DEARDS, Henry Frederick Leon Howard
| Service Number: | 4289 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 23 September 1916, Brisbane, Qld. |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 15th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Dungog, New South Wales, Australia, 1890 |
| Home Town: | Murwillumbah, Tweed, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 18 August 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
Messines Ridge British Cemetery I D 45 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Uki Tweed River South Arm War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 23 Sep 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 4289, 31st Infantry Battalion, Brisbane, Qld. | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Nov 1916: | Involvement Private, 4289, 31st Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '16' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Kyarra embarkation_ship_number: A55 public_note: '' | |
| 17 Nov 1916: | Embarked Private, 4289, 31st Infantry Battalion, HMAT Kyarra, Brisbane | |
| 15 Jun 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 15th Infantry Battalion |
Henry Leon Frederick Deards
Although Frederick worked in an essential industry as a dairy farmer, and was married with two young children, there were probably several pressures on him to enlist. Firstly, his younger brother Arthur had enlisted the previous year and died of measles caught at the barracks before leaving Australia ie his brother had already laid down his life for his country but the family had yet to contribute to the war effort. Secondly, Frederick’s in-laws were military men.
After landing at Marseilles, the 15th Battalion moved to northern France via rail to Beilleul, moving into the line around Bois Grenier for a brief period on 15 June. Amidst the carnage of the Battle of the Somme which was launcheda in July, the following month, the 15th Battalion was committed to fighting on the Western Front for the first time, entering the line around Pozières on 5 August, as the 4th Division relieved the shattered 2nd. On the night of 9 August, a second attack was put in, in concert with the 16th Battalion, which succeeded in securing part of the German line, despite heavy shelling. At noon the following day, the 15th was relieved as the 4th Brigade was withdrawn from the line and replaced by the 13th. Casualties during the battalion's first battle on the Western Front were high: 90 killed and 370 wounded. Henry died shortly after on 18th August. He is interred in Messines Ridge British Cemetery. Posthumously awarded the British War medal and the Victory medal.
Effect on his family: The Deards family lost their two eldest sons after they enlisted to fight for their country in WWI. Having died in Brisbane, Arthur’s body was repatriated to Murwillumbah where he was buried along with two other local sons in the old cemetry in Murwillumbah. The bodies were later removed to make way for a park and the headstones replaced by a picnic shelter bearing the names of the returned heroes. The Deards dedicated an altar in their local church to their lost sons. In addition, Leon left behind a widowed wife and two young children who grew up without their father. After it was clear her husband would not be returning, Amy seems to have sold the farm and moved to Sydney. She lived with their children at various addresses after the war, in Parramatta and at Katoomba, calling each one ‘Uki’, the location of their former farm near Murwillumbah.
Submitted 25 April 2020 by Merridee Wouters
Biography contributed by Merridee Wouters
Husband of Mrs. Amy Muriel Deards, Uki, Tweed River, New South Wales
Although Henry (who mostly went by the name Howard) worked in an essential industry as a dairy farmer, and was married with two young children, there were probably several pressures on him to enlist. Firstly, his younger brother Arthur had enlisted the previous year and died of measles caught at the barracks before leaving Australia ie his brother had already laid down his life for his country but the family had yet to contribute to the war effort. Secondly, Howard’s in-laws were military men.
After landing at Marseilles, the 15th Battalion moved to northern France via rail to Beilleul, moving into the line around Bois Grenier for a brief period on 15 June. Amidst the carnage of the Battle of the Somme which was launched in July, the following month, the 15th Battalion was committed to fighting on the Western Front for the first time, entering the line around Pozières on 5 August, as the 4th Division relieved the shattered 2nd. On the night of 9 August, a second attack was launched in concert with the 16th Battalion, which succeeded in securing part of the German line despite heavy shelling. At noon the following day, the 15th Battalion was relieved as the 4th Brigade was withdrawn from the line and replaced by the 13th Battalion. Casualties during the Battalion's first battle on the Western Front were high: 90 killed and 370 wounded. Howard died shortly after on 18th August. He is interred in Messines Ridge British Cemetery. His wife as next-of-kin received his service medals - the British War medal and the Victory medal and also the Memorial Plaque an Scroll.
Effect on his family: The Deards family lost their two eldest sons after they enlisted to fight for their country in WWI. Having died in Brisbane, Arthur’s body was repatriated to Murwillumbah where he was buried along with two other local sons in the old cemetry in Murwillumbah. The bodies were later removed to make way for a park and the headstones replaced by a picnic shelter bearing the names of the returned heroes. The Deards dedicated an altar in their local church to their lost sons. In addition, Howard left behind a widowed wife and two young children who grew up without their father. At some time after his death, Amy seems to have sold the farm and moved to Sydney. She lived with their children at various addresses after the war, in Parramatta and at Katoomba, calling each one ‘Uki’, the location of their former farm near Murwillumbah.
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