FORREST, Thomas Stoddart
| Service Number: | 119 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 2nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Lesmahagow, Scotland, 1886 |
| Home Town: | Lithgow, Lithgow, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Railway Clerk |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Palestine, 19 April 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
Gaza War Cemetery, Israel and Palestine (including Gaza) |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board |
World War 1 Service
| 18 Oct 1914: | Involvement Driver, 119, 2nd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Clan MacCorquodale embarkation_ship_number: A6 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 18 Oct 1914: | Embarked Driver, 119, 2nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Clan MacCorquodale, Sydney | |
| 19 Apr 1917: | Involvement Sergeant, 119, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 119 awm_unit: Australian Battalion Imperial Camel Corps awm_rank: Sergeant awm_died_date: 1917-04-19 |
Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board
Thomas Stodart FORREST (Service Number 119) was born in Lesmahagow, Scotland, in 1886. He had served four years in the Lanarkshire Yeomanry, 1904-1908, before coming to Australia. He joined the NSWGR as a porter in the Lismore District in May 1909, and in January 1911 became a clerk in the District Superintendent’s Office there. At the end of the year, he transferred to Eskbank as weigh clerk, and in March 1912 moved to the District Superintendent’s Office at Eskbank. In August 1914 he was granted leave to enlist in the AIF and did so at Randwick.
On 19 April 1917 he was killed in action during the Battle of Gaza. He is buried in the Gaza Military Cemetery.
Submitted 8 July 2023 by John Oakes
Biography contributed by John Oakes
Thomas Stodart FORREST (Service Number 119) was born in Lesmahagow, Scotland, in 1886. He served four years in the Lanarkshire Yeomanry from 1904-1908 before coming to Australia. He joined the NSW Government Railways as a porter in the Lismore District in May 1909. In January 1911 he became a clerk in the District Superintendent’s Office there. At the end of the year, he transferred to Eskbank (Lithgow) as weigh clerk. In March 1912 moved to the District Superintendent’s Office at Eskbank.
In August 1914 he was granted leave to enlist in the AIF and did so at Randwick.
He embarked from Sydney in October 1914. He was attached to a Transport Section in Egypt in May 1915. He was made a Lance Corporal in September. He re-joined his infantry battalion in December. In February 1916 he transferred to the Camel Corps. He was made Corporal in June 1916, He was promoted to temporary Sergeant in August. He achieved 93% at an NCOs’ course at Zeitoun in October. He was confirmed in the rank of Sergeant in November 1916.
On 19th April 1917 he was killed in action during the Battle of Gaza in Palestine. He was ‘in the advance to, and while in temporary occupation of a Turkish redoubt, and owing to the position being vacated and not subsequently reoccupied the dead were not able to be buried.’ His remains were however subsequently recovered and reburied in the Gaza Military Cemetery.
- based on notes for the Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board