CHESTER, Charles Edward William
| Service Number: | 2536 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 23 August 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Pioneer Battalion |
| Born: | Blackwarry, South Gippsland, Victoria, Australia , 21 August 1891 |
| Home Town: | Traralgon, Latrobe, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Merriman's Creek School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | School Teacher |
| Died: | Cerebro-spinal meningitis, United Kingdom, 31 January 1917, aged 25 years |
| Cemetery: |
Tidworth Military Cemetery, England C 269 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Gormandale East State School HR, Gormandale War Memorial, Traralgon War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 23 Aug 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, 2536 | |
|---|---|---|
| 21 Oct 1916: | Involvement Private, 2536, 3rd Pioneer Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '5' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Port Melbourne embarkation_ship_number: A16 public_note: '' | |
| 21 Oct 1916: | Embarked Private, 2536, 3rd Pioneer Battalion, HMAT Port Melbourne, Melbourne |
Help us honour Charles Edward William Chester's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Andreena Hockley
Private Charles E. W. Chester, son of Mr. W. Chester, of Traralgon, was born at Blackwarry, South Gippsland, on the 21st of August, 1891, and he attended the Merriman's Creek School, No. 2877.
He was temporary teacher at School 3586, Ryton, from May to August, 1916. He enlisted on the 23rd of that month, and embarked with the 4th Reinforcements to the 3rd Pioneer Battalion on the transport Port Melbourne on the 21st of October. He died of cerebro-spinal meningitis at Tidworth Military Hospital on the 31st of January, 1917.
The following reference to his death is from the Traralgon Journal:
"The deceased, who was 25 years of age, landed in England on the 31st December. He did not take part in any of the fighting, but it was not his fault. He had been trying to get away to the front ever since the war broke out. In fact, he was in the Australian Army for a while before he finally got away, having enlisted in Brisbane on his way home from Hambleton (Queensland), where he had been working in a sugar mill. Much to his disappointment, he was told by the military authorities, after serving three or four months in camp, that he would not be able to sail with the other lads, and was rejected on the score of unfitness. He then returned to Traralgon. But he was not discouraged, and, after volunteering four times, he at last got away. The deceased soldier was at one time on the teaching staff of the local State school, and also held a first-class engine-driver's certificate, and worked for a couple of seasons in the Maffra Beet-sugar Factory."
Source: The Education Department's Record of War Service, Victoria, 1914-1919.
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