EDSER, Charles Osmond Donovan
| Service Number: | 4489 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 April 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 9th Field Ambulance |
| Born: | Leatherhead, Surrey, England, 10 May 1896 |
| Home Town: | Hurstville, Kogarah, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Boilermaker |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 12 October 1917, aged 21 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres. |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Haymarket Chullora and Eveleigh Boilershops Honour Roll, Haymarket Loco Boiler Shop Roll of Honour, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board, Menin Gate Memorial (Commonwealth Memorial to the Missing of the Ypres Salient), Municipality of Hurstville Pictorial Honour Roll No 1, Townsville 9th Field Ambulance Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 19 Apr 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 4489, 3rd Australian General Hospital - WW1 | |
|---|---|---|
| 15 May 1915: | Involvement 4489, 3rd Australian General Hospital - WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '23' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: RMS Mooltan embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
| 15 May 1915: | Involvement Private, 4489, 3rd Australian General Hospital - WW1, Third Ypres, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '23' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: RMS Mooltan embarkation_ship_number: '' public_note: '' | |
| 15 May 1915: | Embarked 4489, 3rd Australian General Hospital - WW1, RMS Mooltan, Sydney | |
| 15 May 1915: | Embarked Private, 4489, 3rd Australian General Hospital - WW1, RMS Mooltan, Sydney | |
| 12 Oct 1917: | Involvement Private, 4489, 9th Field Ambulance, Third Ypres, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 4489 awm_unit: 9th Australian Field Ambulance awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1917-10-12 |
Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board
Charles Osmond Donovan EDSER (Service Number 4489) was born on 10 May 1896 at Leatherhead, Surrey. He began work as an apprentice boilermaker at Eveleigh Locomotive Works in June 1912. He joined the Expeditionary Forces on 23 April 1915.
He left Australia through Sydney, aboard HMAT ‘Mooltan’ on 15 May 1915, only three weeks after enlisting. n the field with the Army Medical Corps.
He was killed in action on 12 October 1917. There are numerous reports of his death at Passchendaele, while stretcher bearing. He was returning for another case when he was hit by shrapnel from a shell and died, probably instantly.
Private William Menzies (12021) wrote:
‘I was close to Edser when he was killed. He was stretcher bearing at Frost House, Zonnebeke Road and was on the way back for another case when a shell got him. He was badly hit about the body. His body was left lying there up till October 20th. I don’t think he would ever be buried. It was impossible to get his body down, being too much mud and too heavy work. I did not see his body.’
As he has no known grave, his name is recorded on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres.
Submitted 24 June 2023 by John Oakes
Biography contributed by John Oakes
Charles Osmond Donovan EDSER, (Service Number 4489) was born on 10th May 1896 at Leatherhead, Surrey. He began work as an apprentice boilermaker at Eveleigh Locomotive Works in June 1912. He joined the Expeditionary Forces on 23rd April 1915. On 21st May 1917, when he reached 21 years of age, with his apprenticeship expired his employment would normally have been terminated. However, since he was overseas, he was kept on the books.
On his Attestation Papers he claims service in the Senior Cadets and the Militia, which he had only left to join the AIF. He advised that he was married but gave his father as his next of kin. His wife was Margaret Ella. They had a child named Violet Edna.
He left Australia from Sydney on board HMAT ‘Mooltan’ on 15th May 1915. This was only three weeks after he enlisted. Edser was allotted to the 3rd Australian General Hospital. He was admitted to hospital Mudros (on the Greek island of Lemnos). It appears that he became a patient in his own hospital! Although playing a part in the Gallipoli campaign, he may never have set foot on the peninsula.
Edser went to Alexandria in January 1916. He went from there for England. In September he went to France. In November he was back in England, sick. In December wentabsent without leave (AWL). In January he was ill again. In February he went AWL again. He received 14 days Field Punishment No. 2, but this was remitted as he had volunteered for service in the field with the Army Medical Corps.
He was killed in action on 12th October 1917. There are numerous reports of his death at Passchendaele, while stretcher bearing. He was returning for another case when he was hit by shrapnel from a shell and died, probably instantly. Many of the reports describe Edser as an ‘Anzac’.
Private William Menzies (12021) wrote:
‘I was close to Edser when he was killed. He was stretcher bearing at Frost House, Zonnebeke Road and was on the way back for another case when a shell got him. He was badly hit about the body. His body was left lying there up till October 20th. I don’t think he would ever be buried. It was impossible to get his body down, being too much mud and too heavy work. I did not see his body.’
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