HEY, Ernest Victor
| Service Number: | 7016 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 September 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 6th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Scottsdale, Tasmania, Australia, 2 July 1888 |
| Home Town: | Devonport, Devonport, Tasmania |
| Schooling: | Devonport State School, Tasmania, Australia |
| Occupation: | Cycling engineer |
| Died: | Killed in action, Belgium, 4 October 1917, aged 29 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Devonport Baptist Church Honour Roll, Devonport Cenotaph, Menin Gate Memorial (Commonwealth Memorial to the Missing of the Ypres Salient) |
World War 1 Service
| 19 Sep 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 7016, 6th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Nov 1916: | Involvement Private, 7016, 6th Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '8' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Hororata embarkation_ship_number: A20 public_note: '' | |
| 23 Nov 1916: | Embarked Private, 7016, 6th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Hororata, Melbourne |
Help us honour Ernest Victor Hey's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Ernest Victor Hey He was born in Scottsdale Tasmania and his parents lived in Devonport Tasmania. He was one of four sons of George and Ann Hey who enlisted in the AIF. Ernest was living in Footscray, Victoria when he enlisted and was married with one child.
Known as “Snowy” because of his fair hair, Ernest was seen to have been severely wounded by machine gun fire on the 4 October, as witnessed by several of his mates. His remains were lost on the battlefield and he has no known grave.
His younger brother 2369 Corporal Charles Lesley Tasman Hey, 24th Battalion, was killed in action only 4 days later on 8 October 1917 aged 24. Charlie was stated to have been “blown to pieces” by a shell whilst in the support lines at Broodseinde Ridge and consequently also has no known grave. Both men are commemorated at the Menin Gate Memorial in Belgium.
A third brother, 451 Private George Herbert Hey, 12th Battalion, survived the war, having being thrice wounded at the Gallipoli Landing, the Battle of Lone Pine and the Pozieres. He was returned to Australia during 1917 with a bullet lodged in his chest close to his heart. A fourth brother, 3264 Private Clarence Devonport Hey, 40th Battalion, enlisted in 1916 aged 26 and returned to Australia in 1919.