Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Maurice (‘Morrie’) Lewis Aarons was born in 1880 to Letitia (née Henwood) and Lewis Aarons of Carlton, Victoria, and attended the Model School in Spring St, Melbourne. ‘Morrie’ went to Broome, WA, c. 1908 and operated three pearling luggers in partnership with Abraham Davis (see attached). By 1915 his parents had died and, after a recruiting officer came to town on 5 May, he decided to follow another Broome friend, Frank Levy, who had enlisted in February.

Morrie took a coastal steamer to Fremantle with many other local men and enlisted at Blackboy Hill training camp ten days later (see attached). Age 34, No. 2281 Private Maurice Lewis Aarons joined the 6th Reinforcement of the 16th Battalion, which embarked 25 June 1915 on HMAT A2 Wandilla and arrived in Egypt, then proceeded 30 July to Gallipoli, where his battalion - part of Colonel John Monash’s 4th Infantry Brigade of the New Zealand and Australian Division – was preparing for the attempted “Breakout from Anzac.”

The following week - less than three months after Morrie left Broome - the battles of Lone Pine and Sari Bair began. Later, a witness reported that “In the rush of 6th August trying for Hill 971, I left Aarons and went with General Monash. After I ascertained from our two other chums that ‘Morrie’ was not to be found anywhere and the Army Medical Corps and stretcher-bearers could not answer to his description, so we counted him as killed.” The 4th Brigade made slow progress during the night due the difficult terrain and by dawn on 7 August was well short of its objective. The 16th Battalion took Hill 971 at great cost, but Turkish reinforcements forced the Australians to withdraw. Another informant stated that in the confusion, he “saw Aarons on Sunday 8/8/15, but has not seen him since. This was at Pope’s Ridge and on that day, we made a demonstration against the Turks and there were several casualties.”

Despite official notification in October that “it may be assumed he is with his unit,” his friends in Broome and siblings heard “persistent rumours of [Morrie’s] death,” including from Frank Levy*, who was serving with 28th Battalion on Gallipoli. It was not until January 1916 that Morrie was officially reported “Missing on 8 August” and eventually a Court of Enquiry (April 1916) determined that he was Killed in Action on 8 August 1915.

Pte Maurice Lewis Aarons name is engraved on Panel 51 of the Lone Pine Memorial, Turkey – remembered along with 3268 Australians and 456 New Zealanders, who have no known grave at Gallipoli, and the 960 Australians and 252 New Zealanders who were buried at sea after evacuation through wounds or disease. 

Australian Jewish Historical Society (collections.ajhs.com.au)