ARGALL, Herbert Henry
| Service Number: | 2330 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 11 July 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 19th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Woollahra, New South Wales, Australia, 1896 |
| Home Town: | Orange, Orange Municipality, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | East Orange Public School |
| Occupation: | Railway porter |
| Died: | Killed in Action, France, 23 June 1916 |
| Cemetery: |
Brewery Orchard Cemetery, Bois-Grenier Plot IV, Row D, Grave No. 29 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, East Orange Public School Memorial Avenue, East Orange Public School Roll of Honor, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board, Orange Cenotaph, Orange Methodist Church WWI Roll of Honor, Orange Methodist Sunday School Honor Roll, Orange Railways Ambulance and Rifle Club WW1 Roll of Honour, Orange WW1 Honour Board |
World War 1 Service
| 11 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 2330, 19th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Oct 1915: | Involvement Private, 2330, 19th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '13' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Themistocles embarkation_ship_number: A32 public_note: '' | |
| 5 Oct 1915: | Embarked Private, 2330, 19th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Themistocles, Sydney |
Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board
Herbert Henry ARGALL was born on 8 March 1896 at Woollahra in Sydney, but by the time he reached school age the family was living at Orange. He joined the NSWGR&T as a probationer at Orange on 18 October 1911. On 15 February 1914 he transferred to the Traffic Branch and the following day he was appointed to the position of junior porter, still at Orange. On 25 July 1915 he was granted leave to join the AIF.
According to his Attestation Paper, Herbert enlisted in the AIF on 11 July 1915 at the rank of Private (Service No. 2330) and was assigned to the 5th Reinforcements to the 19th Australian Infantry Battalion. He nominated his father, Thomas Argall of Edward St, Orange, as his next of kin and, as he was underage, he provided written permission from his father to join up. He also claimed previous military involvement for one year, and his military record shows he was a Private (Service Number 87) in A Company, 42nd Infantry, a Militia unit based at Orange.
After completing his basic training, Herbert embarked aboard HMAT A32 ‘Themistocles’ at Sydney for Egypt on 5 October 1915. While in Egypt he contracted diphtheria and was admitted to hospital on 8 December 1915. It was not until 5 February 1916 that he was recovered and taken on strength of the 19th Australian Infantry Battalion, in the Suez Canal Zone. On 18 March 1916 he embarked at Alexandria for France, reaching Marseilles on 25 March 1916. He was killed in action in France on 23 June 1916, aged 20. He was buried in Brewery Orchard Cemetery, Bois Grenier (south of Armentières), Lille, Nord Pas de Calais, at a ceremony officiated by Rev. E H Fernie, attached to the 5th Infantry Brigade AIF.
As well as Herbert, his youngest brother Preston Edwin Argall (Service No. 5292) of the 17th Australian Infantry Battalion was killed in action in Belgium on 20 September 1917. He is commemorated at the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium. In 1919 their father, Thomas, died and their mother, Mrs Annie Argall, became their next of kin. By 25 October 1918, the family had moved from Orange to Kogarah.
(NAA B2455-3035065)
Submitted 9 May 2023 by John Oakes
Biography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Bert "Snow" Argall was the son of Thomas and Annie Argall of Orange NSW. His younger brother 5292 Private Preston Edwin Argall, 17th Battalion was killed in action on the 20 September 1917. Age 19.
Herbert’s father was a mail guard on the train between Orange and Forbes and Herbert followed his father’s example, joining the railway department. Herbert was a popular and highly regarded employee who was diligent and courteous, the Orange Leader claimed “nothing was a trouble to him, and it was a pleasure to have Bert Argall attending to your inquiries.”
Leader (Orange, NSW : 1899 - 1945), Friday 29 December 1916, page 6
THE LATE BERT ARGALL.
Sergt. Stan Craske, of D Company, 19th Battalion, writes to Mr. Argall as follows:—
Dear Mr. Argall, — I am at last permitted to let you know of the circumstances of your son's death. 'Snow,' as he was always known to us, joined my platoon in Egypt, and was with me all the time. On arrival at the trenches I was chosen as Sergeant of the Scouts, and when volunteers were called for, he came with me. He was my partner all the time, because he was a boy I could trust to help me in times of difficulty, and he never showed the slightest fear. On the night of June 23rd, the two of us were showing two men from another battalion over some of No-Man's Land when the enemy opened up a machine gun, and 'Snow,' who was at my elbow, was hit with fourteen bullets. Death was almost instantaneous, and the only words he said were, 'I'm hit.' We carried him in, and he was buried in the British cemetery near Bois Grenier. Both you and Mrs. Argall have my deepest sympathy in the loss of such a son, because he was one in a thousand and a boy you can be proud of. He was a favorite with us all, because of the clean life he lived. I was myself wounded outside Pozieres, having one hand torn open, a piece of shell through my leg, and another piece through one foot, and a small piece in the instep. These are all nearly better now."
Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), Wednesday 4 October 1916, page 7. SOLDIERS' LETTERS.
SOLDIER'S TRIBUTE TO HIS MATE .
An extract from the letter of a soldier in France will show anxious fathers and mothers that even under the terrible conditions of war our lads can — and in some instances do — live as nobly as they die. Private H. J. Morgan, of Penshurst, writes home thus of his friend: — "I have often told you about my 'cobber,' Bert Argall, of Orange. Well, six nights ago he was killed by machine-gun fire when out on a listening post.
It hurt me sorely. He was the cleanest and whitest chap I have ever known, and although he was just as liable to get killed as anyone else it seemed such a shame for so splendid a lad to go. He was admired and liked by all who knew him. As I assured his mother when writing to her, no one was better prepared to meet his Maker than he was."
The same writer in letters to his friend always spoke of Bert Argall as "my white cobber."
Biography contributed by Bradley Bliss
Herbert Henry Argall was born in Orange in 1896. He was one of six children born to Thomas and Annie Matilda Argall. Herbert’s father was a mail guard on the train between Orange and Forbes and Herbert followed his father’s example, joining the railway department. Herbert was a popular and highly regarded employee who was diligent and courteous, the Orange Leader claimed “nothing was a trouble to him, and it was a pleasure to have Bert Argall attending to your inquiries.”
“Bert” attempted to enlist on several occasions. The first time he failed his medical, so he underwent an operation at Orange District Hospital so that he would be accepted. Bert then, however, contracted typhoid, so was again rejected. He was finally accepted on his fourth attempt, in July 1915.
Ill-health plagued Private Argall; in December he was admitted to hospital in Egypt, suffering from diphtheria. On his recovery he joined the British Expeditionary Force in France. Herbert was killed in action just three months later. He was 19.
Just three days before his death Herbert wrote a letter to his parents, saying how proud he was that his younger brother, Preston, had enlisted and imploring his mother not to worry. Fifteen months later Preston was also killed in action.
Following Herbert’s death his parents, Tom and Annie, received over 200 letters of sympathy from the citizens of Orange.
Herbert Henry Argall’s name appears on the following honour rolls, alongside that of his brother Preston: Orange Returned Services League, Orange Railway Ambulance Rifle Club, Orange East Public School, Methodist Church Orange and the Paddington Methodist Church (now Uniting Church). Herbert is also remembered in Newman Park in Orange.
In 1923 the Anzac Memorial Avenue of trees was planted along Bathurst Road to commemorate fallen WWI soldiers. A tree was planted in honour of “Private HH Argall”; the tree was donated by FP Carr.
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