SMITH, Edward William
| Service Numbers: | V155628, VX139838 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 12 January 1942 |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 37/52 (amalgamated) Infantry Battalion AMF |
| Born: | Kyabram, Victoria, Australia , 9 January 1922 |
| Home Town: | Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Teacher |
| Died: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 8 March 2010, aged 88 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 12 Jan 1942: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Lance Corporal, V155628, 37/52 (amalgamated) Infantry Battalion AMF | |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Apr 1943: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Lance Corporal, V155628, 37/52 (amalgamated) Infantry Battalion AMF, embarked Townsville for Fall River on board the Taroona | |
| 18 Apr 1943: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Lance Corporal, V155628, 37/52 (amalgamated) Infantry Battalion AMF | |
| 19 Apr 1943: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Sergeant, VX139838 | |
| 26 Aug 1944: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Lance Corporal, VX139838, 37/52 (amalgamated) Infantry Battalion AMF, embarked Madang for Brisbane on board the Katoomba | |
| 26 Oct 1944: | Honoured Mention in Dispatches, for ‘Exceptional service in the filed in New Guinea' Promulgated: London Gazette: 8 May 1945 Commonwealth of Australia Gazette: 15 May 1945 | |
| 19 Feb 1945: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Corporal, VX139838, 37/52 (amalgamated) Infantry Battalion AMF, embarked Brisbane for Jacquinot Bay on board the Katoomba | |
| 3 Jan 1946: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Sergeant, VX139838, 37/52 (amalgamated) Infantry Battalion AMF, embarked Jacquinot Bay for Brisbane | |
| 31 Jan 1946: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Sergeant, VX139838 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
One of four brothers (Frank, Jack, Edward and Frederick) who served in WWII, Sergeant Edward William Smith MiD (Service Nos:V155628/VX139838) enlisted in the ACMF on 12 January 1942, and was a Lance Corporal attached to 37/52 Infantry Battalion on 9 April 1943 when he embarked from Townsville for Fall River on board the Taroona. Sergeant Smitth served in New Guinea with 37/52 Infantry Battalion (9 April 1943 - 26 August 1944 and 19 February 1945 - 31 January 1946), taking part in the Huon Peninsula Campaign, defense of Red Beach, support for the capture of Lae, and capture of Fortification Point. Sergeant Smith also served with 37/52 Infantry Battalion at Wunung and Open Bays, and in Rabaul guarding Japanese PoWs and supporting the restoration of law and order. Sergeant Smith was awarded a Mention in Despatches (MiD) 'for exceptional service in the field in New Guinea' (AWM), and was attached to 37/52 Infantry Battalion at Discharge on 31 January 1946.
Bill was born in Kyabram, Victoria in 1922, third of four children of Philip (Paddy) John Smith (b1889 in Melbourne, Victoria) and Elsie May Gorman (b1895 in Wangaratta, Victoria). Paddy was a Labourer in Shepparton in 1915 when he and Elsie married. He enlisted in the AIF in 1915 (Private; Service Nos:513/4494), and following his Discharge, he and Elsie settled in Kyabram, where they raised their family and Paddy worked as a Farmer/Orchardist before moving to Bendigo in the 1950s where he worked as a Labourer.
Bill was a Teacher in Melbourne in 1942 when he enlisted in the Army, and in 1944 in Melbourne he married his first wife Joan Carstairs (b1925 in Melbourne, Victoria). Following his discharge in 1946, Bill returned to Melbourne, where he was a Teacher. He and Joan divorced, and Bill was in Mildura in 1955 when he remarried to Mabel (Maisie) Ethel Nye (b1918 in Melbourne, Victoria) - Maisie was a Mender in Melbourne before enlisting in the AWAS (Service No:Vf396276). Bill and Maisie lived in Mildura and Nar Nar Goon before settling at Narre Warren, where Bill was a Teacher until retirement. Maisie died in 1993, and Bill died in 2010.