ELLINGHAM, George Frederick
| Service Number: | 190 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 13th Light Horse Regiment |
| Born: | Harrietville, Victoria, Australia, 5 June 1890 |
| Home Town: | Harrietville, Alpine, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Harrietville State School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Miner |
| Died: | Heidelburg, Victoria, Australia, 20 October 1973, aged 83 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Springvale Botanical Cemetery, Melbourne Cremated, remains scattered |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 28 May 1915: | Involvement Private, 190, 13th Light Horse Regiment, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Persic embarkation_ship_number: A34 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 28 May 1915: | Embarked Private, 190, 13th Light Horse Regiment, HMAT Persic, Melbourne |
George Frederick Ellingham
George Frederick Ellingham was the third son of Frances Annie Wraith and Charles Ellingham. George was living with his parents and working as a miner at Harrietville in 1914 when war broke out. He quickly signed up for the 13th Light Horse on the 26th of January 1915 at age 24.
The 13th Light Horse embarked from Melbourne on the 28th of May 1915 aboard the troopship A34 Persic, disembarking at Egypt on the 29th of June 1915. Thirteen days later George was involved in a serious tram accident and was admitted to the Australian Base Hospital at Abbassia, Egypt. A telegram was despatched to his mother, and he was reported as dangerously ill with a serious head injury. Immediately on receipt of the telegram his mother Fran sends a desperate telegram of her own to the Defence Department Melbourne, the handwritten telegram simply says, “Any further particulars of George Ellingham, any hope”. The stress and anxiety that haunted mothers, wives, and sisters every day during those terrible years of war cannot be overstated.
On July 16th George was out of danger and on his way to Birmingham Hospital in England. His mates however would soon see themselves in action in the trenches of Lone Pine on the Gallipoli Peninsula. George remained in Birmingham Hospital until late September 1915 when he was transferred to the 1st ANZAC Corps, Light Horse Regiment. Stationed at Weymouth on the Dorset Coast he waited for orders to go to France and like all young soldiers he partied hard earning himself 144 hours detention and the loss of twelve days pay for being AWL for six days.
Finally, he would get his chance to fight and on August 31st, 1916, he is at the ANZAC camp at Etaples, France. Elements of his original unit had arrived there in July, and one wonders how many of his friends had survived Gallipoli. The trench war on the Western Front did not suit mounted infantry so many Light Horse operations were support roles. George did however mange to get himself wounded probably from artillery fire and in December he received a serious shrapnel wound to his left leg and he was evacuated to Edmonton Hospital in England. The damage to his leg was severe enough to keep him in hospital for seven months and at the end of July 1917 he was returned to Australia, arriving in September of 1917.
George was discharged from service in November 1917 and in September 1923 he married Kate Agnes Weirsmith at Brunswick . The couple lived at 37 Evelyn Street, St Kilda and George worked as a tram conductor for many years. George’s experience in the first war did nothing to stop him from re-joining the military on the outbreak of WW2 and he would again serve his country between 1940 and 1943, only discharging when he received serious burns in an accident.
Submitted 23 October 2022 by John Morrissey
Biography contributed by John Morrissey
George Frederick Ellingham was the third child of Charles Ellingham and Frances Annie Wraith. He was born at Harrietville on 5 June 1890. George was brought into the world by Harrietville’s legendary midwife, Mrs Anne Bibby. Born into a large family of six boys and four girls, George attended Harrietville School with his siblings. Harrietville was a town of gold miners, and George was working as a miner when the war broke out.
George quickly signed up for the 13th Light Horse on 26 January 1915; he was twenty-four years old. He is described as being 5 feet, 8 inches tall, and weighing a little over 10 stone. He had black hair and brown eyes. The 13th Light Horse embarked from Melbourne on 28 May 1915, aboard the troopship HMAT Persic (A34), disembarking in Egypt on 29 June 1915. Thirteen days later, George was involved in a serious tram accident and was admitted to the Australian Base Hospital in Abbassia, Egypt. A telegram was dispatched to his mother, and he was reported as dangerously ill with a serious head injury. Immediately upon receipt of the telegram, his mother Frances sends a desperate reply to the Defence Department in Melbourne; the handwritten telegram simply says, “Any further particulars of George Ellingham, any hope.” One cannot overstate the stress and anxiety that haunted mothers, wives, and sisters every day during those terrible years of war.
On 16 July, George was out of danger and on his way to Birmingham Hospital in England. His mates, however, were soon in action among the trenches of Lone Pine on the Gallipoli Peninsula. George remained in Birmingham Hospital until late September 1915, when he was transferred to the I Anzac Corps, Light Horse Regiment. Stationed at Weymouth on the Dorset Coast, he waited for orders to proceed to France. Like most young soldiers away from home, he partied hard, earning himself 144 hours of detention and losing twelve days’ pay for being AWL for six days. Finally, he gets his chance to fight, and on 31 August 1916, he arrives at the Anzac camp in Etaples, France. Elements of his original unit had arrived there in July, and one wonders how many of his mates had survived Gallipoli.
The trench war on the Western Front did not suit mounted infantry, so many Light Horse operations were support roles. However, working away from the front line was no guarantee of safety. Constant artillery barrages had destroyed the landscape of France and Belgium; millions of shells were fired, sometimes in single battles. On the opening day of the Battle of Verdun in 1916, the German Army expended one million rounds. Artillery caused more than half of all casualties during the war. Shrapnel from explosive shells, fragmentation rounds, and concussions from high explosives were brutal on soldiers, causing both physical and psychological disability. The big guns could reach behind the front lines and cause chaos among transportation, logistics, and medical personnel. It was no surprise when, in December 1916, George received a serious shrapnel wound to his left leg and was evacuated to Edmonton Hospital in England. He remained in the hospital for seven months due to the severe damage to his leg, and he returned to Australia at the end of July 1917. In October 1917, accompanied by fellow soldier and Harrietville native John Jobson, the pair received a civic reception in Bright and attended a ball given in their honour at the Harrietville Hall, where the dancing went well into the early hours.
In September 1923, George married Kate Agnes Weirsmith at Brunswick. The couple lived at 37 Evelyn Street, St Kilda, where George worked as a tram conductor for many years. George’s experience in the First World War did nothing to stop him from rejoining the military at the outbreak of the Second World War. Between 1940 and 1943, he once again served his country, lying about his age to gain acceptance. He enlisted in the Home Service in June 1940, but an emphysema attack led to his discharge in November of the same year. After recovering, he re-enlisted in May 1941, was accepted, and served until October 1943, when he was seriously burned in an accident at Coburg and discharged from service. George returned to working on Melbourne’s trams, where he remained until retiring in the mid-1950s.
Reference:
District News, Harrietville, Alpine Observer and North-Eastern Herald, 12 October 1917, p 2.
Victoria, BDM, MC: 8104-1923.
National Archives of Australia: B884, V14683, Ellingham George Frederick, Item 6264211.