SMITH, Harold Edward Benjamin
| Service Numbers: | 326, Officer |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 8 March 1915, Liverpool, NSW |
| Last Rank: | Second Lieutenant |
| Last Unit: | 19th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Annandale, New South Wales, Australia, 1 January 1892 |
| Home Town: | Annandale, Leichhardt, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Clerk |
| Died: | Killed In Action, France, 8 October 1917, aged 25 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Annandale St Aiden's Church SMITH Memorial Plaque, Petersham Fort Street High School Great War Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 8 Mar 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 326, 19th Infantry Battalion, Liverpool, NSW | |
|---|---|---|
| 25 Jun 1915: | Involvement Lance Corporal, 326, 19th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '13' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Ceramic embarkation_ship_number: A40 public_note: '' | |
| 25 Jun 1915: | Embarked Lance Corporal, 326, 19th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ceramic, Melbourne | |
| 8 Oct 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Second Lieutenant, Officer, 19th Infantry Battalion |
Harold Edward Benjamin Smith.
Harold was the older of the two brothers, born in 1891. He attended Annandale and Petersham Public Schools. He was a clerk before enlisting on 8 Mar 1915. He landed at Gallipoli in Aug 1915 and with the exception of a break of about three months (most of which time he was in hospital in Malta), was there till Evacuation. He went on to fight in France with the 19th Batt., wounded in 1916, after the Pozieres battle. On May 29, 197, he gained his commission after attending Officers’ Training School at Oxford. Harold was killed at Passchendaele, Oct 8, 1917. Red Cross records give the location as Zohnebeke or Broedseinde Ridge. His death was witnessed but there is no known grave site.
26 mar (1916 – Gallipoli) – standing bye ready to go ashore. March through Marseilles. People treat the boys with flowers and give us a good reception. Women tram conductors – no young men about. Most of people dressed in blacks. Marched to Railway station and left Marseilles at 9:30 pm. Fairly comfortable.
Harold’s Diary
“He was C.Co X Pltn in command. I saw him hit by a bullet in the groin as we were attacking outside Daisy Wood, Ypres sector, on the afternoon – daylight – of the 8th Octr 1917. I was in a shell hole and he was on the brink. He fell into the hole and was conscious. Capt. Taylor of D.Coy was also in the hole and spoke to Mr Smith. We advanced and dug in and held the ground. I saw Mr Smith carried back by German P/W and heard that he died of wounds on the way out.”
Witness account, Red Cross Records
Submitted 24 April 2022 by Lynette Turner
Biography contributed by Faithe Jones
Son of Frederick Edward William and Mary Ann Smith, of 135, Annandale St., Annandale, New South Wales
Mr. and Mrs. F. E. W. Smith, of Annandale, have been notified that their son, 2nd-Lieutenant H. E. B. Smith, has been killed in France. He saw three months' fighting on Gallipoli before being invalided to Malta with dysentery. Later he proceeded to France. His brother, 2nd-Lieutenant R. A. W. Smith, who left Australia at the same time, is still in the firing line, while another brother, Private C. W. Smith, is in camp.
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