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35 year old former Bendigo sawmiller Trooper James William Offord of the 4th LHR was awarded the Military Medal at Beersheba for “attending to wounded men under very heavy rifle and machine gun fire and carrying them to Regimental Dressing station whilst performing his duty as stretcher bearer”.

Either during or after performing these duties, Trooper Offord also managed to purloin an Ottoman flag from the battlefield, which can still be seen today on display at the Shrine (photo attached).

James William OFFORD (Jim)

Military Medal

Recommendation:-  

‘During operations against Beersheba 31/10/17 he showed the greatest gallantry whilst attending to wounded men under very heavy rifle and machine gun fore and carrying them to Regt dressing stations while his duty as a stretcher bearer.’

Date of recommendation: 02 November 1917

Jim Offord enlisted in Melbourne in the January of 1916. News of the Gallipoli evacuation was just filtering back to Australia. The full scale of the disaster would not be known although casualty lists published by the Defence Department could not hide the human scale of the flawed campaign.

Jim states on his Attestation Paper at enlistment that he was born in Bendigo, however the Offord family had for some time been living on the Murray River at Barham in New South Wales just over the Victorian border. Jim’s father was deceased when he enlisted and he listed his mother as ‘Nearest of Kin’.

Jim was a Saw Mill Manager in Barham. There were a number of Saw Mills in the district whose principle source of timber were the mighty red gums that graced the Murray River and district. He was 33 years of age and engaged to well known Bendigo pianist and accompanist Hilda Mason of Barnard Street.

The Bendigo Advertiser reported the following in September 1916: - Miss H. Mason, of Barnard-street, has received word from her fiancé, Sergeant J.W. Offord, stating that he has arrived safely in Egypt.[1]

Jim would be assigned to the 19th Reinforcements for the 4th Light Horse and embark in mid July 1916. There would be just 9 men in the 19th Reinforcements.  A month later the reinforcements would be training in Egypt. In mid October 1917, he would be ‘Taken on Strength’ into the 4th Light Horse.

Jim suffered from bouts of illness including ‘Defective vision’ as the deserts of Middle East took a considerable toll on the Light Horse. He would rejoin the 4th Light Horse in mid August 1917 and take his place in the legendary Battle of Beersheba. His role in attending to wounded and stretcher bearing may have resulted from the above ‘Defective eyesight’ condition.   

The Bendigonian newspaper reported in May 1918 the following: -  MlLITARY MEDAL PRESENTED.

In writing to Miss Hilda Mason, of Barnard-street, Sergeant Jim Offord gives an account of the day when he received his decoration—the Military Medal. He states that he was decorated on the 14th March by his Royal Highness the Duke of Connaught, and received a hearty congratulation. They had a big parade that day, and he felt very proud to think he had met and shook hands with the King's uncle.

Sergeant Offord is attached to the 4th Light Horse, and has been through the heavy fighting in Palestine, where he was awarded the M.M. At the time of writing Sergeant Offord was well and just leaving to go on to the next push.[2]

On returning to Australia we read in the The Argus in Oct 1919 On the 17th September at All Saints' Protestant Cathedral Sergeant James W. Offord, M.M., of 4th Light Horse, eldest son of Mrs. Offord, of Koondrook, to Miss Hilda Mason, daughter of the late Mr. Mason, of Barnard street. Present address, Koondrook.[3]

SERVICE RECORD:

Regimental No. 2812

Place of birth: Bendigo

Religion: Presbyterian

Occupation: Saw mill manager

Address: Barham, New South Wales

Marital status: Single

Age at enlistment: 33

Next of kin: Mother, Mrs Jane Elizabeth Offord, Barham, New South Wales

Enlistment date: 4 January 1916

Unit name: 4th Light Horse Regiment, 19th Reinforcement

Embarked: RMS Mongolia on 11 June 1916

Final Rank: Sergeant

Fate: Returned to Australia 15 June 1919

Medal Source: Commonwealth of Australia Gazette- No. 95, Dated 27th June 1918.

Beersheba 31/10/17

"At a mile distant their thousand hooves were stuttering thunder, coming at a rate that frightened a man - they were an awe inspiring sight, galloping through the red haze - knee to knee and horse to horse - the dying sun glinting on bayonet points..."                         Trooper Ion Idriess "The Desert Column" 1932

On 31 October 1917 an attack was launched to outflank the Turkish bastion of Gaza, against which two previous attacks had failed, by capturing another heavily defended town to the east - Beersheba. A deteriorating tactical situation late on the first day of the operation caused the 4th and its sister regiment, the 12th, to be unleashed on Beersheba at the gallop - an action which has gone down in history as the charge of Beersheba.[4]                                                      

There would be 26 decorations for the action at Beesheba on October 31, 1917 including fellow Bendigo (Eaglehawk) soldier James Marshall awarded Military Medal also for stretcher bearing. He died of wounds the following day.  

[1] Bendigo Advertiser (Vic. : 1855 - 1918)  Mon 25 Sep 1916  Page 8 SERGEANT J.W. OFFORD.

[2] Bendigonian (Bendigo, Vic. : 1914 - 1918)  Thu 9 May 1918  Page 23
[3] The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957)  Mon 13 Oct 1919  Page 1  Family NoticesOFFORD—MASON
[4] Australian War Memorial Website  https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/U51038/