Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Samuel Fellows “Sam” Meharry was born in Kerang on January 8, 1884, the eighth child of William Meharry and Sarah Fellows. Like most of his siblings, he lived with his mother in Kerang when his father, uncle and eldest brother left for Western Australia in 1896, when he was 12. He only got to know his father at 18, after he and his family moved to the land that had been prepared in Marracoonda. There, he did an apprenticeship as a fitter for nine months before starting work as a farmer in Woodanilling. On May 2, 1917, Samuel enlisted for the Great War, the last of his brothers to do so. He begaun training under the Australian Light Horse, and on November 9, he was sent to Egypt and was taken on strength in Abbassia. On February 24, 1918, he was sent to attend the Camel Base Depot as a member of the Imperial Camel Corps 4th Battalion. Camels were used in conflicts around Sinai, as the were far more suited to the desert climate than horses.
Right after completing his training for the ICC, the allied forces pushed the Middle Eastern front into Palestine, which faced a change in environment which the camels proved to be unsuited for. Hence, the Imperial Camel Corps was disbanded in July 1918 to form the 14th and 15th Light Horse Regiments of the 5th Light Horse Brigade, with Samuel being assigned to the latter. Although many former cameleers and light horse troopers were assigned to these new regiments, large numbers of inexperienced troops were also recruited from infantry battalions, so additional training was required before the 15th was fit for operations.
Samuel and the 5th Light Horse Brigade would fight in only one major operation on September 19, 1918 at the Battle of Megiddo on the Sharon Plain. On thismorning, British infantry opened a gap in the Turkish front north of Jaffa, allowing the mounted forces to penetrate deep into rear enemy territory, severing supply routes, communication lines and railways. The Turkish front soon collapsed, and the retreating Turks were driven into Syria by the mounted troops supported by aircraft. In 10 days from September 19, Samuel and the 5th brigade travelled over 650 kilometers, capturing Damascus on October 1, with its loss being a massive blow to the Turkish morale. Samuel and the 15th continued to perform garrison and mop-up tasks until they were called upon to join the drive on Aleppo. He and the 5th Brigade were moving to join the forward line when the Turkish forces surrendered on October 30.
While waiting to embark for home, the 15th Light Horse were called back to operational duty to quell the Egyptian revolt that erupted in March 1919; order was restored in little over a month. The men of the 15th Light Horse sailed for home without their horses, which had either been shot or transferred to Indian cavalry units, on 24 July 1919.
Back at home, Samuel played cricket at his local club, and would meet Susan Emily Carter, who had come to Katanning from Bruce, South Australia. The two would be married in February of 1923, and have three children; Thelma Jane, Francis Eric, and Murray. Samuel died on January 21, 1962, succeeded by his wife. Susan would pass away on March 10, 1972.