Francis Roy PURDEY

PURDEY, Francis Roy

Service Number: 1728
Enlisted: 16 February 1916, Petersburg, South Australia, Australia
Last Rank: Private
Last Unit: 50th Infantry Battalion
Born: Terowie, South Australia, Australia, 9 January 1895
Home Town: Terowie, Goyder, South Australia
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: Locomotive Engine Cleaner (S.A.R.)
Died: Killed in Action, Villers-Bretonneux, France, 25 April 1918, aged 23 years
Cemetery: Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery
(Plot X, Row A, Grave No. 4), Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France
Memorials: Adelaide National War Memorial, Adelaide National War Memorial, Adelaide South Australian Railways WW1 & WW2 Honour Boards, Adelaide The 50th Battalion Commemorative Cross, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, District of Terowie Honour Roll WW2, Terowie Institute Honour Board, Terowie Public School Honor Roll, Terowie War Memorial
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World War 1 Service

16 Feb 1916: Enlisted AIF WW1, Petersburg, South Australia, Australia
11 Apr 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 1728, 50th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Aeneas embarkation_ship_number: A60 public_note: ''
11 Apr 1916: Embarked AIF WW1, Private, 1728, 50th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Aeneas, Adelaide

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Biography

Medals: British War Medal, Victory Medal

"LATE PRIVATE F. R. PURDY.

Private Francis Roy Purdy, son of Mr. and Mrs. S. Purdy, of Terowie, was killed in action on April 25. Before enlistment he was working in the railway locomotive department. He was a prominent footballer, and had won distinction in the game. He enlisted on February 26, 1916, and sailed in the following April for Egypt, whence he went to England and France, where he remained until his death."from the Adelaide Daily Herald 30 May 1918 (nla.gov.au) 

 

"...1728 Private Francis Roy Purdey, 50th Battalion from Terowie, South Australia. A 21 year old engine cleaner prior to enlisting on 16 February 1916, he embarked for overseas with the 2nd Reinforcements of the 50th Battalion from Adelaide on 11 April 1916 aboard HMAT Aeneas. After arriving in Egypt, he joined the 50th Battalion on 30 May 1916 and went with them to France in June 1916. Pte Purdey was killed in action at Villers-Bretonneux on 25 April 1918 and buried in the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery, Fouilloy, France." - SOURCE (www.awm.gov.au)

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