Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Extract from Book..An Olive Branch in the Jarrah Forest by Ian Lewis

Arthur Lewis was the fifth child of Joseph and Mary Ann Lewis, he was born on 7th July 1894 at
Jarrahdale.
He attended the mill town schools both at the main town of Jarrahdale and at the number six
mill. His father and elder brothers Herbert and Reginald were all working in the timber mills
and on weekends, participated in sporting events with a great deal of success. Arthur was also
known as Mick in numerous news articles for football and cricket matches that he participated
in during his youth. Life in the Jarrahdale hills while challenging work and somewhat lacking
in facilities, it proved to be an ideal place to raise and grow families. The work available in the
timber mills was plentiful, freedom of the bush and an ability to mix with the communities that
were establishing around the turn of that century created an enjoyment and lifestyle that the
Lewis family appreciated.
Not much is known of the childhood of the Lewis family during that 1890s era, but we do know it
was a growing family with marriages and relationships very localized through the Jarrah forest
mill towns in the area. Arthur had struck up a friendship with the Spalding family in nearby
Dwellingup mill and was in a developing romantic relationship with their daughter Ellen May
Spalding
The peace of the forest and the regulated business of the timber industry were interrupted in
1914 and with the continued world war in Europe. In a very short time the real impact of war
and the effect on the families of the timber mills would be all-embracing.
At the age of 21 Arthur had been working at the Jarrahdale mill as a timber tally man and would
have been in awe of his brother’s involvement in the war and imagined how exciting it might
be. On the 20th March 1916 he and other members of the family enlisted to join Herbert in the
AIF. There had been loss of life and the war scene was now well-known for its danger, death
and hardship but the Lewis boys were raised to respond without fear. At the time of the enlisting
the Lewis family had not directly been affected by any loss on the war front. What lay ahead
was a period of tragic unfolding events that affected the Lewis’ as it did so many other families
with sons that went to WWI with so many not coming home.
A classified notice in the newspaper a few weeks before his enlistment speculates that Arthur
(Mick) may have been hoping to become engaged to his girlfriend Ellen Spalding before going
off to war. And that a female ring was lost may mean that he was not successful in his approach.
On his enlistment forms Arthur is noted at 5’7” and weighed a light 154 lbs. He had rich black
hair and two deep scars on his left upper arm.
Arthur like all his brothers was fit, able and a welcomed enrolment to the armed service and he
was keen to get involved in fulfilling the patriotic duties that the war presented.
Arthur was enlisted under the 28th battalion 13th reinforcement with his brothers Ernest and
Reginald and many other mill town lads including their brother-in-law Thomas Sheehan. They
all trained for a brief time at Blackboy Hill near Midland in Western Australia before departing
the Fremantle Port bound to the war on-board the vessel “Seang Bee” on 18th July 1916. No
doubt members of the Lewis family would have been present at the sailing and still feeling the
pride of their boys’ maturity and commitment to support the empire.
This was the first sea voyage for Arthur and his brothers. What an exciting adventure they must
have thought and how eager to catch up with their other brother Herbert and finish that war and
all come home heroes!
During his voyage there was scandal in the courts at home. Miss Rose Evelyn McNess of
Jarrahdale had accused Edward Buckland of having sexual contact with her, resulting in her
being pregnant. During the trial several local soldiers were named as also having had occasions
of flirtation with Miss McNess. Arthur Lewis was among those named. The trial found no case
to answer for Buckland or any of the other men named.
The Seang Bee berthed in England where the troops were put through final training and
medicals before being shipped to the war front in France.
The war scene for Arthur and his mates of the 28th Battalion started in earnest in February 1917
and the reality of war has been painted in words and pictures into the pages of many books
recording that terrible time. The battalion had been positioned from camp at Shelter Wood to
the front line north of Warlencourt in France. Fighting was fierce, and the weather was some of
the worst the lads had seen. Casualties for the 28th were not as severe as the horrific battles in
Pozieres during 1916 but for Arthur this period of war was possibly the worst battle he had seen
since arriving in France and the number of deaths and wounded would have been frightening.
This period of the war is often referred to as the advance to the Hindenburg Line and followed
on from the disastrous series of battles from 1st July to early November 1916 collectively known
as the Battle of The Somme. The battle lines had remained static and relatively quiet as both
sides endured the bitter winter of 1916-17. The terrible mud that became synonymous with the
closing stages of the Somme disaster gave way to the debilitating freeze when temperatures
often plunged to minus 20 degrees Celsius. During this time however, the Germans were busy
preparing a virtually impregnable line of defences well back from the front line. This became
known as the Hindenburg Line and after its completion in early 1917; the German’s staged an
orderly fighting retreat, destroying everything as they went. Although during this period from
late February, some fierce battles were fought, the Germans only wanted to slow the allied
advance and no serious attempt was made to stop them. This led to many mistakenly believing
the Germans were all but beaten. When the advance finally reached the massive defences of
the Hindenburg Line, the Australians were heavily involved in the massive battles at Lagnicourt
and Bullecourt in April 1917.
To appreciate the horrid war scene is difficult but we know 1916/17 was a bitter winter, icy
winds and snow and heavy continuous rain. Many of the AIF crews would be experiencing
snow winters for their first time. There were networks of trenches over 1000 yards running
through flat treeless land, which the AIF soldiers had to manoeuvre through to reach the action
front and later return when relief of another group came for their stint. The 6 and 7-metre-
deep trenches were up to 1.5 metres deep in melting snow and mud and chilling water. The
temperature fell below zero during the night and on many days did not get above that mark.
Many soldiers lost their boots in the mud and continued in just their socks. With sections of
the trenches so full of water and slippery mud, a common cause of death for the AIF soldiers
was drowning and dying of severe frost bite. Many times, after fighting and before retreating to
change over with oncoming crew of soldiers, the mud and slush that had run into the trenches
had to be continually dug out. The soldiers would have been exhausted, soaking wet and very
hungry.
There was a stretch of abandoned farm land between the AIF and the enemy frontline. This was
commonly called no man’s land and was a horrific war-torn section of land marred from endless
shelling that had fallen short of each line boundaries. No man’s land was in winter covered
by five inches of ice and snow creating slippery footing, so any attempts to gain superiority
of possession were undertaken in the dark. The cold wet icy conditions splattered with death
and maimed souls was a common daily occurrence. From blood stained ice, and snow in the
no man’s land and the wounded and dying men mixed with the turned over mud of the trodden
trenches would have been a hell that none of the enlisted men could have expected.   Some
soldiers were wounded to a point that they begged for their mates to finish then off rather than
continue in agony.
To try and understand the war experience of Arthur in the days leading up to his death is near
impossible.
Just surviving the conditions, with mud and ice with bloodshed and the never-ending cries
from fallen mates and strangers, must have been the only thing that Arthur focused on. In that
miserable weather and a vast open killing field he must have wished more than everything that
he was home in the forests of Jarrahdale. But that was not to be.
With just over six months of that patriotic duty he so looked forward to when he enlisted, young
Arthur aged just 23 years old, was killed in action on 28th Feb. 1917.
Arthur was one of 47 Australians killed at the battle of Warlencourt during February 1917 and
just two days after his death the enemy line retreated, and the ground made during the loss of
lives, proved to be significant in the outcome of the war.
The formal notice of his death arrived in March 1917 advising the Lewis’ that their son, Arthur
had been killed in action in France on 28th February 1917. [Ref; Copies of AIF records Private
Arthur Lewis No. 5039 of the 28th Battalion held by Ian Lewis]. Joseph Lewis and the family at
home in Jarrahdale would have been devastated. They had now lost two young sons and still
no sign of an end to the war this must have created doubt and fear for the safety of their other
boys still serving.
A death notice for Arthur was published in the Western Mail on the 6th April by “his dear friends
Mr. and Mrs. Spalding and Family, Number 2 State Mill, Dwellingup”, indicating that he may
have been working with or had close contact with that family.
Two other death and memory notices were inserted in the local papers, one from the family and
another from “his old Pal”, Lieutenant H. M. Sweeney (a returned soldier). H. M. Sweeney and
Arthur’s friend and Miss Ellen May Spalding married each other in 1919.

Extract from Book..An Olive Branch in the Jarrah Forest by Ian Lewis

Arthur Lewis was the fifth child of Joseph and Mary Ann Lewis, he was born on 7th July 1894 at
Jarrahdale.
He attended the mill town schools both at the main town of Jarrahdale and at the number six
mill. His father and elder brothers Herbert and Reginald were all working in the timber mills
and on weekends, participated in sporting events with a great deal of success. Arthur was also
known as Mick in numerous news articles for football and cricket matches that he participated
in during his youth. Life in the Jarrahdale hills while challenging work and somewhat lacking
in facilities, it proved to be an ideal place to raise and grow families. The work available in the
timber mills was plentiful, freedom of the bush and an ability to mix with the communities that
were establishing around the turn of that century created an enjoyment and lifestyle that the
Lewis family appreciated.
Not much is known of the childhood of the Lewis family during that 1890s era, but we do know it
was a growing family with marriages and relationships very localized through the Jarrah forest
mill towns in the area. Arthur had struck up a friendship with the Spalding family in nearby
Dwellingup mill and was in a developing romantic relationship with their daughter Ellen May
Spalding
The peace of the forest and the regulated business of the timber industry were interrupted in
1914 and with the continued world war in Europe. In a very short time the real impact of war
and the effect on the families of the timber mills would be all-embracing.
At the age of 21 Arthur had been working at the Jarrahdale mill as a timber tally man and would
have been in awe of his brother’s involvement in the war and imagined how exciting it might
be. On the 20th March 1916 he and other members of the family enlisted to join Herbert in the
AIF. There had been loss of life and the war scene was now well-known for its danger, death
and hardship but the Lewis boys were raised to respond without fear. At the time of the enlisting
the Lewis family had not directly been affected by any loss on the war front. What lay ahead
was a period of tragic unfolding events that affected the Lewis’ as it did so many other families
with sons that went to WWI with so many not coming home.
A classified notice in the newspaper a few weeks before his enlistment speculates that Arthur
(Mick) may have been hoping to become engaged to his girlfriend Ellen Spalding before going
off to war. And that a female ring was lost may mean that he was not successful in his approach.
On his enlistment forms Arthur is noted at 5’7” and weighed a light 154 lbs. He had rich black
hair and two deep scars on his left upper arm.
Arthur like all his brothers was fit, able and a welcomed enrolment to the armed service and he
was keen to get involved in fulfilling the patriotic duties that the war presented.
Arthur was enlisted under the 28th battalion 13th reinforcement with his brothers Ernest and
Reginald and many other mill town lads including their brother-in-law Thomas Sheehan. They
all trained for a brief time at Blackboy Hill near Midland in Western Australia before departing
the Fremantle Port bound to the war on-board the vessel “Seang Bee” on 18th July 1916. No
doubt members of the Lewis family would have been present at the sailing and still feeling the
pride of their boys’ maturity and commitment to support the empire.
This was the first sea voyage for Arthur and his brothers. What an exciting adventure they must
have thought and how eager to catch up with their other brother Herbert and finish that war and
all come home heroes!
During his voyage there was scandal in the courts at home. Miss Rose Evelyn McNess of
Jarrahdale had accused Edward Buckland of having sexual contact with her, resulting in her
being pregnant. During the trial several local soldiers were named as also having had occasions
of flirtation with Miss McNess. Arthur Lewis was among those named. The trial found no case
to answer for Buckland or any of the other men named.
The Seang Bee berthed in England where the troops were put through final training and
medicals before being shipped to the war front in France.
The war scene for Arthur and his mates of the 28th Battalion started in earnest in February 1917
and the reality of war has been painted in words and pictures into the pages of many books
recording that terrible time. The battalion had been positioned from camp at Shelter Wood to
the front line north of Warlencourt in France. Fighting was fierce, and the weather was some of
the worst the lads had seen. Casualties for the 28th were not as severe as the horrific battles in
Pozieres during 1916 but for Arthur this period of war was possibly the worst battle he had seen
since arriving in France and the number of deaths and wounded would have been frightening.
This period of the war is often referred to as the advance to the Hindenburg Line and followed
on from the disastrous series of battles from 1st July to early November 1916 collectively known
as the Battle of The Somme. The battle lines had remained static and relatively quiet as both
sides endured the bitter winter of 1916-17. The terrible mud that became synonymous with the
closing stages of the Somme disaster gave way to the debilitating freeze when temperatures
often plunged to minus 20 degrees Celsius. During this time however, the Germans were busy
preparing a virtually impregnable line of defences well back from the front line. This became
known as the Hindenburg Line and after its completion in early 1917; the German’s staged an
orderly fighting retreat, destroying everything as they went. Although during this period from
late February, some fierce battles were fought, the Germans only wanted to slow the allied
advance and no serious attempt was made to stop them. This led to many mistakenly believing
the Germans were all but beaten. When the advance finally reached the massive defences of
the Hindenburg Line, the Australians were heavily involved in the massive battles at Lagnicourt
and Bullecourt in April 1917.
To appreciate the horrid war scene is difficult but we know 1916/17 was a bitter winter, icy
winds and snow and heavy continuous rain. Many of the AIF crews would be experiencing
snow winters for their first time. There were networks of trenches over 1000 yards running
through flat treeless land, which the AIF soldiers had to manoeuvre through to reach the action
front and later return when relief of another group came for their stint. The 6 and 7-metre-
deep trenches were up to 1.5 metres deep in melting snow and mud and chilling water. The
temperature fell below zero during the night and on many days did not get above that mark.
Many soldiers lost their boots in the mud and continued in just their socks. With sections of
the trenches so full of water and slippery mud, a common cause of death for the AIF soldiers
was drowning and dying of severe frost bite. Many times, after fighting and before retreating to
change over with oncoming crew of soldiers, the mud and slush that had run into the trenches
had to be continually dug out. The soldiers would have been exhausted, soaking wet and very
hungry.
There was a stretch of abandoned farm land between the AIF and the enemy frontline. This was
commonly called no man’s land and was a horrific war-torn section of land marred from endless
shelling that had fallen short of each line boundaries. No man’s land was in winter covered
by five inches of ice and snow creating slippery footing, so any attempts to gain superiority
of possession were undertaken in the dark. The cold wet icy conditions splattered with death
and maimed souls was a common daily occurrence. From blood stained ice, and snow in the
no man’s land and the wounded and dying men mixed with the turned over mud of the trodden
trenches would have been a hell that none of the enlisted men could have expected.   Some
soldiers were wounded to a point that they begged for their mates to finish then off rather than
continue in agony.
To try and understand the war experience of Arthur in the days leading up to his death is near
impossible.
Just surviving the conditions, with mud and ice with bloodshed and the never-ending cries
from fallen mates and strangers, must have been the only thing that Arthur focused on. In that
miserable weather and a vast open killing field he must have wished more than everything that
he was home in the forests of Jarrahdale. But that was not to be.
With just over six months of that patriotic duty he so looked forward to when he enlisted, young
Arthur aged just 23 years old, was killed in action on 28th Feb. 1917.
Arthur was one of 47 Australians killed at the battle of Warlencourt during February 1917 and
just two days after his death the enemy line retreated, and the ground made during the loss of
lives, proved to be significant in the outcome of the war.
The formal notice of his death arrived in March 1917 advising the Lewis’ that their son, Arthur
had been killed in action in France on 28th February 1917. [Ref; Copies of AIF records Private
Arthur Lewis No. 5039 of the 28th Battalion held by Ian Lewis]. Joseph Lewis and the family at
home in Jarrahdale would have been devastated. They had now lost two young sons and still
no sign of an end to the war this must have created doubt and fear for the safety of their other
boys still serving.
A death notice for Arthur was published in the Western Mail on the 6th April by “his dear friends
Mr. and Mrs. Spalding and Family, Number 2 State Mill, Dwellingup”, indicating that he may
have been working with or had close contact with that family.
Two other death and memory notices were inserted in the local papers, one from the family and
another from “his old Pal”, Lieutenant H. M. Sweeney (a returned soldier). H. M. Sweeney and
Arthur’s friend and Miss Ellen May Spalding married each other in 1919.