse Brigade headquarters.
On 12 Oct 1918 he reported to the 3rd Australian Light Horse Field Ambulance for treatment from 12 - 19 Oct 1918 for Malaria. Appointed Lance Corporal on 18 Jan 1919 before returning to hospital on 10 Feb 1919 with influenza. He returned to duty on 13 Feb 1919.
George was appointed Acting Sergeant on 17 Feb 1919 and held the rank until 20 May 1919 when he began the processing for return to Australia.
Discharged by the 5th Military District on 13 Nov 1919.
Post War
Returning from the war, George returned to Albany Road in Kelmscott, and initially worked as a contractor (electoral roll 1925) and operated his own trucking and transport business. He was president of the Kelmscott Agricultural Society for eleven years, from 1924 to 1934. He served on the Armadale-Kelmscott Road Board from 1925-1930, then moved to Victoria Park at the beginning of the 1930s for work as a salesman. By 1936 he was again living in Kelmscott.
Kelmscott delegate to Annual State RSL Congress.[1]
In the Armadale report, mention is made of his passing.[2]
References
- Jump up ↑ "The Listening Post" (PDF) (Vol.1 No.11). Western Australia. Oct 1922. p. 5. Retrieved 30 May 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- Jump up ↑ "The Listening Post" (Vol.21 No.3). Western Australia. Mar 1942. p. 27. Retrieved 30 May 2017 – via National Library of Australia.