Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Extract from “The Fighting 10th”, Adelaide, Webb & Son, 1936 by C.B.L. Lock; kindly supplied courtesy of the 10th Bn AIF Association Committee, April 2015. 

Born 20 Sep 1893 in South Australia.

The fourth son of the late Richard James Sexton and Mother Lucy (nee Dyke), who at the outbreak of the Great War was Postmaster at Port Adelaide, and had formerly held a similar appointment at Mount Gambier.

He was one of a family of seven, consisting of six sons and one daughter.

Three of his brothers also served with the AIF, and at one time during the Great War were all attached to the 43rd Battalion:

Reverend H E Sexton, who in 1914 was a curate at All Saint’s Anglican Church at Hindmarsh, and in 1935 was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of British Columbia, was attached to the 43rd as Chaplain with rank of Captain.

R C Sexton, Attained the rank of Major in the 43rd Battalion

L B Sexton, Formerly of Duntroon College Was a Sergeant in the 43rd Battalion

F C Sexton, Was rejected for service abroad

Eric was educated at the Mount Gambier Grammar School.

In 1910 he commenced as a Clerk with Dalgety & Co. Ltd, and at the time of joining the AIF was stationed at Angaston, having served with that company for three years and nine months.

As a youth he interested himself in military training, and in military circles was looked upon as a promising subaltern.

He received his first commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 76th (Hindmarsh) Infantry on 16 March 1913, and was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant in the same unit on 1 March 1914, and held this commission at the time of joining the AIF.  He also acted as Adjutant of his regiment from 1 March 1914, such appointment terminating on 1 July 1915.

He was one of the first Lieutenants selected by Lieutenant-Colonel S P Weir for the 10th Battalion, in which, at Morphettville on 19 August 1914, he was appointed a Lieutenant.

He was posted to original C Company, and embarked with the original Battalion on HMAT A11 Ascanius on 20 October 1914 and proceeded to Egypt.

At Mena, Egypt, in January 1916, when his company merged with original E Company and became the new B Company, he was appointed a Platoon Commander in same.

He re-embarked on the Ionian, and accompanied his Battalion to the Dardanelles, and landed with his platoon from the Prince of Wales at the historic landing at Anzac on 25 April 1915.

At 4.30pm during the afternoon of 25 April 1915, whilst his company was engaged in holding on to the 2nd Ridge, and before it had dug itself in, shrapnel shattered his left forearm, a bullet tore away a portion of his left ear, and another missile penetrated his right shoulder.    These injuries were all sustained within 10 minutes, with the result that he was forced to evacuate, but in so doing managed to crawl back behind the line for about fifty yards.   He then proceeded along one of the Anzac gullies, and ultimately reached the beach in a very weak state.

At 6.30pm that day he was removed to a transport, and arrived at Alexandria on Friday 30 April 1915, whereupon he was admitted to the Bombay Presidency Hospital at San Stefano, near Alexandria.   This hospital prior to the war had been a casino, but was subsequently staffed with English nurses.

He eventually returned to Australia on the Ballarat with the second quota of wounded from the Dardanelles, arriving at the Outer Harbour on 3 August 1915.

Captain M J Herbert and 23 other ranks of the 10th Battalion also returned on the same boat.

After regaining convalescence he returned to Egypt as O.C. of the 17th reinforcements of the 10th Battalion, embarking at the Outer Harbour on HMAT A60 Aeneas on 11 April 1916.

He attained his Captaincy the day after he was wounded (26 April 1915), and disembarked at Alexandria on 11 May 1916.

Proceeding to Tel-El-Kebir, he was appointed Camp Adjutant, and retained this appointment until 2 August 1916, when he embarked for England.

On 14 February 1917, he was promoted to the rank of Major, and transferred to a Machine Gun Company, being subsequently appointed O.C. of the Australian Machine Gun Corps Training Depot at Grantham.

On 1 January 1918, in recognition of his services during the war, he was awarded the Order of British Empire (O.B.E), Military division, vide London Gazette on 7 January 1918, being No.725 on the precedence list.

He was Mentioned In Despatches (MID), vide London Gazette, on 4 January 1918.

He eventually returned to South Australia, his services with the AIF terminating on 8 June 1918.

Shortly after returning to civil life he was appointed Quarantine Officer on Torrens Island, but later proceeded to Melbourne, where for some time he was employed at the Commonwealth Bank in connection with the raising of the Commonwealth War Loan.

He then followed various business pursuits, and besides entering into business on his own behalf, had been employed by the Victorian Wheat Commission.

On 19 January 1928, at Melbourne, he married Queenie, only daughter of the late Claude R Johnson, who was an architect of Melbourne city, there being one daughter of that union.

During his absence from Australia he was transferred to the 77th Infantry with rank of Lieutenant as and from 1 July 1915 and on 1 December 1916 was promoted to rank of Captain in same unit.  He was promoted to rank of Honorary Major on 14 February 1917 and gazette a full Major in the AMF on 1 September 1918.  He was transferred to 2nd/10th Infantry on 1 October 1918, and Commanded that unit until 4 May 1920.  He was transferred to the 3rd Military District (Victoria) on 5 May 1920, and placed on Unattached List, and listed on Reserve of Officers with rank of Major on 5 May 1925.

In 1935 he was residing at No.305 “Alberta”, Dandenong Road, Armidale, Victoria, whilst his mother (Mrs Lucy Sexton) and his sister (Rita Muriel Sexton) were residing at No.25 Belmore Terrace, Woodville Park, South Australia.