O'BOYLE, Richard Henry
| Service Number: | TX2968 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 17 July 1940 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 2nd/24th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Strahan, Tasmania, Australia, 23 April 1919 |
| Home Town: | Strahan, West Coast, Tasmania |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer, waiter |
| Died: | Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, 7 April 1982, aged 62 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Cornelian Bay Cemetery and Crematorium, Tasmania Derwent Gardens, Garden Bed CC/2855 |
| Memorials: | Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 17 Jul 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, TX2968, 2nd/24th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 28 Jun 1941: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, 2nd/24th Infantry Battalion, formerly with 2nd/40th Battalion | |
| 30 Sep 1942: | Imprisoned Middle East / Mediterranean Theatre, previously reported missing on 22 Jul 1942; interned at various POW camps including Stalag; deplaned in UK May 1945; arrived in Sydney ex Otranto 29 Sep 1945 | |
| 21 Dec 1945: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, TX2968, 2nd/24th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour Richard Henry O'boyle's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Cherilyn McMeekin
Richard was the fourth of five children. He had three older sisters and a younger brother.
His enlistment papers state that he was missing most of the index finger on his left hand. He was charged with several offenses while in the army, mainly being absent without leave.
Richard was captured and was 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.
Richard did not marry and died in Hobart aged 63.
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