WATHERSTON, Edward Alexander
| Service Number: | 856 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 30 August 1914, Morphettville, South Australia |
| Last Rank: | Lance Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 10th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Port Lincoln South Australia Australia, 2 March 1886 |
| Home Town: | Port Lincoln, Port Lincoln, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Port Lincoln Public School |
| Occupation: | Marine & Harbours Board, Port Pirie |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Pozieres, France, 23 July 1916, aged 30 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Adelaide Australian Harbours Board WW1 Roll of Honour, Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial, Roll of Honour, Birkenhead WW1 Harbors Board Employees Memorial, Port Lincoln & District Honor Roll WW1, Port Lincoln Garden of Remembrance, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 30 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Morphettville, South Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Oct 1914: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, SN 856, 10th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1 | |
| 20 Oct 1914: | Embarked AIF WW1, HMAT Ascanius A28 | |
| 25 Apr 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, SN 856, 10th Infantry Battalion, 'ANZAC' / Gallipoli | |
| 23 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, SN 856, 10th Infantry Battalion, Pozières |
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Edward Alexander Watherston: 856 Rank: Private Unit: 10th Battalion (Infantry) Date of death: 23 July 1916 Place of death: France Cemetery or memorial details: Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, France Source: AWM145 Roll of Honour cards, 1914-1918 War, Army See full service record in the sidebar.
The Watherston family was historically associated with Boston Island, which dominates the seaward side of Port Lincoln's spectacular harbour. The tragic story of the Watherston family is the most profound story of sacrifice by a single family in the course of Australia's involvement with the Great War of 1914 - 18. Four brothers and a cousin were to give their lives in the country's name. All but one died within the first 18 months of Australia's involvement.
This tragedy was preceded by the loss of both parents in a tragic boating accident prior to the war.
Edward Alexander Watherston was killed on the first day of Australian operations near the ruins of the village of Pozieres (promounced 'pozzeeair') during the course of the British Somme Offensive in the high summer of 1915. In the following five weeks at Pozieres and nearby Mouquet (Pronounced 'mookay') Farm, the AIF sustained 23,000 casualties, more than 5,000 of them killed, severely impacting the 1st, 2nd and 4th DIvisions.
Port Lincoin historian Geoffrey 'Lee' Clayton has compiled their story over the past 14 years since first noticing two "Dead Men's Pennies" at a deceased Estate auction. See the link in the sidebar.
The collective and individual stories of these men and their wider family will be told on this site soon.
More to follow...........
Click images to start slideshow.