Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Son of Joseph PATTISON and Mary Kate PATTISON nee HUNTof East St., Rockhampton, Queensland.

HE DIED BEFORE HE FULFILLED HIS OWN HOPES OR OURS

Died as a result of leg amputation after receiving GSW to leg & thigh at Gallipoli

Walter Bryon James Pattison attended The Rockhampton Grammar School from 1898 and answered the call to serve his country during World War 1.  Like so many of his generation, he left behind the familiar halls of RGS and the comforts of home to face the uncertainty and hardship of war. 

Born on 1 May 1888 to Mary and Joseph Pattison, Walter grew up in Rockhampton with his sister and two brothers. His father was a solicitor, and Walter had begun his own career as a law clerk, likely intending to follow in his father’s footsteps.

Walter’s sense of duty was evident early. He served 3½ years with “E” Company Senior Cadets and nearly three years as a commissioned officer with the Port Curtis Infantry Regiment, holding the rank of Second Lieutenant. On 25 August 1914, he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force as a Second Lieutenant with the 9th Battalion. Just weeks later, he sailed from Australia aboard the A5 Omrah, bound for Egypt.

Lieutenant Pattison received his commission on 25 April 1915; the day Australian and New Zealand troops first landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula.  Lt Pattison was seriously wounded in action at Gallipoli 3 days later, on 28 April 1915 suffering a severe bullet wound to his hip and leg. He was evacuated to Cairo where he endured an amputation but tragically passed away on 10 May 1915. He was laid to rest in the New Cemetery, Cairo.

Lieutenant Pattison was the first Rockhampton-born man to lose his life in the Great War. His parents and siblings were heartbroken, and those who served under him spoke of him with the highest respect—as both a man and an officer.  His name stands among those on the Honour Roll in the Memorial Assembly Hall who exemplify loyalty, bravery and selflessness

LIEUTENANT W. B. J. PATTISON.
Second-Lieutenant Walter Byron James Pattison is 27 years of age, and commands a platoon in "A" Company of the 9th (Queensland) Battalion, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel  H.  W. Lee, V.D. He received his first commission as a second lieutenant in the 3rd (Port Curtis) Infantry Regiment, being made adjutant of the corps in 1914.

THE LATE LIEUTENANT
PATTISON.
HOW HE WAS WOUNDED. Mr. J. Pattison, solicitor, received the following letter on Friday telling him how his second son, the late Lieutenant W. B. J. Pattison, was wounded in the 
fighting in the Dardanelles :—
Heliopolis Military Hospital,
May 2, 1915.
Cairo,
Dear Mr. Pattison,
I regret very much to have to inform you that your son Byron has been badly wounded in our recent engage- ment at Kaba-Tepe, in Gallopoli. The engagement took place on  Sunday last. We landed at 4.30 a.m., and Byron moved his platoon right to the front. He was shot in the leg about three in the afternoon, and, owing to the hilly nature of the  country, and the excessive casualties, he was not brought down until the evening. He was then placed on one of the hospital ships and carried to this hospital. On arrival here he  was cheery, but apparently in a bad way, as blood poisoning had set in, and it was found necessary last night to remove his left foot. Dr. McLean, of Brisbane, performed the operation after consultation with four other surgeons here. Byron is quite cheery this morning and will write you next mail, and I am cabling you today advising you that the boy  has been wounded.

Six other officers of the Ninth Battalion are here suffering from wounds more or less serious, and our whole sympathy goes out to your boy, who was a universal favourite. He  could not get better attention anywhere than he does here, and every little want will be supplied. It was the boy's birthday yesterday—a grim sort of birthday ; but we sent the  lady visitors in to him with little presents, and tried to make his day brighter. It is quite possible that if the present amputation does not stop the disease a further operation will be necessary, but Dr. McLean is hopeful that the boy will now get on satisfactorily.

I was beside your boy early in the day, and he was doing splendidly. He held his men well in hand and was at that time nearer the Turks than any other officer, and he dropped  ahead of his men and right in the thick of the fight. I trust Mrs. Pattison will not worry.
Assure her that everything that can be done is being done and that she has " mothered a man."
Yours very sincerely,
J. Campbell Robertson, Major.
Senior Major 9th Battalion, A.I.F.

Mr. Pattison also received the following letter on Friday :—
Heliopolis Hospital Egypt,
May 6, 1915.
Dear Mr. Pattison,
Your son has had an exceptionally bad time since I wrote you and is at present not out of danger. He is quite conscious and cheery and tells me he is not suffering much from pain. It was found necessary on Monday last to have a further amputation, and the leg has been removed just above the knee. This was done four days ago, so there is a likelihood of  his recovery. Everything that can possibly be done is being done, and the Australian nurses that are with us here are a mass of sympathy.

I trust that next week the boy will be able to write you and give you fuller particulars. He belongs to my regiment, and was brought down from the point together with myself.
Yours sincerely,
J. C. Robertson, Major.