HAGGERTY, Michael Joseph
| Service Number: | 62626 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 27 August 1918, Enlisted at Peterborough, SA |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 1st to 6th (SA) Reinforcements |
| Born: | Gawler, South Australia, Australia, 21 March 1898 |
| Home Town: | Peterborough (Formerly Petersburg), South Australia |
| Schooling: | Good Samaritan Convent Gawler |
| Occupation: | Railway Cleaner |
| Died: | Illness - Pneumonic Influenza, Woodmans Point, Fremantle, Western Australia, 13 December 1918, aged 20 years |
| Cemetery: |
Rockingham Cemetery, Western Australia Plot R, Row C, Grave 1, Rockingham Cemetery, Rockingham, Western Australia, Australia |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Adelaide South Australian Railways WW1 & WW2 Honour Boards, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Coogee "Boonah" Tragedy Memorial, Gawler Council Gawler Men Who Answered the Call WW1 Roll of Honor, Gawler War Memorial, Peterborough 'LOCO' S.A.R. Roll of Honor, Peterborough War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 27 Aug 1918: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 62626, Enlisted at Peterborough, SA | |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Oct 1918: | Involvement Private, 62626, 1st to 6th (SA) Reinforcements, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '20' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Boonah embarkation_ship_number: A36 public_note: '' | |
| 22 Oct 1918: | Embarked Private, 62626, 1st to 6th (SA) Reinforcements, HMAT Boonah, Adelaide | |
| 13 Dec 1918: | Involvement Private, 62626, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 62626 awm_unit: 6th General Service Reinforcements awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1918-12-13 |
Private Michael Joseph Haggerty
The troopship, 'Boonah' arrived back in Fremantle in 1918 bearing soldiers infected with the Spanish Flu then rampant in South Africa where the ship had docked. A number of the soldiers, quarantined at Woodman Point, and the nurses attending them died.
Michael died from that disease on 13 December 1918 and was buried at East Rockingham cemetery the following day (ER: RC1). He was only 20 years of age, from Gawler, SA.
A room in the museum at the former quarantine station, and a Boonah memorial outside the former Isolation Hospital commemorates the tragic loss of life. Michael and other men and women were also honoured at a Boonah Century Commemoration Ceremony at the former quarantine station in December 2018.
62626 Private / J. Haggerty / Australian Imperial Force / 13th December 1918.
AWM Roll of Honour, Panel 185
Lest We Forget.
Submitted 7 May 2025 by gail dodd
Submitted 31 May 2025 by gail dodd
Biography contributed by Carol Foster
Date of birth on Attestin paper was incorrect
Son of John Joseph Haggerty and Ellen (nee Kinnane) Haggerty of Galwer; brother of Beatrice Haggerty and Mary Margrett Haggerty. Nephew of Annie Connole of Farm Road, Islington, SA who was listed as next of kin
12 December 1918 - disembarked at Woodmans Point, Fremantle, WA due to Pneumonic Influenza
Medal: British War Medal
Also served for 4 years in the Cadets plus 3 years in the Citizen Forces
Private J. HAGGERTY, of Gawler, died on Friday at Woodman's Point Quarantine Station, Western Australia, of Spanish influenza, at the age of 20 years and 9 months. He was the eldest son of the late Mr. John J. Haggerty, engine-driver for many years in the South Australian railway service. Private Haggerty was a cleaner in the Railway Department. He was educated at the Good Samaritan Convent, Gawler. He had a large circle of friends.