CLARKE, William Bernard
| Service Number: | 3791 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 7 October 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 21st Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 1892 |
| Home Town: | Burnley, Yarra, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Milk carter |
| Died: | Killed in action, Mouquet Farm, France, 24 August 1916 |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 7 Oct 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3791, 21st Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Feb 1916: | Involvement Private, 3791, 21st Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '13' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Warilda embarkation_ship_number: A69 public_note: '' | |
| 8 Feb 1916: | Embarked Private, 3791, 21st Infantry Battalion, HMAT Warilda, Melbourne |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Private William Bernard Clarke, was the second eldest son of Mrs. Alice Clarke, 13 Cutter Street, Burnley, Victoria and was killed in action at Mouquet Farm, France on 24 August 1916. He was 23 years of age and enlisted in July 1915. He was employed as a carter by Mr. Larcher, dairyman, Fitzroy.
It was reported Clarke was rejected three times, but he volunteered again and was accepted. He left Australia with six mates from Burnley on 8 February 1916. The Burnley Football Club passed a motion of condolence to his parents on “the death of our beloved, friend and fellow member.”
William was reported to be buried in the Mouquet Farm Quarry but his grave was lost after the war.
William’s brother, 5068 Pte. Thomas Osmund Clarke 46th Battalion AIF, died of wounds in France on 13 February 1917, aged 22.
Another younger brother, 488 Pte. Phillip Robert Clarke 29th Battalion AIF, returned to Australia 28 August 1919.
The boy’s mother, Alice Clarke was a widow during the duration of the war.
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