FUNDER, Edward Charles
| Service Number: | 18158 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | Army Medical Corps (AIF) |
| Born: | Not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Not yet discovered |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 8 Aug 1917: | Involvement Private, 18158, Army Medical Corps (AIF), --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '23' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Anchises embarkation_ship_number: A68 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Aug 1917: | Embarked Private, 18158, Army Medical Corps (AIF), HMAT Anchises, Sydney |
A member of the 1st Australian Field Ambulance
Edward Charles Funder was born in Camberwell, Victoria, on 10 July 1896, the son of Johannes Anton Funder (1860-1944) and Theresa Matilda Ellis (1864-1942). Before he enlisted in Melbourne on 2 October 1916, he was a clerk. He was also a serving member of the Citizens Forces. He enlisted with the Australian Army Medical Corps (AAMC) on 2 October 1916.
From 13 October until 27 November 1916, he was stationed at the AAMC at Royal Park and transferred to No. 5 Australian General Hospital on St. Kilda Road, Melbourne. On 30 July 1917, he was transferred to the Clearing Hospital in Seymour, Victoria. On 8 August 1917, he embarked from Sydney on board HMAT A68 Anchises with the May 1917 AAMC Reinforcements. The reinforcements disembarked at Liverpool on 2 October 1917. He was sent to Parkhouse; however, a month later, he was sent to France on 2 November 1917 and was taken on strength (TOS) with the 1st Australian Field Ambulance on 20 November 1917. He was one of 31 other ranks to join the unit as a reinforcement that month. The 1st Field Ambulance had suffered three killed and six wounded in action during the month.
At the time of Edward Funder’s arrival, the 1st Field Ambulance was stationed at Course, having started the month in the Ypres area.
On 5 February 1918, he was admitted to the 53rd General Hospital in Boulogne, suffering from trench fever. This illness kept him from the 1st Field Ambulance until 4 May 1918.
On 9 September 1918, the unit war diary records that orders were received for the 1st Australian Infantry Brigade to relieve the 10th Australian Infantry Brigade in the line on the night of 10th/ 11th September. Stretcher-bearers from A Section and 3 Squads from B Section 1st Australian Field Ambulance were attached to the Medical Officers in each of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Infantry Battalions.
Edward Funder was wounded in action on 11 September 1918, suffering the effects of a gas attack. The war diary records that three wounded stretcher-bearers passed through the Main Dressing Station at Buire that day. It is possible that Edward Funder was one of these wounded. He was sent to the 1st Australian Convalescent Depot at Le Havre and was still there when the armistice was signed on 11 November 1918. With the war now over, he was taken on strength with the Australian Convalescent Depot on 14 December 1918. He had gone in as a patient and had now become a member of the depot. A week later, he went on leave in the United Kingdom. He returned to France on 16 January 1919. When the Convalescent Depot was closed on 15 February 1919, he was taken on strength with the Australian Base Depot, where he remained until returning to Australia via Southampton on 15 June 1919 aboard HMAT Takada. He was discharged from the AIF in Melbourne on 7 September 1919.
Post-war he lived in Hawthorn. He married Winifred Sarah O’Halloran (1902-1974) in 1931, and they had one child, James Daniel Funder (1942 – 1994).
He died in Melbourne on 26 June 1973, aged 76.
He received the British War Medal and Victory Medal for his First World War service.
Submitted 8 January 2025 by Tim Barnett