32479
CRAGO, Harry Albert
| Service Number: | 262 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 43rd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Littlehampton, South Australia, 29 December 1894 |
| Home Town: | Littlehampton, Mount Barker, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Railway Porter |
| Died: | Mount Barker, South Australia, 27 May 1958, aged 63 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Mount Barker St. Francis De Sales Catholic Cemetery |
| Memorials: | Adelaide South Australian Railways WW1 & WW2 Honour Boards, Coomandook Roll of Honour, Littlehampton Honour Roll, Mount Barker Soldiers' Memorial Hospital Roll of Honor |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Jun 1916: | Involvement Private, 262, 43rd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '18' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Afric embarkation_ship_number: A19 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Jun 1916: | Embarked Private, 262, 43rd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Afric, Adelaide | |
| 11 Nov 1918: | Involvement 262, 43rd Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour Harry Albert Crago's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Paul Lemar
Harry was the son of John CRAGO & Mary Elizabeth CROCKER and was born on the 29th of December 1894 in Littlehampton.
His parents were married on the 30th of December 1878 in Blakiston.
Harry was the youngest child born into a family of seven children.
His father was a gardener and Harry grew up in Littlehampton.
In 1906 his father failed to send him to school and was fined.
Harry played football for the Mt Barker Football Club and Cricket and was a very good sportman.
Harry joined the 74th Battalion, F Company Senior Cadets (Mt Barker) in 1911.
In 1914 he was transferred to the 74th Battalion Citizen Force.
Harry had enlisted into the 43rd Battalion, B Company on the 30th of December 1915 in Adelaide and was allotted the service number 262.
He embarked from Adelaide on board HMAT A19 Afric on the 9th of June 1916 and after landing briefly in Egypt, went on to Britain for further training at Lark Hill.
The battalion arrived on the Western Front in late December. The 43rd Battalion spent 1917 bogged in bloody trench warfare in Flanders. In June the battalion took part in the battle of Messines and in October the Third Battle of Ypres.
On the 26th of December 1917, Harry was accidentally wounded in the face by a gun shot.
The battalion spent much of 1918 fighting in the Somme valley. In April they helped stop the German Spring offensive at Villers-Bretonneux.
In July the battalion was part of General Monash's attack at Hamel. In August and September the battalion helped drive the Germans back to the Hindenburg Line. The 43rd joined the advance that followed the 2nd Division's victory at Mont St Quentin.
Harry returned to Australia on board the Runic on the 10th of June 1919 and was discharged on the 24th of July 1919.
During his time over seas, Harry suffered from Pleurisy and was in and out of hospital.
Harry returned to Littlehampton and married Ellen Bridget MOORE on the 14th of September 1921 in Mt Barker.
Ellen was the daughter of James Bennett MOORE & Margaret VICTORY and was born on the 23rd of December 1893 in Black Rock, Mannanarie, SA. Her father was a railway ganger and they had moved to Mt Barker. She was 16 years old when her father died.
In June 1922 they purchased allotment 54 in Littlehampton (6 Old Princess Highway, which ran through to Pioneer Street).
They welcomed their first child into the family on the 11th of August 1922 in Mt Barker; John James.
Sadly, little John died on the 29th of October, aged 3 months. They buried their infant in the Mt Barker Catholic Cemetery.
Their next child; Sheila Margaret, was born on the 26th of November 1923 in Littlehampton, followed by Brian John on the 5th of May 1926.
Harry was a member of the Mt Barker RSL Sub Branch.
Harry was employed as the Mt Barker Railway Porter for the South Australian Railways.
Harry & Ellen would have been extremely proud as in 1956, their son Brian, aged 30 years, was selected in 1st Australian Equestrian Team for the Stockholm Olympics.
Harry died on the 27th of May 1958 in Mt Barker and is buried in the Mt Barker Catholic Cemetery.
Ellen died on the 14th of December 1968 in Mt Barker and is buried in the Mt Barker Catholic Cemetery, with her infant son, John.
Paul Lemar
RSL Macclesfield Sub Branch
Ellen Crago (nee Moore) was sister to Madge Purcell (nee Moore) of Bugle Ranges and Godmother to Graham Lemar of Macclesfield
Click images to start slideshow.