MATHESON, William Albert Victor
| Service Number: | 207 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 20 January 1915, Cobram, Victoria |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 22nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Yarrawonga, Victoria, Australia, 1897 |
| Home Town: | Cobram, Moira, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Boundary rider |
| Died: | Bright's disease, At sea, 22 May 1915 |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Buried at sea, |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Chatby Memorial, Alexandria, Egypt, Cobram Barooga RSL War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 20 Jan 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 207, Cobram, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 May 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 207, 22nd Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '14' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Ulysses embarkation_ship_number: A38 public_note: '' | |
| 10 May 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 207, 22nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Ulysses, Melbourne |
Help us honour William Albert Victor Matheson's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Carol Foster
Son of William and Maria (Mary) Jane Matheson of Barooga Station, Cobram, Victoria, Asutralia
William died on board HS Ulssyes of a Cerebo Haemorrhage following Brights Disease and was buried at sea
Medal: British War Medal
Biography contributed by Stephen Brooks
207 Private William Albert Victor Matheson, 22nd Battalion AIF died of illness and was buried at sea near 22nd May, 1915, at 18 years of age. He was born in Yarrawonga 15th September 1896. William lived for many years with his parents on Barooga Station, and he enlisted in Cobram in early 1915, stating that he was a boundary rider helping his father. He was supported in his endeavours by his father, who gave him a consent form which said,
“Dear Sir, with my full knowledge and approval I desire my son William Albert Victor Matheson to enlist in the Expeditionary Forces”
His ship embarked from Melbourne on the 10 May 1915 and unfortunately William died after suffering from a cerebral haemorrhage near Colombo, on the 22 May 1915, following a bout of Brights disease, a disease of the kidneys. It was the same disease also caused the death of the famous cricketer, Victor Trumper, also in 1915. Having been buried at sea his name is on the Chatby Memorial, Alexandria, Egypt, which commemorates almost 1,000 Commonwealth servicemen who died during the WW1 and have no other grave but the sea. His parents William and Mary Anne Matheson were still living at Barooga Station in 1919.
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