BARTLEY, Frank Howard
| Service Number: | 4500 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 17 October 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 32nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Minlaton, South Australia, 14 October 1881 |
| Home Town: | Minlaton, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Way College, Wayville, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Railway Construction Worker |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 29 September 1918, aged 36 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" No Known Grave |
| Memorials: | Adelaide National War Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Cummins War Memorial, Glenelg and District WW1 & WW2 Honour Board, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (Australian National Memorial - France) |
World War 1 Service
| 17 Oct 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1 | |
|---|---|---|
| 16 Dec 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, SN 4500, 32nd Infantry Battalion | |
| 16 Dec 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, SN 4500, 32nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Berrima, Adelaide | |
| Date unknown: | Involvement 32nd Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix) |
Life of Frank
Frank was the oldest son of George and Elizabeth Bartley. He was born on the 14th October 1881 in Minlaton SA, where his parents were farmers. They sold the farm and moved to Adelaide. Frank worked much of the time in the railways, helping to construct the Sleeps Hill Tunnel at Mitcham just before he enlisted on the 17th October 1916. He left Adelaide aboard the Berrima on the 16th December as a member of the 12th Reinforcement of the 32nd Battalion. Due to the amputation of a finger he did not join the battalion in the field until the 26th October 1917. He remained with his unit until he was killed in action on the 29th September 1918, when he was hit by a shell between Bellicourt and Nauroy in France. He was buried there but his grave was not identified after the war and he is remembered on the wall of the Australain National Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux. We believe he was engaged to a woman named Lucy Wells before he enlisted.
Submitted 6 February 2016 by Faithe Jones
Biography contributed by Sharyn Roberts
Brother: 1237 Pte Maurice BARTLEY, 10th Bn, returned to Australia, 7 June 1919.
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