Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Harold was the son of Thomas Charles and Charlotte Harriet (Brown) Wellard from Steyning in Sussex in England.  Harold’s father was a farmer in Sussex and on the 1911 census he was noted as being an Ostler (a man employed to look after the horses of people staying at an inn).  During WW1 Harold’s father served with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, his Regimental Number was SE/6553.

In 1920 Harold’s father died and then his mother also died in 1922 resulting in him, at age seven years, and his brother Lewis, being placed into care.  The brothers spent seven years in an orphanage, possibly Barnardo's Boys Home, before they were "shipped out" to Western Australia as part of the British Child Migration Scheme.

At age 13 years Harold travelled out to Western Australia, with his brother Lewis, leaving London, England on 15 October 1929 on the SS Ballarat arriving in Fremantle on 14 November of that year.  The brother’s destination was the Kingsley Fairbridge Farm School, south of Perth at Pinjarra, Western Australia.   Fairbridge Farm was an establishment set up to accommodate and educate child migrants.

Harold stayed at Fairbridge for only just over 12 months until 8 December 1930 when he left to work in Katanning, Western Australia, possibly as a farm hand.  Harold stayed in Katanning for a while and records show that in the late 1930's Harold was in Harvey, a farming community south of Perth, working as a farm hand.

After serving in WW2, for a total of four years and 78 days, which included 185 days in New Guinea, Harold married Josephine Walker on 12 January 1946 in Cottesloe a Perth suburb.  Harold and Josephine had two daughters.

On the 1949 Australian Census, Harold and his wife Josephine were living at 4 Princess Street, Cottesloe WA.  Harold's occupation was recorded as a baker.

At the time of his death Harold was working at the Repatriation General Hospital (Hollywood), Nedlands as a hospital orderly and still living at the Cottesloe address.

The cause of Harold's tragic early death was determined by a Postmortem on 18 March 1952 as Arteriosclerosis, Coronary Sclerosis and insufficiency (coronary heart disease).  He died at his home survived by his wife and two daughters.

Harold was actually born in 1915 although some of his records have the year as 1916, his birth was not registered until the first quarter of 1916. (see documents) and he was was baptized on 13 February 1916.