S4411
STODART, George McLean
| Service Number: | 4581 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 27 September 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery |
| Born: | Norton Summit, South Australia, 1 November 1876 |
| Home Town: | Not yet discovered |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Suicide, 17 April 1923, aged 46 years, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Berri Cemetery, S.A. Block J, Protestant Row 5, plot 12 R5 |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 27 Sep 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, 4581, 10th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 7 Feb 1916: | Involvement Private, 4581, 10th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Miltiades embarkation_ship_number: A28 public_note: '' | |
| 7 Feb 1916: | Embarked Private, 4581, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Miltiades, Adelaide | |
| 11 Nov 1918: | Involvement Private, 4581 | |
| 23 Nov 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, 4581, 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery |
Help us honour George McLean Stodart's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Paul Lemar
George McLean STODART was born at Norton Summit on 01.11.1876 to John Benham and Jessie Morrison STODART (nee McLean).
George STODART married Eleanor Iris SADLER (03.12.1880-1920) on 13.03.1906 and they had 4 children.
George joined the AIF on at the age of 38 in 1915. He gave his next of kin as his wife Eleanor. He was allocated service number 4581 and was initially attached to the 10th Infantry Battalion and late the 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery.
George was allocated to the 10th Battalion as a reinforcement as the Battalion had suffered 711 casualties at Gallipoli between the original landing and September, when George enlisted.
He departed with the 10th Battalion reinforcements from Adelaide on the 07.02.1916 on the troopship ‘Miltiades’.
The Unit disembarked in Egypt on 11.03.1916 and after service in Egypt and further training with the 3rd Training Battalion in the UK, he arrived in France on 17.12.1916 and commenced serving with the 10th Battalion on active service. He was admitted to hospital sick for a month returning to duty on 03.03.1917
On 10.05.1917, George was transferred to the 3rd Light Trench Mortar Battery. Unlike Medium and Heavy Trench Mortar Batteries which were manned by artillerymen, light trench mortar batteries were manned by the infantry.
George continued to serve with the 3rd Trench Mortar Battery in France and Belgium until he was injured in September 1918 and subsequently invalided to the UK; he did not return to France. George returned to Australia on 15.01.1919 and he was discharged from the AIF on 23.11.1919. He was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
It would appear he spent time in and out of hospital with illnesses including influenza then was injured in an accident on 01.10.1918 when he fractured his right clavicle (shoulder) from a bicycle accident and was admitted to hospital in England.
George returned to Australia on the 15/1/1919 and he was discharged from the AIF on 23/11/1919. He was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
Sadly, George STODART took his own life on or about 05.05.1923 at Monash and was buried at Berri Cemetery. His death was subject to a coroner’s hearing
George's grave had never been marked, but on 23.03.2024 the SAHP held a dedication for George and unveiled his Headstone
Click images to start slideshow.