JOHNSON, D'Arcy Francis
| Service Number: | 655 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 17 August 1914, An original member of F Company |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 7th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Richmond, Victoria, Australia, 1890 |
| Home Town: | Castlemaine, Mount Alexander, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Draper |
| Died: | Killed in action, France, 16 May 1918 |
| Cemetery: |
Le Grand Hasard Military Cemetery, Morbecque Plot IV, Row F, Grave No. 11. GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 17 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 655, 7th Infantry Battalion, An original member of F Company | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Oct 1914: | Involvement Private, 655, 7th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '9' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Hororata embarkation_ship_number: A20 public_note: '' | |
| 19 Oct 1914: | Embarked Private, 655, 7th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Hororata, Melbourne |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
D’Arcy Johnson joined up in August 1914, one of the first Australians to enlist. He was one of three brothers who enlisted in the First AIF. Born in Kiama, NSW his mother and father, John George and Catherine Johnson, lived in Launceston, Tasmania.
His brother, 5594 Pte. Ernest Maxwell Johnson 17th Battalion AIF, had enlisted in Sydney and died of wounds on 5 November 1917, aged 25.
A third brother, 2711 Gunner Leonard Joseph Johnson survived the war and returned to Australia in 1919.
D’Arcy was living in Castlemaine employed in the drapery store of a merchant store. The following article appeared in the Castlemaine Mail following his death.
Messrs. E.D. Williams and Son yesterday received a letter from Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, of Mowbray. Tasmania conveying the sad news that their son Sergeant D'Arcy Johnson, had been killed in action in France on 16th May. Prior to enlisting, he was employed in the drapery department of Messrs. E. D. Williams and Son, and was universally popular. He was one of the first to join the colours in Castlemaine. and sailed with the first contingent, consequently was an original Anzac. He went through the whole of the Gallipoli campaign, from landing to evacuation, and was among the first Australians to take part in the fighting in France. He was fortunate in never having been wounded or incapacitated in any way. For six months prior to April 1st of this year, he was in England. acting as bayonet instructor at Sutton Veny, but on account of the German offensive he was ordered to France. His death is doubly painful to his relatives, as one brother was killed in November last, another is missing, and the fourth, the youngest, is in hospital in England suffering from wounds and the effects of gas.
In her letter, the mother says “My dear boy should have had a furlough home. I am sure he earned it, instead of having to go back to his death. I got a letter from him only last Wednesday, couched in a very hopeful strain, and he was sure of victory for our troops. God grant it, for it is dearly enough paid for.”
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