James Arthur (Artie) Williams

James Arthur (Artie) Williams

1917 Courtesy Marg Boardley
Artie & Flora's Wedding in Edinburgh 1919. Courtesy Marg Boardley
Personal Information
Date of Birth	c1895
Place of Birth	Kadina, South Australia
Death	22 Feb 1965. aged 69
Place of Death	Gosnells, Western Australia
Age at Enlistment	21 years, 11 months
Description	5'2½" (1.59m) tall ; 124lbs 56.245 kg ; fresh complexion ; grey eyes ; brown hair
Occupation	Tallyman
Religion	Church of England
Address	Wheatley street, Gosnells, Western Australia
Next of Kin	Father , Mr James Williams
Military Information
Reg Number	7160
Date of Enlistment	16 Apr 1917
Rank	Private
Unit/Formation	28th Battalion, 21st reinforcement
Date of Embarkation	24 Jul 1917 ‒ 16 Sep 1917
Ship Embarked On	HMAT A16 Port Melbourne Albany to Liverpool
Date of Return	25 Sep 1919 ‒ 3 Nov 1919
Ship Returned On	SS Mahana
Fate	Returned to Australia
Monument	Gosnells Road Board Honour Roll Gosnells Primary School Honour Roll Gosnells Ward Honour Roll
Medals	British War Medal Victory Medal

Pre War

The Williams family made their way to Western Australia around the early 1900,s and settled in Gosnells. Father James is listed in the 1910, 1916 Electoral Roll as a gardner. Artie was active in the Gosnells Football Club as a young man, captain and coach at one time. He worked for Whittackers in Subiaco as a tallyman/ timberman. His parents lived in Wheatley Street, Gosnells.

Prior to the war he was working locally as a tallyman in a timber yard.

War Service

James entered Blackboy Hill camp on 16 Apr 1917, and on 8 May 1917 he was allocated to the 21st reinforcement draft for the 28th Battalion. he trained with them and sailed from Albany for England with them aboard HMAT A16 Port Melbourne, disembarking in Liverpool on 16 Sep 1917. On arrival he was sent to the 7th Training Battalion in Rollestone to prepare for service on the Western front. From 13 Oct 1917 until 3 Nov 1917 James was in the Fovant Military Hospital with mumps. Discharged he rejoined the 7th Training Battalion, but on 8 Nov 1917 he was transferred to the 6th Training Battalion at Fovant to catchup on the training missed while he was in hospital.

On 12 Feb 1918 he proceeded overseas to Le Havre, France via Southampton to reinforce the 16th Battalion, and on 18 Feb 1918 he was taken on strength by them at Spoil Bank in Belgium, just before they moved back into the lines again. On 27 Oct 1918, after they had been withdrawn from the protracted fighting in the Somme valley, James was sent to the Corps Gas School, rejoining the battalion on 2 Nov 1918. In the absence of a specific mention in a soldier's records you cannot be sure that he participated in a battle as 25 - 30% of the unit was held back as a nucleus to build around after taking casualties, however, the 16th Battalion participated in the following battle after James joined them: Arras, 1918 ; Ancre, 1918 ; Hamel ; Amiens ; Albert ; 1918 Hindenburg Line ; and Epéhy.

James was detached to the 5th Division's reinforcement Wing from 5 Dec 1918 until 3 Jan 1919, and then detached to the Central School on 30 Jan 1919. James embarked for the UK to begin the return home on 13 May 1919, but prior to his return, on 14 Jul 1919 James married 21 year old Flora Fraser Glendinning Stirling of 2 Crichton street, Edinburgh. James was discharged by the 5th Military District on 3 Dec 1919.

• 

  Gosnells Premiers_20-21
• 

  W Coy 29th Garrison Battalion - Archie extreme right

Post War

During 1919, whilst in England, James met and married a young Scottish girl, Flora Frazer Glendinning Stirling. They must have only known each other a short time before marrying in Edinburgh in July 1919. They sailed back to Australia on SS Mahana. Flora never saw her family again, though a sister, Kate STIRLING migrated to Western Australia. With the outbreack of WW2, Artie joined the 29th Garrison Battalion's, 'W' Company in 1940-1945. Flora died on 18 Jun 1966 in Gosnells.

Electoral Roll entries: 1925 - 1934 Wheatley street, Gosnells, tallyman; 1943 - 1958 Albany road, Gosnells, tallyman.