ALEXANDER, James
| Service Number: | 2643 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 18 December 1916, Enlisted Corryong Victoria Allocated to 3rd Camel Regiment at Seymour Camp 23rd January 1917 |
| Last Rank: | Driver |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Field Artillery Brigade |
| Born: | Sale, Victoria, Australia, date not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Lankeys Creek, Greater Hume Shire, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Sale State School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Grazier |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 18 Dec 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2643, 3 Battalion Imperial Camel Corps, Enlisted Corryong Victoria Allocated to 3rd Camel Regiment at Seymour Camp 23rd January 1917 | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Apr 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, Miscellaneous Hospitals - WW1, Transferred to Langwarrin Camp Victoria till 21 December 1917 | |
| 2 Feb 1918: | Involvement Private, 2643, 13th Light Horse Regiment, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Wiltshire embarkation_ship_number: A18 public_note: '' | |
| 2 Feb 1918: | Embarked Private, 2643, 13th Light Horse Regiment, HMAT Wiltshire, Sydney | |
| 20 Apr 1918: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, Artillery Details , Transferred to Artillery Details Heytsbury UK from Light Horse Reinforcement’s Australia | |
| 1 Oct 1918: | Promoted AIF WW1, Driver, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , Remustered Driver allocated to 3rd Artillery Brigade | |
| 5 Oct 1918: | Transferred AIF WW1, Gunner, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , Taken on Strength of Unit in the field France from Artillery Details UK Transferred from Australian Corps Reinforcement’s Camp France 30 September 1918 | |
| 24 Dec 1918: | Transferred AIF WW1, Driver, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , RTA on HT Takada medically unfit Ulcerated Eyes for discharge. | |
| 25 Mar 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Driver, 2643, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , Discharged 2MD Sydney Medically Unfit Ulcerated Eyes |
James Alexander
When James was born in January of 1883 in Sale, Victoria, his father, David Duncan (1847 to 1883), was 36 and his mother, Ellen, nee Royle (1855 to 1928), was 28. James would be one of five children; Ann Grant (1873 to 1956), Ellen “Nell” Eileen (1875 to 1970), David Duncan (1877 to 1975), John Robert (1880 to 1936) and, lastly, James. He married Barbara Isabel Gifford (1885 to 1968) in 1915 in Holbrook, New South Wales. They had one child during their marriage.
James enlisted for the AIF (Australian Imperial Forces) on the 18 December, 1916, and was given the regimental number 2643. He was taken on strength as a part of the 23rd Reinforcements for the 13th Light Horse Regiment. At the time of enlistment, James was nearly 31 years old. He was 5 foot 3 ½ inches tall (160 cm) and weighed 133 lbs (60kg). James’ chest measured 34 inches (86 cm), his complexion was fresh, eyes blue, hair brown and religion Church of England. He had three vaccination marks on his right arm and some moles on his back.
At the time of enlistment, James was living in Holbrook at Lankeys Creek with his wife, Barbara. Lankeys Creek is a community in the east part of the Riverina. It is about 18 kilometres north-west from Jingellic and 36 kilometres south-east from Holbrook. James was a grazier on his property.
On the 8 January, 1917, James was sent to the Recruit Depot at Seymour in Victoria. While there he was transferred to the 3rd Australian Camel Regiment. On the 20th of April, James was once again transferred, but this time to the Langwarrin Camp as he was suffering from a venereal disease. The troopers and soldiers at Langwarrin were certainly not allowed to rest and recuperate. A record of the training that he underwent while at Langwarrin states that he completed 232 hours of squad drill (without arms), 170 hours of squad drill (with arms), 876 hours of guard duty and 65 hours of platoon duty. James returned to the Training Depot based at Seymour on the 21 December, 1917.
His unit embarked from Sydney, New South Wales, on board HMAT A18 Wiltshire on the 2 February, 1918. James was 31 at the time. He finally disembarked at Southampton in England on the 20 April,1918, and was immediately taken on strength with the 3rd Brigade Field Artillery and remustered as a gunner.
On the 4 May, 1918, James was admitted to the Military Hospital at Sutton Veny, in Wiltshire England, suffering from an ulcer on the cornea of his eye. He was discharged nearly two and half months later on the 16 July. In early August he was awarded four days confined to barracks and forfeited one day’s pay for being AWOL (absent without leave) from Heytesbury from noon to 10 p.m. on the 1 August.
On 23 September, 1918, James went to France. Initially, he was sent to the Australian General Base Depot at Rouelles before marching out to the Australian Corp Reinforcements Camp. James was taken on strength with the 3rd Australian Field Artillery Brigade in the field, where on the 1st of October he was remustered as a driver.
Seven days before the Armistice with Germany, on the 4 November, 1918, James was again admitted to the 3rd Australian General Hospital for an ulcerated eye. He was transferred to England one month later and, on Christmas Day, he embarked on the HS Takada for return to Australia as an invalid. He disembarked at Melbourne on the 11 February, 1919.
As James enlisted in Victoria, instead of his home state of New South Wales, his wife, Barbara, was not provided with travel tickets to meet him off the boat. Barbara’s letter, asking for an explanation as to why she was not provided with the tickets, is in James’ file. The return letter from the Officer in Charge of Base Records is complete with the officialdom that was popular with official responses. She was advised to “notify the Shire Secretary of the Shire in which you reside of your address, in order that, should any public welcome be extended to returned members of the Australian Imperial Force, the Secretary will be aware of your husband’s regimental particulars and whereabouts.”
James was discharged from the AIF on the 25 March, 1919, receiving the British War Medal and Victory Medal for his service. The photograph at left shows James after he returned from service overseas. He died on the 25 May,1963, in Sydney, New South Wales, at the age of 80.
Extract from "Light Horsemen of the Upper Murray", Year 5 and 6 Project, Corryong College.
Submitted 20 April 2019 by Stephen Learmonth