OBORN, Hartley Morrish
| Service Number: | 6088 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 13 June 1916, Adelaide, South Australia |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 10th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Mount Barker, South Australia, Australia, 8 December 1897 |
| Home Town: | Wolseley, Tatiara, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Wolseley Primary School, Wolseley, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 3 October 1917, aged 19 years |
| Cemetery: |
Divisional Collecting Post Cemetery and Extension Cemetery/memorial reference: I. L. 6., |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Bordertown Wolseley Roll of Honor, Wolseley War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 13 Jun 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 6088, Adelaide, South Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| 12 Aug 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 6088, 10th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Ballarat embarkation_ship_number: A70 public_note: '' | |
| 12 Aug 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 6088, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ballarat, Adelaide | |
| 3 Oct 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 6088, 10th Infantry Battalion, Polygon Wood | |
| Date unknown: | Involvement 6088, 10th Infantry Battalion |
My mother & father
Emily was born out of wedlock on 23rd March 1873. Four days later her father married Catherine Chenoweth at the office of S. J. Way, Esq., Adelaide. The Rev. James Way officiated. The groomsman was William Charles Dyer and the bridesmaid Medota Chenoweth. Shortly after the wedding Emily was apparently left on the doorstep of the newly married couple. Emily was registered under the name of Emily Long. Catherine readily accepted Emily as her own.
Details of the marriage appeared in the South Australian Register, Adelaide, SA, Friday 28 March 1873 page 4.
Catherine's parent were William Camelford Chenoweth and Elizabeth Ann Lukey.
My father James travelled overland from Mt. Barker with his brother Samuel in 1883 and settled at Pine Hill, near Bordertown. Upon arriving in the Tatiara district Samuel & James settled at Pine Hill and first made camp near Mr. A.C. Prescott's property about four miles or so from Wolseley. After 12 months the brothers moved to Pooginagoric about seven miles from Bordertown. A builder by trade, James took part in building the original Wolseley Institute, the first Congregational Church at Pooginagoric in 1883, numerous homes in the district and the border fence, in addition to sinking a number of wells. He also built the General store for his brother in law Stan Fryar in Railway Terrace at Wolseley about 1910.
At the time of her marriage Emily was employed at the pastoral station property of Mr. Edward Miles at Dinyarrack about six miles from Serviceton in Vic.
On the day of their marriage Emily and James rode horseback from Dinyarrack to Kaniva (some 115 miles or so), were married at the Church of Christ on Sept. 21st. 1896, after which they rode horseback again back to the station homestead.
James was an active member of the Tatiara Show society and for many years since its inception, of the Wolseley Bureau, and a member of the Mount Barker Independent Order of Rechabites since the age of 18.
He was an overseer of Works and Vermin Inspector to the Tatiara District Council from 1904 to 1911, and used a bicycle as a means of travel to inspections, and on some occasions when roads were impassable rode alongside the railway track to Keith and other places.
A devoted churchman, he was one of the first trustees of the Pooginagoric Church.
On May 25th. 1911 James was allocated Section Block No. 801 in the Hundred of Tatiara being an area of 570 acres valued at £1,511, under lease agreement number 1256 located between Teatrick and Custon, and adjoining land allocated at the same time to his brother in law Alan (Mac.) Easther.
Submitted 29 November 2017 by Glen Fryar
Red Cross Enquiries
During the Great War the Australian Red Cross made enquiries on behalf of families of serving personnel reported wounded or missing. The following records relating to Hartley are held by the Australian War Memorial.
Informants' gave these accounts of Hartley's death:
'He was in D Coy, and I saw him killed at Anzac Ridge, when death was instantaneous. He and another man were in a dug-out at the time, when a shell landed on top and both men were badly knocked about. The other man's name was C. Tidswell and his number started with a 2. Casualty happened in the afternoon about 4 o'clock on 3-10-17. Both these men came from Adelaide and both were M. Gnrs. Tidswell worked in a Post Office. I saw their graves at place of casualty on the field, and they were marked with a Cross having full details marked thereon.
Informant: McDonald Pte. W. 2739 3rd A.A.H. Dartford'.
'He was in D. Coy., came from South Australia, and was single. He was killed by a shell at night-time while in his dug-out at Anzac Ridge in the Ypres Salient, with another man. Up to the time we were relieved, the bodies were not dugout.
Informant: Sergt. Grewer, 2659, 10th Australians D Coy., Austr. Demob. Base. 10.3.17'
'Oborn and Tidswell were together in a small hole in the support lines the other side of Westhoek Ridge not so far as Broodseinde Ridge - it was support for Broodseinde Stunt - and were killed outright at 5.00pm on the 2nd. Oct. being buried by a shell. We dug them up and found they were dead and reburied them there. The grave was not marked then, we came away that night. I passed the grave on the 4th., there was no cross up then, but may have been erected since. They were in the same platoon as myself. I had been speaking to them a few minutes before they were killed and was standing alongside when they were dug out and reburied.
Informant: G.F. Reeves, 6012, 10th Battalion D Coy. XIII Hut 11 Westham - London 6-3-18
Submitted 28 November 2017 by Glen Fryar
Biography contributed by Saint Ignatius' College
Hartley Morrish Oborn was born on the 8th of December, 1898, born in Mt Barker. He was the son of Emily Dyer and James Oborn. His younger siblings were Victor Morrish Oborn, Walter Morrish Oborn and James Morrish Oborn and he was grandson of Betsey Morrish, Bridget Long, Richard Dyer and Samuel Oborn.
Soon after Hartley’s birth, his family moved from Mt Barker to Wolsey, where he grew up and lived for the rest of his life before war. When he was old enough, he attended Wolsey primary school, Wolsey. Once he graduated school, for a year he worked as a labourer and at the age of 18 and five months, he signed up to go to war on the 13th of June 1916, as a private.
After enlisting to go to the war in June, he completed his training and sailed in August. He was part of the 10th infantry battalion and fought in the Battle of Polygon Wood. The Battle of Polygon Wood started on the 26 September and ended on the 3 October 1917. It occurred during the second phase of the Third Battle of Ypres in the First World War. The battle was fought near Ypres in Belgium, in the area from the Menin road to Polygon Wood and thence north, to the area beyond St Julien.
On the 3rdof October 1917, Hartley Morrish Oborn was killed in action, aged 19 years old. He died somewhere in Belgium, and his name since then can be found on many War Memorial sites and is specifically found on the Australian War Memorial, Roll of Honour, National War Memorial (South Australia) for his time served in the 10th infantry battalion, in World War One. Red Cross reports agree that he and another soldier named Tidswell were buried and killed by a German shell burst in the late afternoon.
After he had lost his life at 19 years old, he had two newspaper mentions, both being about his death. The first one reads, “Private Hartley Morrish Oborn, who was killed in action, somewhere in France, on October 3, was the eldest son of Mr. and Mrs. James Oborn, of Wolseley, and grand-son of Mr. Samuel Oborn, of Mount Barker. He enlisted in July, 1916, sailed in August, and entered the firing line in December. The deceased was 19 years of age, and was well-liked by all who knew him. He had made many friends in Mount Barker, who had learned to highly esteem him during his visits to his relatives.” This was found in The Courier and River Murray Advocate newspaper under the Friday, November 28, 1917 issue. And the second says, his date of death and where he died along with the following quote:“His King and Country called him – The call was not in vain. On Britain’s roll of honour, you’ll find our heroes name.”
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