Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

From Australian Remembrance Army

Over the past six years we have submitted the service records and causes of death of several hundred veterans to the Office of Australian War Graves for assessment for Official Commemoration. To date, more than 100 of these veterans interred at Lutwyche Cemetery have been accepted as Official Commemorations, and their graves are now being formally marked and will be maintained in perpetuity by the Office of Australian War Graves.

Corporal Arnold Oliver, an Australian veteran of both World Wars, is one of the previously unmarked WWI veterans’ graves in Lutwyche Cemetery that has been accepted as an Official Commemoration by the Office of Australian War Graves.
See Australian Remembrance Army Facebook page

WWI:
16721, Gunner, 6th Field Artillery Brigade

WWII:
QX14562, Corporal, 2/1st Ordnance Field Park AAOC

OAWG Official Commemoration: https://connect.dva.gov.au/.../viewCommemoration.html...

Arnold Oliver was born in 1896 in Mitta Mitta, Victoria, the son of James Oliver and Bertha Oliver (nee Colquhoun).

He enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force aged 19 at Melbourne on 7 December 1915, stating his occupation as pastry cook and nominating his father as his next of kin.

During his embarkation phase his service record notes that he “proceeded to Alexandria as a stowaway,” indicating he travelled on a troopship without appearing on the official embarkation roll and was subsequently recorded on arrival in Egypt. He served in the Middle East theatre, with his service and casualty forms recording postings, transfers, and routine movements within artillery units. Toward the end of his service his file includes medical board documentation dated July 1919, indicating he was examined prior to discharge, with references to cardiac-related concerns. He returned to Australia in 1919 and was discharged following completion of his war service.

By the late 1930s Oliver was residing in Brisbane, Queensland, and a statutory declaration dated 1937 confirms his presence there in civilian life. At the outbreak of the Second World War he enlisted at Kelvin Grove, Brisbane, on 1 July 1940. He declared a date of birth of 17 July 1900 at Woombye, Queensland, differing from his earlier record. He was nearly 44 years old at the time of enlistment and described his occupation as farm labourer and his marital status as single. His Second World War service was within the Australian Military Forces, and his record shows progression through medical examination, classification, and discharge processing rather than extended operational deployment. Administrative entries indicate assessment by medical boards and determination of fitness category leading to his release from service.

Oliver continued to live in Spring Hill, Brisbane, where his sister, Mrs Amy Francis of Douglas Street, is recorded as next of kin.

Corporal Arnold Oliver died on 20 June 1948, aged 52, and was buried in Anzac Portion 7, Lutwyche Cemetery, Brisbane. The post-mortem examination records that he had consumed a significant quantity of alcohol prior to death and collapsed at home; examination found coronary atherosclerosis, enlargement of the heart, and congested lungs. The certified cause of death was heart failure due to coronary atherosclerosis, with alcoholism noted as a contributing factor.

He was a single man who had no known children.
In September 2024, seventy-six years after his death, we received notification that the Office of Australian War Graves had accepted our application for an Official War Graves Commemoration.

After decades in an unmarked grave, his final resting place now bears a plaque commemorating his service to Australia, ensuring his name endures among those remembered for their duty and sacrifice. His identity and dignity have now been restored.

Lest We Forget