BANCROFT, Leslie George
| Service Numbers: | W236454, WX14051, WX14051, |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 2 August 1940, 5th Australian Army Ordnance Corps (AAOC) |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Fremantle, Western Australia, 8 August 1918 |
| Home Town: | Perth, Western Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Painter |
| Died: | Rockingham, Western Australia, 9 December 1981, aged 63 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Karrakatta Cemetery & Crematorium, Western Australia The Western Australian Garden of Remembrance |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 2 Aug 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, W236454, 5th Australian Army Ordnance Corps (AAOC) | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 Jun 1941: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, W236454 | |
| 11 Jun 1941: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, WX14051, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion | |
| 6 Sep 1942: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, WX14051, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion, embarked Fremantle for Middle East per Convoy US 16 | |
| 18 Feb 1943: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, WX14051,, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion, embarked Middle East for Fremantle | |
| 23 Apr 1945: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, WX14051, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion, embarked Townsville for Morotai per General McRae | |
| 15 Jul 1945: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, WX14051, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion, embarked Morotai for Borneo | |
| 2 Jan 1946: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, WX14051, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion, embarked Labuan for RTA per Manoora | |
| 18 Jan 1946: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Corporal, WX14051, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
Corporal Leslie George Bancroft (Service No:WX14051) initially served in the ACMF (Service No:W236454) as a Private and Corporal attached to 5th AUstralian Army Ordnance Corps (AAOC) and served at Rottnest and the RAA Fremantle and Swanbourne Barracks. Corporal Bancroft discharged on 10 June 1941 to enlist in the AIF the following day. Corporal Bancroft served with 2/32nd Infantry Battalion in the Middle East (6 September 1942 - 18 February 1943), New Gunea (7 August 1943 - 7 February 1944) and Borneo (23 April 1945 - 2 January 1946). Corporal Bancroft was attached to 2/32nd Infantry Battalion at Discharge on 18 January 1946.
Born in 1918 in Fremantle WA, Les was fifth of seven children of Harold Stewart Bancroft (b1887 in Spring Hill, QLD) and Susan (Susie) Mary Hayden (b1891 in York, WA). Harold arrived in Western Australia in the early 1900s and was working in Southern Cross as a Carpenter in 1906. In 1909 he moved to York and was working as a Carpenter, when he married Susie in 1910. Harold and Susie lived in York, Doodlakine via Northam, Fremantle, Toodyay and Perth where Harold worked as a Carpenter.
Les worked as a Painter and in 1940 at Midland Junction in WA, enlisted in the ACMF before transferring to the AIF. In 1942 in Perth WA, Les married Thelma Florence Binks (b1921 in Wellington, WA). Following his Discharge from the Army, Les and Thelma lived in Northam and Rockingham where Les worked as a Painter, before becoming Publican at the Yarloop Hotel in the 1960s. Les and Thelma retired to Rockingham in the early 1970s - Les died in 1981 and Thelma in 1984.
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