GRAY, Thomas Edward
| Service Number: | Depot |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 23 May 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | Army Medical Corps (AIF) |
| Born: | Fielding, New Zealand, 1897 |
| Home Town: | Bruny Island, Tasmania |
| Schooling: | The Friends School, Hobart, Tasmania |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Cerebro Spinal Meningitis, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, 19 June 1916 |
| Cemetery: |
Cornelian Bay Cemetery and Crematorium, Tasmania |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 23 May 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, Army Medical Corps (AIF) | |
|---|---|---|
| Date unknown: | Involvement Private, Depot, Army Medical Corps (AIF) |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Private Thomas Edward Gray, born in Fielding, New Zealand, was a 19-year-old farmer from Bruny Island when he enlisted with the Army Medical Corps at the age of 19 on 23 May 1916, the same day as his brother, Frederick Oliver Gray. Private Gray listed his religion as “Society of Friends”, or Quakers, who are pacifists, so Thomas and his brothers enlisted as stretcher bearers.
Meningitis was prevalent in the Claremont Camp. Private Thomas Gray volunteered to nurse a case. Private Gray then contracted cerebral spinal meningitis and died prior to embarkation at the Hobart General Hospital on 19 June 1916. Private Gray’s father was at the hospital when his son died.
An older brother, 2552 Pte. Oberlin Herbert Gray 3rd Field Ambulance, Australian Army Medical Corps, died of wounds 24 August 1918, aged 28. Another brother, Frederick Oliver Gray, who also served as a stretcher bearer, was awarded a French Medaille Militaire for his courage in rescuing wounded men under heavy fire.