MURRAY, Winsleigh Alexander
| Service Number: | 3170 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 1 May 1916, North Lambton, New South Wales |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 35th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | North Sydney, New South Wales, 1885 |
| Home Town: | Toronto, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Clergyman |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 12 October 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood Plot 11, Row B, Grave 4, Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood, Zonnebeke, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Newcastle Congregational Church, Petersham Fort Street High School Great War Honour Roll, Stockton Soldiers Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 1 May 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, North Lambton, New South Wales | |
|---|---|---|
| 24 Jan 1917: |
Involvement
AIF WW1, Private, 3170, 35th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '17' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Anchises embarkation_ship_number: A68 public_note: '' |
|
| 24 Jan 1917: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 3170, 35th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Anchises, Sydney | |
| 12 Oct 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Corporal, 3170, 35th Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 3170 awm_unit: 35th Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Corporal awm_died_date: 1917-10-12 |
Two Articles from the Newspapers
Newcastle Morning Herald & Miners Advocate -1st June 1918
DISTRICT CASUALTIES. KILLED IN ACTION. CORPORAL MURRAY.--Mrs Murray, of Toronto, has been notified that her husband, Corporal Winsleigh Alexander Murray, previously reported missing on October 12, 1917, at Passchendaele, has now been reported killed in action on that date. At the time of enlisting Corporal Murray was Minister at the Central Methodist Mission, Newcastle, and left Australlia on January 24. 1917.
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The Methodist -Sydney 24th November, 1934
THE LATE REV. W. A. MURRAY
Memorial Tablet Unveiled
As a tribute to the memory of Rev. W. A. Murray, the Stockton Methodist Church was crowded for the unveiling of a memorial tablet at the evening service of Armistice Day. Mrs. Dalton performed the ceremony. A number of returned soldiers and members of the Stockton group, were present. In a brief resume of the life and work of Rev, Murray, Rev. N. W. Lickiss said that Winsleigh Alexander Murray was born at North Sydney in 1884. He was accepted for the Methodist Ministry in 1907, and served the Church in Barraba,
North Sydney, and Coolamon Circuits
While second minister at Newcastle Central Mission, he enlisted for service in the Army Medical Corps early in 1916, but later, in response to an urgent appeal for infantry, in view of the bitter struggle on the Western Front, Rev. Murray was transferred to that section of the army.
He was a true man's man, sincere and sympathetic, and in the ranks exerted a remarkable influence for good among his comrades.
He was wounded at Passchendaele in October, 1917, and probably could have been saved; but the unselfishness and courage that endeared him to his fellows, caused him in the moment of supreme danger, to ask the stretcher bearer to take another in his place. He was never seen again, and was posted missing till May, 1918, when his death was confirmed as killed in action.
Such was the passing of one whose personality and gifts led men to predict for him a high and honoured place in the Methodist Church. He had been remembered however, with enduring affection by his brethren, and his life had been, and would continue to be, an inspiration to many.
Submitted 12 October 2015 by Elizabeth Allen
Biography
Winsleigh Alexander MURRAY was born in 1885 in North Sydney, NSW
His parents were Alexander Winsleigh & Isabella MURRAY
Winsleigh married Bessie Hilton EATHER on 22nd March, 1911 in Mosman, Sydney, NSW
He enlisted on 1st May 1916 with the Australian Army - he was with the 35th Battalion, 7th Reinforcements - Unit embarked from Sydney on board HMAT Anchises on 24th January, 1917
He was wounded in the thigh & listed as missing in action and then stated as died on 12th October, 1917 - his comrades thought he had been taken prisoner of war (see article below for more information about his unselfish act of giving up his place in line for a strethcer bearer) - he is buried in Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood, Belgium
Winsleigh was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal
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