Walter John PRICE

Badge Number: 2749, Sub Branch: Victoria
2749

PRICE, Walter John

Service Number: 3167
Enlisted: Not yet discovered
Last Rank: Sergeant
Last Unit: 10th Infantry Battalion
Born: Not yet discovered
Home Town: Not yet discovered
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: Not yet discovered
Memorials: Adelaide University of Adelaide WW1 Honour Roll, Hackney St Peter's College Honour Board, Norwood St Bartholomew's Anglican Church Honour Roll
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World War 1 Service

21 Sep 1915: Involvement Private, 3167, 10th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Star of England embarkation_ship_number: A15 public_note: ''
21 Sep 1915: Embarked Private, 3167, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Star of England, Adelaide
11 Nov 1918: Involvement Sergeant, 3167, 10th Infantry Battalion

Biography


Early Life

Walter John Price was born in 1893, the eldest son of the Rev. Frederick Joseph Price and Ada Mary Lunt. Walter’s father was an Anglican minister in Victoria at the time of Walter’s birth. The family moved to Perth when Walter was young. His father then obtained a transfer to Adelaide in June 1910, so ‘his family will be able to receive that University education which he so much desires they shall get and at the same time, be under the paternal roof.’

Schooling

Walter attended Perth High School but sat for the Adelaide University Public Examinations. He passed Junior Examinations in 1906 and 1908 and Senior Examinations in 1909. While at Perth High School, Walter was a member of the Cadet Corp.

Following the move to Adelaide, Walter then attended St Peter’s College (SPSC), Adelaide from July 1910. When at SPSC, Walter passed his Higher Public Examinations. He also played cricket for SPSC in the SACA B Grade competition.

University

Walter commenced studying for a Bachelor of Arts degree at Adelaide University in 1911. While a student, he was the honorary treasurer of the Adelaide University Arts Association and he was on the 1914 committee that organised the annual procession and concert. In December 1914, Walter gained his Bachelor of Arts in Classics.

University Sport

Athletics
Walter competed in the Adelaide University Sports in 1911 and 1912. He came first or second in the Mile Walking Race in 1912 (newspaper reports differ on his position in the race).

Football
Walter played A Grade football for Adelaide University in 1914.

Cricket
Walter played cricket for Adelaide University from the 1911/12 to 1914/15 seasons, playing seven A Grade games. He played in the B Grade in 1911/12 and then a mix of A and B Grades in the seasons that followed. Probably his finest A Grade innings for the Club was in the 1912/13 season in a loss to Glenelg when he opened and carried his bat for 47 not out. Playing in the Glenelg team was Jack Crawford, the former English Test cricketer who had come to South Australia to play for the State. An outstanding pace bowler, he took eight wickets, but was not able to get Walter out. Crawford also had been appointed a sports master at SPSC so would have known Walter.

A natural leader, Walter captained the B Grade in his final season with the Club, however in January 1915 when four of the A Grade team were unavailable because of Sheffield Shield commitments (A. G. Moyes, D. M. Steele, C. E. Pellew and H. B. Willsmore), he was called on to captain the A Grade team against East Torrens. Walter’s statistics for the 1912/13 B Grade and 1914/15 A Grade season are below. (see document)

World War I

Walter was working as a tutor at St Peter’s College when he enlisted on the 8th of June 1915. He was 22½ years old and his father was listed as his next-of-kin. Walter had been a Senior Cadet for two years and a member of the Salisbury Rifle Club for a year. Walter was 6’2”, 157 lbs, with a fair complexion, grey eyes and fair hair. Walter had enlisted as a Private (SN 3167) in the 10th Infantry, but by the 16th of July 1916, he was an acting Sergeant.

He embarked on the 21st of September 1915 onboard the HMAT A48 Seang Bee and joined his battalion on the 25th of November 1915. Walter was appointed a Lance Corporal on 6th of December 1915 and promoted to Corporal on 1st of March 1916. He joined the British Expeditionary Forces at Alexandria, Egypt on the 27th of March 1916 and then travelled to Marseilles, France on the 3rd of April 1916. Walter was wounded (gunshot wound to left knee) in France on the 25th of July 1916 and invalided to England on the 29th of July 1916 and admitted to the 3rd Western Hospital at Newport.

He was repatriated to Australia onboard the hospital ship HMAT A61 Kanowna on the 9th of September 1916. He was placed on the Supplementary List of NCO’s on the 25th of October 1916 for three months, sick and wounded. Back in Australia, Walter returned to duty on the 21st of December 1916 within the 4th Military District (SA and Broken Hill) and was discharged on the 17th of October 1917.
Walter was present when the house and grounds at Austral House were handed over to the RSL for five years and he was on the committee which organised the Returned Soldiers’ Sports in 1918. Walter was also an official at the St Peter’s College Sports in 1918.

Career & Family Life

Before May 1918, Walter had returned to the teaching staff at St Peter’s College as a resident master. He was appointed a provisional Lieutenant in the Commonwealth Military Cadet Corps.

In May 1919 Walter accepted a position at Trinity Grammar School, Victoria.

Walter married Winifred Violet Woods in 1919.

In November 1922, Walter attended the Associated Grammar Schools Sports.

Walter was with the Trinity Grammar School boys when they travelled to the South East of South Australia in 1924 and to Tasmania in 1926.

Walter and Winifred lived at 366 Carlisle St, St Kilda (1924), 10 Dickens St, St Kilda (1925) and 2 Mozart St, St Kilda (1927) before moving to 230 Cotham Road, Kew by 1931.

Walter travelled with the Trinity Grammar School boys again in 1936 when they visited Roseworthy Agricultural College, and Port Lincoln, Moonta and Port Augusta in South Australia.

Walter was still at Trinity Grammar School in 1941 and in addition to other duties he had been Sports Master and cricket coach at the school. Notably, Walter coached Len Darling the future Australian Test Cricketer.

In 1937 Walter was elected to represent the Central Ward of the City of Kew, as a councillor and in 1940 and 1941 Walter was elected the Mayor of the City of Kew.

In June 1941 Walter was pictured with Mr Robert Menzies, Prime Minister of Australia on the Prime Minister’s return from a world tour.

Walter was an active member of the RSL and President of the Kew Sub Branch. Walter and Winifred attended the RSL Ball at Hawthorn in 1941 and the RSL Ball at Kew in 1946.

Walter was also a member of the council of the Swinburne Technical College and a member of the council of the Rockingham Red Cross Convalescent Home. He was a member of the Kew Bowling Club and the Trinity College Old Grammarians’ Masonic Lodge and a past President of the Victorian Branch of the St Peter’s College Old Boys Association.

Death

Walter John Price passed away at his residence “Omro”, 230 Cotham Road, Kew on the 23rd of February 1947, aged only 54. He left a widow, Winifred. Walter was buried at the Boroondara Cemetery.

Winifred moved to 123 Pera Street, North Balwyn by April 1950. She died in 1965 aged 72 at Plenty (20kms north of the Melbourne CBD).

Author EE (Beth) Filmer

For the complete profile including photographs, newspaper articles, documents and sources prepared for the AUFC/AUCC WWI Memorial Project (in the period 2015-2019) please see the document attached.










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