Geoffrey BROOME

BROOME, Geoffrey

    Service Number: 3171
    Enlisted: 18 October 1916
    Last Rank: Private
    Last Unit: 35th Infantry Battalion
    Born: Windsor, New South Wales, Australia, 1899
    Home Town: Rockdale, Rockdale, New South Wales
    Schooling: Sydney Technical High School, New South Wales, Australia
    Occupation: Station hand
    Died: St Leonards, New South Wales, Australia, 1968, cause of death not yet discovered
    Cemetery: Not yet discovered
    Memorials: Rockdale Methodist Church Roll of Honour, Sydney Technical High School WW1 Roll Of Honour
    Show Relationships

    World War 1 Service

    18 Oct 1916: Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3171, 35th Infantry Battalion
    24 Jan 1917: Involvement Private, 3171, 35th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '17' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Anchises embarkation_ship_number: A68 public_note: ''
    24 Jan 1917: Embarked Private, 3171, 35th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Anchises, Sydney

    Help us honour Geoffrey Broome's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.

    Biography contributed by Sydney Technical High School

    Geoffrey Broome, son of Charles Broome and Ellen Robson was born at Windsor NSW. His family followed the Methodist faith.

    Before World War One, Geoffrey Broome was just a student at THS(Sydney Technical high school), though relatively short for his age standing at 5ft 6, he was healthy and smart enough to earn a scholarship from Rockdale PS into THS (currently known as Sydney technical high school) in 1912( featuring himself in the Daily Telegraph on 6/2/1912 for this achievement(2). Though this achievement presumably didn’t reflect into his grades, within his first year of coming to THS he was consistently underachieving in every subject, usually ranking last in his class. Though ironically enough, his father, Charles, was a decorated teacher in Newcastle even going on to earn honour and praise for his work in the education sector. 

    After passing the required physical exam, Geoffrey Broome joined as a private in the 35th Battalion, based in Newcastle,NSW. He went to war with a fake date of birth, one which was almost 2 years older than reality. Enlisted on 18/10/17, he embarked from Sydney NSW onto the HMAT A68 Anchises 8 days later(4). Upon disembarking from Devonport, England (27/3/1916)(5).

    After training for a few months, Geoffrey proceeded overseas to France on 25th August 1917 and was taken on strength to the 35th Battalion on 1st September 1917. On 30/7/1917 Geoffrey was sent to the confinement barracks in Durrington Camp for 5 days due to the offense where he had not put on his helmet when ordered to do so(7). At the beginning of October he was wounded in action with an injury to his left hand

    Upon coming out of hospita 22nd October 1917 he returned back to the 35th battalion where he spent time training and defending small areas such as the Le TouQuet sector from attacks. He was sent to hospital sick in April 1918 and was returned to Australia due to this debility on 6th June 1918.


    After World War 1 ended on 11/11/1918, Geoffrey returned to a much more stable life. Marrying Florence Elizabeth “Florrie” Emerson just 2 years after the war, following the same year they went on to give birth to a boy, Noel Broome, During his time after the war, he worked as both a station hand and a boot polisher(10), it can be assumed that because he never finished his education he tended to look for paying jobs without any needed qualifications. 


    He died in 1968 at the age of 69. He has since been commemorated at the Rockdale Methodist Church roll of honour and a place in his high school on the Sydney Technical high school roll of honour(12).

     

     

    References

    Anonymous- Geoffery Broome 1899-1968. WW1 Honour Board Project 
    AIF project- UNSW Canberra Geoffery Broome 1899-1968
    Ibid 
     Virtual war memorial Australia Geoffery Broome 1899-1968 
    Ibid
    Anonymous- 35th battalion Australian War Memorial 
     Anonymous- Geoffrey Broome Records- 1899-1968 Discovering Anzacs. National Archives of Australia.
    Anonymous- Britannica- Battle of Passchendaele July-November 1917
    Ibid
    AIF project- UNSW Canberra Geoffery Broome 1899-1968
    Ibid
    ibid

    Bibliography

    Ken Stevenson, Research on Google Drive
    Quote from Gunner from 35th battalion https://theprinciplesofwar.com/quotes/list-of-australian-military-quotes/
     Geoffery Broome Personal records https://docs.google.com/document/d/1c75q93d4U8CpsXrhUyw98EDxKwLJXe-G/edit
    Information about Geoffrey’s Battalion https://vwma.org.au/explore/units/280
    More about Geoffery’s process to getting enlisted and major events during war https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=3130462
    Info about Geoffery’s battalion https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1338583
    Compiled personal info about Geoffery Broome https://aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=33902&printFormat=print
    Information about each month that the 35th battalion spent doing overseas https://wwwhttps://aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=33902&printFormat=print.awm.gov.au/collection/C1339200
    More info about the 35th battalion https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/U51475#:~:text=Arriving%20there%20in%20early%20July,terrible%20winter%20of%201916%2D17
    Information about the battle of Passchendaele https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Passchendaele

     

    Read more...

    Links and Documents