Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Edward Joseph Nolan, known as Ned, was born 2 Jul 1886 at Maryborough, the 3rd of 6 children of Irish immigrants David & Bridget Nolan. Ned was registered at Sunbury State School on 24 Aug 1891. He lived at Tollbar and his father was a lengthsman with the Qld Railways.
Ned’s mother died in Sep 1892 and is buried at Maryborough General Cemetery. His Dad married Eliza Tinkler in Jul 1893 and the family continued to live at Tollbar. Ned’s sister, my grandmother, Eliza Tinkler was born in Sep 1895.
The Sunbury school records show that Ned left school during 1896 when he was 10 years old as did his older brother Michael. The State Education Act of 1875 stated that primary education for children aged from 6 to 12 was to be compulsory but this provision was not fully implemented until 1900.
In 1898, when Ned was 12 years old his father, my Great Grandfather, was admitted to Woogaroo Asylum suffering from “Mania and Exhaustion” and died 6 weeks after admittance on 6 Jul 1898 and was buried at the Asylum Cemetery.
The first official record I have found for Ned Nolan is the electoral roll for 1908 when he was living at Nanandu, near Gladstone and working as a Baker. The township name was changed to Many Peaks in July 1909 to avoid being confused with the town of Nanango.
By 1913 Ned was working at Bluff Colliery, still as a Baker. Bluff is still an open cut mine located in the southern Bowen Basin, near the township of Bluff and 20km east of Blackwater.
Ned Nolan, 33 years old, was working at Woombye as a Baker when he enlisted in 47 Infantry Battalion on 8 May 1817, Serial Number 3772, and gave his brother Michael Nolan, Torbanlea as NOK. By August Edward had embarked on the Military Ship Miltiades for Glasgow. He caught Chronic Pleurisy and was discharged 19 Jun 1918. Edward was awarded the 1914 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.
Neds photograph appears on page 23 of The Queenslander Pictorial, supplement to the Queenslander, 2 June 1917. Full name & Service Number (from National Archives of Australia): Edward Joseph Nolan, Service Number – 3722 NAA person ID: 265271
In 1919 electoral Rolls show Ned living at Torbanlea as a Labourer and also back at Woombye. In 1928 he was living at Kin Kin and electoral rolls show him as a labourer.
Ned Nolan, aged 47, died of Bronchitis and pneumonia at Brisbane Hospital on 10 Nov 1933 and was buried at Toowong cemetery the following day.

Whilst I was researching Ned Nolan I went to the Sunshine Coast Genealogy Centre at Nambour and asked if the people there would mind if I talked out load about the person I was researching. Kindly the answer was yes and to our great surprise the lady who was researching for the book REMEMBERING MILITARY PERSONNEL IN THE OLD MAROOCHY SHIRE CEMETERIES – BOOK 1, WOOMBYE was actually working on his history. Ned is remembered on the Nambour WW1 Cenotaph as well as Howard Memorial.
Lest We Forget