WHETTEM, Ritchie Mathewson
| Service Number: | 3518 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 18 July 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 1st Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Dulwich Hill, New South Wales, Australia, 1889 |
| Home Town: | Dulwich Hill, Marrickville, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Osborne House School, Romsey, England |
| Occupation: | Engineer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 7 April 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 18 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3518, 1st Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Oct 1915: | Involvement Private, 3518, 1st Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Themistocles embarkation_ship_number: A32 public_note: '' | |
| 5 Oct 1915: | Embarked Private, 3518, 1st Infantry Battalion, HMAT Themistocles, Sydney |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Ritchie Whettem was the son of Stephen Henry and Margaret Peters Whettem. His father Stephen had died in England in 1910. His mother Margaret Peters Whettem, had divorced Stephen and she then and married his younger brother James Read Whettem. A son from this second marriage, Alan Read Whettem, 16th Battalion AIF, was also killed in action at Heburtene in France during 1918, aged just 19.
According to his Red Cross file Ritchie Whettem hit by shell fragments near Doignes, France and although taken to a dressing station he died shortly after. He seemed to have lived in NSW for all of life, and he gave his aunt in Sydney as next of kin. She received his personal effects but his mother Margaret in Western Australia received all of medals and awards.