SANDRY, Clarence James
| Service Number: | 1983 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 14 March 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 34th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Millthorpe, New South Wales, Australia, 23 December 1891 |
| Home Town: | Millthorpe, Blayney, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | 1967, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Blayney and Milthorpe District Roll of Honor, Millthorpe Public School Honor Roll, Wellington Hall of Memory Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 14 Mar 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1983, 54th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Jun 1916: | Involvement Private, 1983, 54th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Barambah embarkation_ship_number: A37 public_note: '' | |
| 23 Jun 1916: | Embarked Private, 1983, 54th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Barambah, Sydney | |
| 23 Sep 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 34th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour Clarence James Sandry's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
The Sandry brothers, Thomas Stephen, Clarence James and Arthur Henry, all from Millthorpe NSW, joined up in the 54th Battalion AIF and were issued consecutive regimental numbers 1982, 1983, 1984. They all subsequently were transferred to the 34th Battalion in England during September 1916. Their parents were Richard and Sarah Sandry, longtime residents of Millthorpe NSW, who had before the war already lost 2 sons in 1910, one only 11 years old and then a 16-year-old son in a shooting accident. Their eldest daughter died of illness in 1914. They would lose another two sons during WW1.
Clarence lost his two brothers, 1982 Pte Thomas Stephen Sandry, 34th Battalion had been killed in action, 19 March 1917 and 1984 Pte. Arthur Henry Sandry 34th Battalion was killed in action some 4 months later on 16 July 1917.
Clarence had a letter published in the Orange newspaper, ‘...Just a few lines to let you know I am still going strong, and hope this short note finds you all well at home. I have left the battalion, and I am now at the base, and have been here since poor Artie was killed. They pulled me out of the line, and I have not been in since. I was very crook when he got killed. We were on a raid, and had killed a few and were just getting back to our own line. We were nearly home and poor Artie wont up (we were crawling), and he was hit in the back of the head and killed instantly. He never spoke a word. By jove he was a game lad. It nearly broke my heart, and I have never been in the firing line since. Both my brothers have now been killed by my side. I have been buried alive twice, and I can tell you it is not a pleasant sensation. Fritz keeps us pretty warm; his 15-inch shells take a lot of sidestepping.'
Clarence was returned to Australia 11 January 1918, medically unfit, officially from a right inguinal hernia.
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