MCCAUGHEY, William Joseph
| Service Number: | WX6885 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 22 July 1940 |
| Last Rank: | Staff Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 2nd/28th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Northam, Western Australia, 17 December 1912 |
| Home Town: | Northam, Northam, Western Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | warehouseman |
| Died: | Perth, Western Australia, 1 March 2003, aged 90 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Fremantle Cemetery, Western Australia Rose Memorial, Lakes 24/8 |
| Memorials: | Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 22 Jul 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Staff Sergeant, WX6885, 2nd/28th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 30 Sep 1942: | Imprisoned Middle East / Mediterranean Theatre, missing in action 27 Jul 1942; transferred from Italy to Stalag 18A, then to Stalag 357 Apr 1944; deplaned UK 8 May 1945 | |
| 8 Sep 1945: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Staff Sergeant, WX6885, 2nd/28th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour William Joseph Mccaughey's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Cherilyn McMeekin
William was the fifth of seven children born to Francis (Frank) and Rose in Northam WA. Two of his four brothers died in infancy. His father Frank died in 1932 in Perth, aged only 53.
William married Beryl Winifred DAGNALL in 1934 in Perth (reg. 950).
William voluntarily enlisted in the AMF in Jul 1935 under 276370, then again in Mar 1939. He was promoted to Corporal in July 1939 and then appointed Company Quartermaster Sergeant soon after. He was discharged in July 1940 to re-enlist under WX6885 (2/28th Battalion). By October 1940, he had been promoted to Acting Staff Sergeant.
William was a POW on board the Italian transport ship Nino Bixio when it was torpedoed by a British submarine in the Mediterranean on 17 August 1942. The Nino Bixio was transporting Allied POWs from Libya to Italy. He was one of the 122 Australian POWs to survive the incident.
William described the conditions at each of the camps in which he was interned:
PG 57, Udine Italy, 9/42-9/43: wooden huts, crowded, 2 per beds [sic], poor lighting, bad sanitation (primitive), excellent bedding, cold showers, hot showers at irregular intervals, given 1 lire per day, staff harsh, unreasonable, petty persecution
Stalag 18A, Austria, 9/43-4/44: wooden huts, crowded, 3 per beds, good lighting, excellent sanitation and bedding
Stalag 357, Poland, 4/44-9/44: wooden huts, crowded, 2 per beds, fair lighting, BAD sanitation, excellent bedding, water bad
Stalag 357, Hanover, 9/44-4/45: wooden huts, crowded, 2 per beds, fair lighting, fair sanitation, hot showers occasionally
William's youngest brother John enlisted twice, first as John Bernard in Feb 1941 (W35391), then as Bernard John in Jan 1942 (WX19135), the latter reaching the rank of Sergeant.
William died at age 90 and is memorialised at Fremantle Cemetery.