S10425
ROACH, Arthur Emmett
| Service Numbers: | 1808, 1808a |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 2 September 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 48th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Kilkenny, South Australia, 8 December 1895 |
| Home Town: | Maylands (SA), Norwood Payneham St Peters, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Upholsterer |
| Died: | Unknown, Robe, South Australia, 5 January 1945, aged 49 years |
| Cemetery: |
Robe Cemetery, South Australia Historical section, plot 88 |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 2 Sep 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1808, 2nd/32nd Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Jan 1916: | Embarked Private, 1808, 32nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Borda, Adelaide | |
| 11 Jan 1916: | Involvement Private, 1808, 32nd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '17' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Borda embarkation_ship_number: A30 public_note: '' | |
| 9 Feb 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 48th Infantry Battalion, Taken On Strength from 2nd/32nd infantry battalion | |
| 6 Aug 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 1808, 48th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , Gunshot wound to the left eye | |
| 9 Aug 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1808, 48th Infantry Battalion, H.S. "Jan Breydel", Boulogne | |
| 9 Aug 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 48th Infantry Battalion, Transferred to England due to injury | |
| 15 Apr 1918: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1808, 17th Field Ambulance , HMAT Marathon A74, England | |
| 27 Jun 1918: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 1808, 17th Field Ambulance , Discharged due to medical unfitness (not due to misconduct) | |
| 11 Nov 1918: | Involvement Private, 1808a, 48th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Adelaide Botanic High School
Arthur Emmett Roach, born in Adelaide on the 8th of December 1895, was the son of Ms Annie Harriet Roach and Mr E.A Roach of 22 Augustus Street, Maylands. When he enlisted at the Adelaide AIF exhibition camp on September 2nd, 1915, he was a nineteen, 20-year-old, upholsterer. He was assigned to the second reinforcement of the 32nd battalion. His service number was 1808. At the time of enlistment, Arthur was an unmarried member of the Church of England. As was the default, he was assigned the rank of private upon enlistment.
At the time of enlistment, he had a short stature, standing at 5 feet and 3 and 3/4 inches. He weighed 115 pounds and had a chest width of thirty-four inches. He had blue eyes, dark hair and complexion and perfect vision. Before enlisting, he served for 2 years in the cadets’ 19th battalion, and 2 years in the citizens forces.
He embarked four months after enlistment, on the 11th of January 1916 on the HMAT Borda. He disembarked in Suez on the 9th of February. He was then taken on strength by the 48th Battalion in the military camp Tel-El-Kebir on the 9th of March 1916. After training for around 3 months, his unit travelled to Alexandria and joined the British Expeditionary Force on the 2nd of June. The 48th battalion then travelled to Marseilles, France by the HMT Caledonia, and disembarked on the 9th of June. The 48th Battalion's first major battle on the Western Front was the Battle of Pozieres. Pozieres, a village in France, was a vital German defensive position and had access to the German trench lines. The 48th Battalion played the role of defending previously captured ground, and was under fire on two occasions, the fifth to the seventh, and the 12th to the 15th of August.
On the 6th of August, Arthur was wounded by shrapnel in the left eye. He was admitted to the 13th stationary hospital on the seventh and transferred to England by the H.S. "Jan Breydel" from Boulogne on the ninth. He was admitted to the 3rd London General Hospital on the 10th for a severe shrapnel wound to his left eye. This injury was ranked Class C, meaning he was thereupon unfit for military service. In the hospital, his eye was enucleated, or the eyeball was surgically removed from the socket. He was reported from furlough (discharged from military work) with a class c injury on the 16th. Arthur marched out to the second communications department of Weymouth on the 19th of September 1916 was taken on strength by Parkhouse camp on the 3rd of October and was then transferred to the 12th Training Battalion in Codford on the fourth. He was awarded 28 days of Field Punishment 2 for disobeying his Company Quartermaster on the 1st of December. He was admitted to the 2nd Auxiliary Hospital in Southhall on the 12th of March 1917, for eye loss. He was thus discharged from duty on the 8th of May.
Arthur was transferred to the 17th Field Ambulance Group on the 26th of June, and on the same day was taken on strength by the 12th Training Battalion. On the 25th of October, the 17th Field Ambulance Group was disbanded, and Arthur marched out to the A.A.M.C. training depot. He was attached to a group hospital at Sutton Veny on the 4th of November. Arthur was awarded four days of field punishment two for missing a parade on the 13th. He marched out to the A.A.M.C. training depot on the 20th. Arthur marched out to the 1st Australian Auxiliary Hospital for duty on the 25th of December. He then marched out to the second communications department in Weymouth on the 28th of February 1918.
Finally, he returned to Australia by the HMAT A74 Marathon on the 15th of April 1918. He was discharged on the 27th of June due to the gunshot wound to the left eye. Private Roach served for 2 years, and 299 days, 2 years and 135 days spent overseas. He managed to avoid the scourge of the Spanish Flu in Europe and was able to survive among the 15,000 who died in Australia.
After the war, it is unknown what he did for the remainder of his life. It is noteworthy, that in his medical examination, it was stated that he was unfit for general service but fit for home service. At this same examination, he was classified as dental class B and was shown to have been missing several teeth. Arthur Emmett Roach died on the 5th of January 1945, in Robe, South Australia. He was 49 years old. He was buried in the Robe Cemetery, historical section, plot eighty-eight.
Arthur Emmett Roach was awarded:
British War Medal, 4/10, 9953rd issued.
Victory Medal, 4/10, 9889th issued.
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