PURDON, Sydney Victor
| Service Number: | 3902 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 16 August 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 55th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | O'Connell, New South Wales, Australia, 19 July 1886 |
| Home Town: | Bathurst, Bathurst Regional, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farm hand |
| Died: | 1948, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, O`Connell ANZAC Memorial Avenue |
World War 1 Service
| 16 Aug 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3902, 19th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Jan 1916: | Involvement Private, 3902, 19th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '13' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Runic embarkation_ship_number: A54 public_note: '' | |
| 20 Jan 1916: | Embarked Private, 3902, 19th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Runic, Sydney | |
| 3 Apr 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 55th Infantry Battalion | |
| 20 Jul 1916: | Imprisoned Fromelles (Fleurbaix) |
Help us honour Sydney Victor Purdon's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Sydney Purdon was a 29-year-old farm hand, enlisting at the same time as his brother Reginald. They both embarked together and transferred to the 55th Battalion together in Egypt. Sydney was born on 19 July 1886 so he was more or less captured at Fromelles on his 30th birthday, as was Reginald who was wounded. Sydney was also repatriated on the same date as his younger brother, arriving in England 2 December 1918, so he probably joined Reginald on a few nights out in London before retuning to Australia in May 1919. Sydney passed away in 1948 at 61 years of age.
Their sister, Staff Nurse Edith Purdon enlisted in the Australian Army Nursing Service at 34 years of age and embarked for overseas from Sydney in June 1917, serving in Suez, Salonika and England. She arrived back in Australia during August 1919.
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