OLD, Ernest
| Service Numbers: | 2356, 77 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 11 February 1902 |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 2nd Pioneer Battalion |
| Born: | Blackwood, Victoria, Australia, 13 July 1874 |
| Home Town: | Dingee, Loddon, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Blacksmith |
| Died: | 1962, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Dingee & District Honor Roll, Swan Hill Boer War Memorial |
Boer War Service
| 1 Oct 1899: | Involvement Private, 2356, 4th Battalion, Australian Commonwealth Horse | |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Feb 1902: | Enlisted Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, 2356 |
World War 1 Service
| 22 Dec 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Corporal, 77, 13th Light Horse Regiment | |
|---|---|---|
| 12 May 1915: | Involvement 77, 13th Light Horse Regiment, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Persic embarkation_ship_number: A34 public_note: '' | |
| 12 May 1915: | Embarked 77, 13th Light Horse Regiment, HMAT Persic, Melbourne | |
| 14 Mar 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Corporal, 2nd Pioneer Battalion | |
| 14 Nov 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Corporal, 77, 2nd Pioneer Battalion, GSW to thigh | |
| 22 Mar 1918: | Discharged AIF WW1, Corporal, 77, 2nd Pioneer Battalion, 3rd MD |
Help us honour Ernest Old's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Faithe Jones
Son of Thomas Spear and Charlotte OLD
Boer War Veteran
Mr. Ernie Old, 73 year old Boer War veteran, father of a grown up family of three daughters and two sons, the three daughters school teachers in Melbourne, reached Clare on Tuesday night on his cycling tour of Australia from Melbourne via Adelaide to Darwin and back to Melbourne. He was riding a Malvern Star with Dunlop Speed Tyres, and was fit and cheerful, having reached Clare (about 90 miles) in 7 hours 40 minutes. The Dux Tuck Shop, provided refreshments on arrival and was the guest for the
night of Mr. E C. Heinrich and family of the Clare Cycle Depot, local agents for the Malvern Star interests. Mr. Old is a Boer war veteran and also served with the 13th Light Horse in World War I. He has been riding for 55 years and started on Penny Farthing bicycle.
Biography contributed by Evan Evans
From Philippe Clerbout (and Bill Durrant)
Never stop moving.
Ernie Old (1874–1962) B was infected with the cycling bug as a young bloke between duties as a soldier in the Boer War and World War 1. Despite some good results in races in rural Victoria in the early 1900s it wasn't until his 70s that Ernie became a celebrity.
At an age when most were in a cemetery or very close to one, Ernie, in his 70's, challenged himself to ride from his home in Melbourne to every state capital – a feat he accomplished before his 76th birthday. He continued to zip around Australia on his bike well into his 80s and made his last long ride from Melbourne to Bendigo in 1960, aged 86. His trips were mostly solo and without support, carrying or finding what he needed to survive along the way.
The photo shows Ernie finishing a 4,000km ride from Melbourne to Brisbane and back in 1947, aged 73. He was welcomed home with a ceremonial lap of the main arena at the Melbourne Show. Greeted as a celebrity by huge crowds. He also did some epic solo bicycle rides. In 1947 he rode from Alice Springs to Melbourne (via Darwin, and Queensland, and then the East Coast of Australia) in 47 days.
Ernie Old proved that travelling the huge emptiness of Australia by bike was safe and enjoyable at any age.
Ernie's autobiography, By Bread Alone, is definitely worth checking out.
Click images to start slideshow.