GEMMELL, William Burns
| Service Number: | 3150 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 45th Infantry Battalion (WW1) |
| Born: | Balgownie, New South Wales, Australia, 1891 |
| Home Town: | Balgownie, Wollongong, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Miner |
| Died: | "Suicide while temporarily insane", No. 3 Rest Camp, Folkestone, Kent, England, 17 April 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
Shorncliffe Military Cemetery, Kent, England Shorncliffe Military Cemetery, Folkestone, Kent, England, United Kingdom |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Balgownie Presbyterian Church Honor Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 25 Nov 1916: | Involvement Private, 3150, 45th Infantry Battalion (WW1), --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Beltana embarkation_ship_number: A72 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 25 Nov 1916: | Embarked Private, 3150, 45th Infantry Battalion (WW1), HMAT Beltana, Sydney |
Private William Burns Gemmell
The summary below was completed by Cathy Sedgwick – Facebook “WW1 Australian War Graves in England/UK
Died on this date - 17th April........Private William Burns Gemmell was born at Balgownie, NSW in 1891. He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 29th October, 1916 as a 25 year old, single, Miner.
Private Gemmell arrived in England on 29th January, 1917 for further training before being sent to the War Front. He was admitted to Military Hospital at Devonport on 30th January, 1917 & discharged on 2nd February, 1917. He was posted to 12th Training Battalion at Codford, Wiltshire on 5th February, 1917.
Private Gemmell was admitted to Hospital at Sutton Veny, Wiltshire on 27th February, 1917 with Bronchitis & discharged on 5th March, 1917. He proceeded overseas to France & joined 45th Battalion on 7th May, 1917.
Private Gemmell was wounded in action on 11th October, 1917. He was invalided to England & admitted to Military Hospital at Lakenham, Norwich, England on 16th October, 1917 with exhaustion & Trench Feet. He was transferred to 1st Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield Park, Middlesex on 21st November, 1917. He was discharged to furlo from 4th December, 1917 to 18th December, 1917 & was then to report to No. 3 Command Depot at Hurdcott.
Private Gemmell was absent without leave from 18th December, 1917 & returned on 29th December, 1917. His case was dismissed by Headquarters at Tidworth, Wiltshire. He was admitted to Camp Isolation Hospital on 10th February, 1918 & discharged on 22nd February, 1918 then returned to No. 4 Command Depot, Hurdcott, Wiltshire.
Private Gemmell was marched in to Overseas Training Brigade on 21st March, 1918 - in readiness to be returned to the War Front. He was reported Absent without Leave from Tattoo on the 12th April, 1918 until 10 am on 15th April, 1918. He was awarded 14 days Field Punishment No. 2 & forfeited a total on 17 days’ pay.
Private William Burns Gemmell died on 17th April, 1918 at No. 3 Rest Camp, Folkestone, Kent, England.
A Coroner's Court was held on 18th April, 1918. Newspaper item regarding this ... "An inquest was held at Folkestone yesterday on the body of Private William Burns Gemmell, Australian Infantry, who was found dead with his throat cut by a razor, which was at his side, He had been wounded at the front. A postcard addressed to his mother showed that his mind was wandering. A verdict of “Suicide while temporarily insane” was returned."
Private Gemmell was buried in Shorncliffe Military Cemetery, Folkestone, Kent, England where 10 other WW1 Australian Soldiers are buried.
(The above is a summary of my research. The full research can be found by following the link below)
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/folkestone.html
Submitted 17 April 2020 by Evan Evans
Biography contributed by Cathy Sedgwick
The summary below was completed by Cathy Sedgwick (OAM) – Facebook “WW1 Australian War Graves in England/UK/Scotland/Ireland”
William Burns Gemmell was born at Balgownie, NSW in 1891 to parents Allan and Esther Gemmell. His birth was registered in the district of Wollongong, NSW.
He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force (A.I.F.) on 29th October, 1916 as a 25 year old, single, Miner from Balgownie, NSW.
Private William Burns Gemmell, Service number 3150, embarked from Sydney, NSW on HMAT Beltana (A72) on 25th November, 1916 with the 45th Infantry Battalion, 8th Reinforcements & disembarked at Devonport, England on 29th January, 1917.
He was admitted sick (slight) to Military Hospital at Devonport on 30th January, 1917 & was discharged to Perham Downs on 2nd February, 1917.
Reinforcements were only given basic training in Australia. Training was completed in training units in England. Some of these were located in the Salisbury Plain & surrounding areas in the county of Wiltshire.
On 5th February, 1917 Private Gemmell was marched in to No. 1 Command Depot at Perham Downs, Wiltshire then marched out to 12th Training Battalion at Codford, Wiltshire.
Private Gemmell was admitted to Hospital at Sutton Veny, Wiltshire on 27th February, 1917 with Bronchitis & discharged on 5th March, 1917.
He proceeded overseas to France from 12th Training Battalion at Codford, England on 3rd May, 1917 & joined the 4th A.D.B.D. (Australian Divisional Base Depot) at Etaples, France on 4th May, 1917. Private Gemmell was marched out to his Unit on 7th May, 1917 & taken on strength of 45th Battalion in France the same day.
Private William Burns Gemmell was wounded in action on 11th October, 1917. He was transferred & admitted to 14th Stationary Hospital at Boulogne, France on 13th October, 1917 with exhaustion & Trench Feet. Private Gemmell embarked for England on Hospital Ship St. Denis on 15th October, 1917.
He was admitted to Military Hospital at Lakenham, Norwich, England on 16th October, 1917 with exhaustion & Trench Feet. Private Gemmell was transferred to 1st Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield Park, Middlesex on 21st November, 1917. He was discharged to furlo from 4th December, 1917 to 18th December, 1917 & was then to report to No. 3 Command Depot at Hurdcott.
On 18th December, 1917 Private Gemmell was absent without leave & returned on 29th December, 1917. His case was dismissed by Headquarters at Tidworth, Wiltshire.
Private Gemmell was medically classified at No. 4 Command Depot, Hurdcott, Wiltshire on 8th January, 1918, 14th January, 1918, 21st January, 1918 & 28th January, 1918 & classified as B1 A3 each time (Fit for Overseas Training Camp in 2 to 3 weeks). He was medically classified as B1 A4 (Fit for Overseas Training Camp when passed Dentally fit) on 4th February, 1918.
He was admitted to Camp Isolation Hospital on 10th February, 1918 & was marched in to No. 4 Command Depot at Hurdcott, Wiltshire on 22nd February, 1918 from Camp Isolation Hospital.
On 21st March, 1918 Private Gemmell was marched in to Overseas Training Brigade at Longbridge Deverill, Wiltshire.
He was written up for an Offence while posted at Sandhill – Absent without Leave from Tattoo on the 12th April, 1918 until 10 am on 15th April, 1918. He was awarded 14 days Field Punishment No. 2 & forfeited a total on 17 days’ pay.
Private William Burns Gemmell died on 17th April, 1918 at No. 3 Rest Camp, Folkestone, Kent, England.
A Coroner’s Court was held on the 18th April, 1918 at the Town Hall, Folkestone, Kent into the death of William Burns Gemmell.
Newspaper Report – The Times – 19 April, 1918:
An inquest was held at Folkestone yesterday on the body of Private William Burns Gemmell, Australian Infantry, who was found dead with his throat cut by a razor, which was at his side, He had been wounded at the front. A postcard addressed to his mother showed that his mind was wandering. A verdict of “Suicide while temporarily insane” was returned.
He was buried in Shorncliffe Military Cemetery, Folkestone, Kent, England.
(The above is a summary of my research. The full research can be found by following the link below)
https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/shorncliffe.html
Click images to start slideshow.