GRIMSTON, Ernest George
| Service Number: | 1911 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 5 February 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Lance Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 19th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Goulburn, New South Wales, Australia, 25 August 1895 |
| Home Town: | Goulburn, Goulburn Mulwaree, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Goulburn , New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Locomotive Cleaner |
| Died: | Died of wounds, United Kingdom, 24 October 1918, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
Birmingham (Lodge Hill) Cemetery, Warwickshire, England |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Goulburn District Railway Employees Great War Honour Roll, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board |
World War 1 Service
| 5 Feb 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1911, 55th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Jun 1916: | Involvement Private, 1911, 55th 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, 1911, 55th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Barambah, Sydney | |
| 5 Apr 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 19th Infantry Battalion | |
| 24 Aug 1918: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 19th Infantry Battalion, Had been appointed Temporary Corporal on 4th August 1918. | |
| 31 Aug 1918: | Honoured Distinguished Conduct Medal, Mont St Quentin / Peronne, Captured enemy machine gun in the attack on Mont St Quentin. | |
| 4 Sep 1918: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lance Sergeant, 19th Infantry Battalion | |
| 3 Oct 1918: | Wounded AIF WW1, Lance Sergeant, 1911, 19th Infantry Battalion, Died of wounds in England. | |
| 24 Oct 1918: | Involvement 1911, 19th Infantry Battalion, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 1911 awm_unit: 19 Battalion awm_rank: Lance Sergeant awm_died_date: 1918-10-24 |
Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board
Ernest George John GRIMSTON was born in Sydney on 25 August 1895, but his home town was Goulburn, NSW, which is where he went to school and where he worked for the NSWGR&T. His parents were Peter and Emily Grimston. Ernest joined the NSWGR&T on 25 May 1913 as a cleaner in the Locomotive Branch. On 19 July 1915 he was released from duty to join the Expeditionary Forces.
On 31 August 1918 his actions earned him the award of the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM). The citation for his award is:
‘In the attack on Mont St Quentin on 31st August 1918, his Sergeant having located a machine gun, the two decided to attack the post. They worked amongst buildings to within 15 yards then rushed the gun. Although the Sergeant was immediately killed, Corporal Grimston reached the post, wounded the two occupants and captured the gun.’
On 3 October 1918 he was wounded in action, receiving a gunshot wound to the head.
Depositions in his Red Cross Enquiry Bureau file give details of events. Sergeant K B Stack reported:
‘We were in action at Estrees in front of Bohaim 3/10/18 - our last stunt. We were attacking a trench held up by wires. Grimston was in the act of firing at a German when he was hit by a machine gun bullet. He took off his equipment and crawled back 180 yards towards a sunken road. When we retired to the same place we found him there. I covered him up with my coat, and he was carried away by stretcher-bearers.’
Ernest was evacuated to England on 14 October 1918 where he died of his wounds, complicated by pneumonia, at Birmingham on 24 October 1918. He was buried with full military honours in Lodge Hill Cemetery, Birmingham, England.
Submitted 8 August 2023 by John Oakes
Biography contributed by John Oakes
Ernest George John GRIMSTON was born in Sydney on 25 August 1895. His home town was Goulburn, NSW, which is where he went to school. He worked for the NSW Government Railways and Tramways there. His parents were Peter and Emily Grimston. Ernest joined the NSWGR&T on 25th May 1913 as a cleaner in the Locomotive Branch. On 19th July 1915 he was released from duty to join the Expeditionary Forces.
His date of joining the AIF is on record as 5th February 1916. He joined with the rank of Private (Service Number 1911) and was posted to the 3rd Reinforcements to the 55th Infantry Battalion. He nominated his father as his next of kin but in his Will he nominated his mother as his legatee.
On 23rd June 1916 he embarked for England aboard HMAT A37 ‘Barambah’ at Sydney and disembarked at Plymouth (England) on 25th August 1916. During the voyage to England he was admitted to the ship’s hospital suffering from VD. When he arrived in England, he was sent straight to hospital there. He stayed in hospital until 17th January 1917 when he marched in to the 14th Training Battalion at Hurdcott, England.
He left the 14th Training Battalion for France on 13th March 1917 where he went firstly to the 5th Australian Division Brigade Depot at Etaples before being transferred to the 19th Infantry Battalion on 5th April 1917. He was on duty with this unit until 23rd February 1918 when he was sent from Belgium to England for some leave. He returned to duty on 11th March 1918. He was appointed Temporary Corporal on 4th August 1918 and his promotion to Corporal was confirmed on 24th August 1918. A week later, on 31st August 1918 his actions earned him the award of the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM). The citation for his award is:
‘In the attack on Mont St Quentin on 31st August 1918, his Sergeant having located a machine gun, the two decided to attack the post. They worked amongst buildings to within 15 yards then rushed the gun. Although the Sergeant was immediately killed, Corporal Grimston reached the post, wounded the two occupants and captured the gun.’
Subsequently, on 4th September 1918 he was appointed Lance Sergeant and was sent to NCO School from 8th to 27th September 1918.
On 3rd October 1918 he was wounded in action, receiving a gunshot wound to the head.
Depositions in his Red Cross Enquiry Bureau file give details of events. Sergeant K B Stack reported:
‘We were in action at Estrees in front of Bohaim 3/10/18 - our last stunt. We were attacking a trench held up by wires. Grimston was in the act of firing at a German when he was hit by a machine gun bullet. He took off his equipment and crawled back 180 yards towards a sunken road. When we retired to the same place we found him there. I covered him up with my coat, and he was carried away by stretcher-bearers.’
Ernest was evacuated to England on 14th October 1918 where he died of his wounds. This was complicated by pneumonia. He died at Birmingham on 24th October 1918. He was buried with full military honours in Lodge Hill Cemetery, Birmingham, England.
- based on notes for the Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board