ROMER, Thomas
| Service Number: | 1699 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 25 August 1914, 6 months Territorial London Scottish |
| Last Rank: | Bombardier |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Field Artillery Brigade |
| Born: | Paddington, London, England, November 1888 |
| Home Town: | Bowen Hills, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Carter |
| Died: | General Hospital, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 18 November 1946, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Lutwyche Cemetery, Brisbane, Qld Anzac Portion 7 |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 25 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Driver, 1699, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , 6 months Territorial London Scottish | |
|---|---|---|
| 25 Sep 1914: | Involvement Driver, 1699, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Rangatira embarkation_ship_number: A22 public_note: '' | |
| 25 Sep 1914: | Embarked Driver, 1699, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , HMAT Rangatira, Brisbane | |
| 18 Mar 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Bombardier, 1699, 3rd Field Artillery Brigade , 1st MD |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
From Australian Remembrance Army
Australian World War One veteran Bombardier Thomas “Tommy” Henry Romer (Service No. 1699), is among almost 800 previously unmarked WWI veterans’ graves in Lutwyche Cemetery we have now marked with plaques in recognition of their service for Australia.
We unveiled his plaque in Lutwyche Cemetery on 15 April 2023, along with a further 246 plaques on the previously unmarked graves of Australian World War One veterans:
See Australian Remembrance Army Facebook page
Thomas Henry Romer was born in 1888 in London, England. He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at Brisbane, Queensland, on 25 August 1914. At enlistment, he was recorded as 25 years of age and employed as a carter. He embarked for overseas service from Brisbane aboard HMAT Rangatira in late September 1914.
His service record places him at Zeitoun and Alexandria before he proceeded to join the British Expeditionary Force. He disembarked at Marseilles on 29 March 1916. On 17 October 1917, he was appointed Acting Bombardier.
Romer married Dorothy Checketts on 17 January 1917 at the Register Office, Hammersmith, London. His next of kin was altered from his mother, Mrs C. Romer, to his wife, Mrs Dorothy Romer, whose address was recorded as 92 Loftus Road, Shepherd’s Bush, London.
On 9 August 1918, Romer was recorded as wounded in action in France, sustaining a gunshot wound to the right arm. He was admitted to the 22nd General Hospital at Camiers and later evacuated to England, where his record includes admission to Fort Pitt Military Hospital, Chatham. Subsequent entries record movement through hospitals and command depots.
Romer returned to Australia aboard H.T. Somerset in late 1918, disembarked in mid-January 1919, and was discharged from the A.I.F. on 18 March 1919. There is no evidence that his wife, Dorothy, returned to Australia with him.
After the war, Romer resumed civilian life in Queensland. By 1925, he was recorded at Charleville, working as a fettler, and during the 1930s he was living in Brisbane and working as a labourer.
A newspaper report recorded that Romer received a fractured skull after being struck by a motor vehicle in Barry Parade, Brisbane. He was taken to the General Hospital, where he died soon after admission.
Bombardier Thomas “Tommy” Henry Romer died on 18 November 1946, aged 58, and was buried in Anzac Portion 7, Lutwyche Cemetery, Brisbane.
He was recorded as single with no known children.
After almost eight decades without recognition at his place of burial, his grave now bears a plaque commemorating his service to Australia — ensuring his name endures among those remembered for their duty and sacrifice.
His identity and dignity have now been restored.
We have remembered him.
Lest We Forget
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