FINNEY, Roy William
| Service Number: | 3046 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 22 June 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 49th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Lefroy, Tasmania, Australia, 1 March 1896 |
| Home Town: | Gympie, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Central Boys School, Gympie, Queensland, Australia |
| Occupation: | Farm labourer |
| Died: | Killed in action, Mouquet Farm, France, 5 September 1916, aged 20 years |
| Cemetery: |
Serre Road Cemetery No.2 Beaumont Hamel, France Plot XVI, Row C, Grave No. 3. IN MEMORY OF THE LOVED SON OF MRS. A.E. FINNEY OF TEWANTIN, AUSTRALIA |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Tewantin War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 22 Jun 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3046, 9th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Oct 1915: | Involvement Private, 3046, 9th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '9' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Warilda embarkation_ship_number: A69 public_note: '' | |
| 5 Oct 1915: | Embarked Private, 3046, 9th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Warilda, Brisbane | |
| 5 Sep 1916: | Involvement Private, 3046, 49th Infantry Battalion, Battle for Pozières , --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 3046 awm_unit: 49th Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1916-09-05 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
The son of Arthur Edgar and Amy Frances Finney, of Tewantin, Queensland. His dad had passed away in 1914.
Roy William Finney was reported missing at Mouquet Farm on 5 September 1916, aged 20. In his Red Cross Wounded and Missing file he was reported by several to have been buried in a dugout along with five other Australians, by the explosion of a nine inch shell. Although others spent hours digging, they only saved two men.
During April 1917, the following notice appeared in the Brisbane Courier, "A MOTHER'S APPEAL. Mrs. A. E. Finney, of Tewantin, is anxious to hear from any returned soldier who knew her son, Private Roy W.
Finney, No. 3046, C Coy., 19th Battalion, who has been missing from the French front since September 5 of last year."
The mother, Amy Frances Finney, was officially advised that her son Roy was now 'killed in action' during May 1917.
Roy's remains were discovered in 1928, almost 12 years later, and they were identified by the prescence of a pocket book which had his name inscribed. The pocket book was subsequently destroyed by the Imperial War Graves Commission, a great shame, but perhaps because the feeling at the time was that such mementoes were unnecessary reminders to the family of their grief and loss.
Roy's remains were interred in the Serre Road Cemetery No 2, and his mother was notified, but no reply was recorded.