Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

William was 37 and single when he enlisted on 4 November 1914. He was a farmer on the family property called Blossom Farm in Ferntree Gully, Victoria. He was the oldest of 12 children. William was born in Warwickshire, England in October 1877 and immigrated to Australia in 1898 with his family.

William was a Private in WW1 for the duration of the war and a member of the 8th Battalion, 2nd Reinforcement and later the 2nd Machine Gun Battalion. He returned to Australia on 14 December 1918 and was discharged on 30 February 1919. A total of 4 years and 3 months.

During WW1 he dug trenches in Gallipoli, dodge the enemy to take ammunition to the front-line troops as they were running out. He continued to fight in Turkey at Cape Hellas and Acha Baba, where he was injured and sent, on 4 December 1915, to the London War Hospital, Epson, England for recovery. On 9 March 1916 he was transferred to Weymouth Base Depot, Dorset. Once strong he was sent to France from Salisbury on 21 July 1916 to continue the battle as part of the Machine Gun Company. In his letter home on 14 September 1916, he was still fighting in France and indicated that following self-analysis and reflection he would vote NO to the conscription referendum, which caused some issue at the farm. From 12 August to 6 Sept 1917 William was in England on leave from the French battle ground.

William was awarded the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal and Victory Medal.

During the war many families sent their sons to fight for Australia and England and the Farr’s were no different. William’s 2 younger brothers, Basil and Cecil, enlisted in 1915 and were sent to the Western Front where they were killed in action. Cecil at the Somme, France on 28 July 1916 and Basil at Daisy Wood, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium on 9 October 1917. In a letter home in 1916 William told the brothers one must stay to run the farm!

On his return from WW1 William married Dorthey Genevieve WALL at St Nicholas Church of England, Mordialloc. They had 2 children.

Sadly, he passed away in 1931 from lung disease as a result of fighting in France. His wife spent several years contesting the Army as they would not acknowledge his death was a result of his service to our country. Eventually this occurred in 1937 and my grandmother received a pension backdated to 1936. She dedicated a stained-glass window at their church in his honour. His 2 children were supported by the Soldiers Children’s Education Scheme from 13 to 16 years old. They also received Legacy support as they grew up. When Dorothy remarried in 1948 the pension was cancelled.

Several letters William wrote home to family and friends during the war have been published. I was fortunate to sit under a tree on the Gallipoli shore and read these a few years ago, a very emotional experience.  “The Horrors of Gallipoli” in the Red and White Diamond Journal of the 24th Battalion Association No 192 Sept and no 193 Dec 1993; Despatch Journal of NSW Military History Society Vol 26 No 2 1991 “The Gallipoli Letters of Private William Farr” page 33 – 34 with introduction by Harry Taplin.

William is buried at the Cheltenham Pioneer Cemetery in a grave marked by an army tombstone.

Written by his granddaughter Anne L Faichney, October 2019

Sources: W E FARR letters, AIF UNSW project, Australian War Memorial, NAA, Australian Imperial Forces documents, Roll of Honour Ferntree Gully, Cheltenham Pioneer Cemetery, St Nicholas Church Mordialloc.