PEARMAN, Alan
| Service Number: | 5091 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 5 June 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 41st Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Epsom, Surrey, England, United Kingdom, 14 September 1900 |
| Home Town: | Glen Innes, Glen Innes Severn, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farm Hand |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 29 September 1918, aged 18 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Brisbane 41st Battalion Roll of Honour, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 5 Jun 1916: | Enlisted Australian Army (Post WW2) | |
|---|---|---|
| 14 Jun 1917: | Involvement Private, 5091, 31st Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '16' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Hororata embarkation_ship_number: A20 public_note: '' | |
| 14 Jun 1917: | Embarked Private, 5091, 31st Infantry Battalion, HMAT Hororata, Sydney | |
| 29 Sep 1918: | Involvement Private, 5091, 41st Infantry Battalion, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 5091 awm_unit: 41st Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1918-09-29 |
Alan Pearman
This story arises from my family history research. Rather than being obsessed with pushing the tree back and back, I spend my time following the brothers and sisters as branches off the tree, seeing where this takes me and trying to find Great War soldiers and sailors.
Alan Pearman was born on 14 September 1900 in Epsom, Surrey, England. I at first paid little attention as he was clearly born too late to take part in the Great War. So, imagine my surprise when Ancestry hints suggested he was killed in the war.
He had 3 brothers and 1 sister and his father was an accountant. On 31 October 1916, aged just 16 he set sail from London on the SS Tainui, bound for Hobart, Tasmania. The ship's ledger stated he was a "Dreadnought Lad". Not knowing what a Dreadnought Lad was, I googled it.
After the Great War started the New South Wales Government decided to buy a Dreadnought for the war effort. Having collected shed loads of money, the Federal Government announced they were buying the ship. Having returned lots of money there was still a large residue so the NSW Government decided to set up a fund to attract good quality lads from the UK, to go to agricultural college for 12 months and then work in the farming industry. Hence Alan leaving the UK in 1916.
The scheme however, did not run totally smoothly. Most of the lads had 3 month's training and then were shipped out around Australia working 12 hour days for a few months until the next boatload arrived from the UK. Many then ended up destitute in Australian cities.
I believe Alan probably completed his training and whether he was homesick, or could not get a job, I don't know. However on 14 June 1917, still only 16 and 9 days after he enlisted, he set sail from Sydney on HMAT Hororata, as Private 5091 A Pearman, 31st Battalion, AIF. Obviously no one in Australia knew how old he actually was so he got away with it. They believed he was 18, and a farm-hand from Spring Hill, Queensland, as the records state.
On 29 September 1918, just 18 years old, he was killed in action with 41st Battalion, AIF. His body was never found and his name is to be found on the Villers Bretonneux Memorial.
There are still Australian records that I can't yet access, however it is still a fascinating, and sad, story.
Submitted 26 September 2016 by Robert Williams
Biography contributed by Robert Williams
This story arises from my family history research. Rather than being obsessed with pushing the tree back and back, I spend my time following the brothers and sisters as branches off the tree, seeing where this takes me and trying to find Great War soldiers and sailors.
Alan Pearman was born on 14 September 1900 in Epsom, Surrey. I at first paid little attention as he was clearly born too late to take part in the Great War. So, imagine my surprise when Ancestry hints suggested he was killed in the war.
He had 3 brothers and 1 sister and his father was an accountant. On 31 October 1916, aged just 16 he set sail from London on the SS Tainui, bound for Hobart, Tasmania. The ship's ledger stated he was a "Dreadnought Lad". Not knowing what a Dreadnought Lad was, I googled it.
After the Great War started the New South Wales Government decided to buy a Dreadnought for the war effort. Having collected shed loads of money, the Federal Government announced they were buying the ship. Having returned lots of money there was still a large residue so the NSW Government decided to set up a fund to attract good quality lads from the UK, to go to agricultural college for 12 months and then work in the farming industry. Hence Alan leaving the UK in 1916.
The scheme however, did not run totally smoothly. Most of the lads had 3 month's training and then were shipped out around Australia working 12 hour days for a few months until the next boatload arrived from the UK. Many then ended up destitute in Australian cities.
I believe Alan probably completed his training and whether he was homesick, or could not get a job, I don't know. However on 14 June 1917, still only 16 and 9 days after he enlisted, he set sail from Sydney on HMAT Hororata, as Private 5091 A Pearman, 31st Battalion, AIF. Obviously no one in Australia knew how old he actually was so he got away with it. They believed he was 18, and a farm-hand from Spring Hill, Queensland, as the records state.
On 29 September 1918, just 18 years old, he was killed in action with 41st Battalion, AIF. His body was never found and his name is to be found on the Villers Bretonneux Memorial.
There are still Australian records that I can't yet access, however it is still a fascinating, and sad, story.