PICKFORD, Horace
| Service Number: | 2882 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 22 June 1915, Melbourne, Vic. |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 58th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Clunes, Victoria, Australia, 1890 |
| Home Town: | Clunes, Hepburn, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Clunes State School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Farmer |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 27 September 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
Tyne Cot Cemetery and Memorial Plot LXII, Row E, Grave No. 20, |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Clunes War Memorial, Tourello Walnut Grove Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 22 Jun 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2882, 5th Infantry Battalion, Melbourne, Vic. | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 Sep 1915: | Involvement Private, 2882, 5th Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '8' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Star of Victoria embarkation_ship_number: A16 public_note: '' | |
| 10 Sep 1915: | Embarked Private, 2882, 5th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Star of Victoria, Melbourne | |
| 15 Mar 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 58th Infantry Battalion, Egypt | |
| 19 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2882, 58th Infantry Battalion, Fromelles (Fleurbaix) | |
| 29 Nov 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2882, 58th Infantry Battalion, 'The Winter Offensive' - Flers/Gueudecourt winter of 1916/17 | |
| 7 Dec 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 58th Infantry Battalion, France | |
| 2 Feb 1917: | Wounded AIF WW1, Lance Corporal, 2882, 58th Infantry Battalion, 'The Winter Offensive' - Flers/Gueudecourt winter of 1916/17, GSW to his back sustained near Flers. Evacuated to UK. Rejoined unit 9 July 1917. | |
| 3 Mar 1917: | Honoured Distinguished Conduct Medal, 'The Winter Offensive' - Flers/Gueudecourt winter of 1916/17, For conspicuous gallantry in action on 29/30 November 1916, east of Gueudecourt. He led parties over difficult and dangerous country to the front line trenches. Later, although wounded, he continued to carry out his duties. He set a splendid example throughout.' | |
| 24 Aug 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 58th Infantry Battalion, Belgium | |
| 26 Sep 1917: | Involvement AIF WW1, Corporal, 2882, 58th Infantry Battalion, Polygon Wood | |
| 27 Sep 1917: | Involvement Corporal, 2882, 58th Infantry Battalion, Third Ypres, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 2882 awm_unit: 58th Australian Infantry Battalion awm_rank: Corporal awm_died_date: 1917-09-27 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Robert Wight
Horace Pickford, aged 25, enlisted in the AIF in Melbourne on 22 June 1915. He embarked overseas on 10 September and arrived in Egypt about five weeks later, where he was transferred to the 58th Battalion on 15 March 1916.
The battalion left Egypt on 17 June and disembarked at Marseilles on 23 June. They moved north and a month later saw action at the disastrous Battle of Fromelles on 19 July 1916.
The battalion later moved to the Gueudecourt area on the Somme, where they remained for several months. While in the front line on the night of 29 – 30 November 1916, Pte Pickford displayed great courage and devotion to duty under extreme duress and was later awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for his actions. He was also promoted to Lance Corporal on 7 December 1916.
L Cpl Pickford sustained a gunshot wound to his back when serving in the front line at Flers on 2 February 1917. He was evacuated to England and hospitalised for six weeks. He re-joined the battalion on 9 July 1917 and was promoted to Corporal on 24 August 1917.
On 26 September 1917, the 58th Battalion was involved in the successful attack on the German lines through Polygon Wood, and it was here the next day, on 27 September 1917, that Cpl Horace Pickford DCM was killed in action.
His remains and identity disc were recovered by the Imperial War Graves Commission in 1921 and subsequently re-interred in the Tyne Cot Cemetery, Passchendaele, Belgium.
Source: Extract from "Clunes War Memorial WW1" by Robert Wight, June 2022.
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