Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

The Frosts of “Park Hill”

Jabez and Mary Ann Frost arrived in South Australia in March 1848. In 1855 they purchased a property at Chinkford and named it “Park Hill”. Their son, William Thomas Frost, continued to farm Park Hill after Jabez died in 1876. William married Annie Elizabeth Leeder in 1884 and all of their ten children were born in Manoora. William was a prominent citizen who was made a Justice of the Peace in 1901.

Three of William and Annie’s sons enlisted for service in World War 1

Born in Manoora on 25 May 1894, Percival was the first of three sons of William Thomas Frost and Annie Elizabeth Frost to enlist. A farmer on the family property “Park Hill” at Manoora, he joined at Keswick on the 30 June 1915. Percival was 21 years 1 month old.

On Wednesday evening Sept. 8 a farewell social and presentation was tendered to Private Percy Frost of this town by the members of the local football club of which he was captain during the current season. Father Enright, the President of the club occupied the chair and referred in eulogistic terms to the esteem and respect in which Private Frost was held in the district, and on behalf of the football club presented him with a wristlet watch , suitably inscribed, and a periscope. (Burra Record,  Wednesday 15 September 1915)

A very pleasant evening was given by Mrs. W. T. Frost, Park Hill, Manoora, on Tuesday last, on the departure of her son Percy for the front. Games and musical items were indulged in till midnight. Miss Hilda Frost wore apricot satin. Those present were Miss Dora Leach, Miss Beatrice Leeder, Misses Roberts, Miss Hazel Lindsay, Misses Thomas, Miss Nora James, Miss Constance Solly, Misses Gray, Messrs H. and E. Jones, Mr. Walter Maxwell, Mr Oscar Pullin, Mr. Jack Mohr, Mr. J. Puddy, Mr. Clude Leeder, Mr. James Lindsday, Messrs A. And J. Frost. (The Mail, Saturday 11 September 1915)

Posted to 5th Reinforcements 27th Battalion at Mitcham Camp he embarked from Australia aboard HMAT A32 Themistocles on 13 October 1915.

At Tel-el-Kebir in Egypt Percival was taken on the strength of the Transport Section and appointed Driver. With only a month of training left before the battalion embarked for France he was taken sick by the 7th Field Ambulance and admitted to No2 Casualty Clearing Station at Ismailia with an abscess. He rejoined the battalion only three weeks before it embarked from Alexandria to join the British Expeditionary Force. 5 days later the 27th Battalion disembarked from SS Northland at Marseilles on 19 March 1916. When at Rue Marle, shortly after landing in France, Percival was promoted to Lance Corporal.

The 27th Battalion entered the front line trenches for the first time on 7 April and its first major battle was at Pozieres from the 28 July to 5 August. In November Percival was promoted to Corporal. Throughout 1917 there were several minor attacks but for Percival the time was to be spent in hospital recovering from burns to his head, arm and left leg. How this happened is not known but it was most likely to have been in a training accident as 27th Battalion was in camp training for Mobile Warfare at that time.  On 15 March Percival was taken by 2nd Australian Field Ambulance to a Casualty Clearing Station where he was placed on an ambulance train and admitted to 1st Stationary Hospital at Rouen. Percival embarked from Havre on the hospital ship HMHS Formosa for England where he was admitted to the Royal Victoria Hospital at Netley. After thirty six days Percival was transferred to the 1st Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield and then to camp at Perham Downs.

In June Percival proceeded overseas to France and late in September rejoined his battalion in Belgium, only 4 days before the major battle of Broodseinde Ridge on 4 October. In February 1918 Percival was granted a week’s furlough in Paris and then, after his battalion was engaged in the first wave of troops at Amiens in August, he was granted two weeks leave in England. Just after the armistice and the end of the war Percival was promoted to Sergeant and in late January 1919, as one of the 1915 personnel, he marched out to England where he disembarked at Weymouth.

On 8 April 1919 Percival returned to Australia aboard the Traz-os-Montes and disembarked at Adelaide on 20 May. He was discharged on 12 July 1919.

An outstanding footballer Percy had played in the Manoora Football Club's premiership team in 1911 and captained the club in 1914 and 1915. After the war he played league football for North Adelaide and was one of that club's premiership players in 1920.

As a soldier settler Percival took over a farm at Belalie (Sections 122,123 and 124) and married Mollie Buscombe in 1922. Mollie and Percival had four children. Perc died in 1936. When Mollie died in 1987 she was buried with Perc in the Jamestown Cemetery

Contibuted by the Great, Great, Great Niece of Frost who attends Loxton High School

The jubilation of kicking two goals for the North Adelaide football club in a Grand Final winning game. The misery of the ruined trenches and continual shelling of the frontline near Rue Marie. These two experiences could not be further apart, but for Sergeant Percival William Frost, perhaps the only constant between these two conflicting episodes in his life was the way he embodied mateship and perseverance.

On the 25th of May 1894, Percival William Frost was welcomed to the world by Mrs Elizabeth Anna 'Annie' Frost and Mr William Thomas Frost. He was a young boy who would soon grow up to be an honourable man, and make a brave contribution to his country. Annie and William Frost had ten children; Percival, the sixth eldest. Three of the Frost sons, Ernest Arthur, Aubrey Leeder, and Percival went to war, and all three returned safely, creating a strong bond of mateship between the brothers. Percival grew up and worked on the family farm 'Park Hill', located in Manoora, a small country town in the Mid-North region of South Australia. He received an education at Kyre College which is now known as 'Scotch College.' The discipline of college life prepared Percival with an ability to cope and persevere with challenges away from home.

Percival joined the 27th Australian Infantry Battalion (AIF) on the 30th of June 1915. He disembarked Australia for Tel-el Kebir in Egypt where he began training. Soldiers trained in Egypt for six days a week, learning military drills, commands and how to operate machinery. After months of training, Percival was named in the transportation section of his Gttalion as a driver, probably because of his farming background, and skill and expertise with horses.

On the 7th of February 1916, Percival was admitted into the First Australian Stationary Hospital, in lsmailia, with the 7th Australian Field Ambulance with an abcess. After fifteen days spent recovering in hospital, Percival re-joined the 27th battalion. Percival joined the British Expeditionary Force (B.E.F) and embarked on a troopship at Alexandria, Egypt to then disembark at Marseilles, France. Percivals's Brigade, the 7th Infantry Brigade, was the first out of the 2nd Division to leave for this trip.

According to Greg Stephens, author of the online project 'Following the 22nd Battalion'

As the 2nd Division was the first to land in France, its troops were warmly greeted at every stop. Men and women passed them gifts of fruit and wine. From these early days in France it became apparent that the Australian soldier, with their friendliness and not hindered by social distinctions was much more akin to the French than the more reserved British soldier. This affection between the two became even stronger as the fighting prowess of the Australian soldier became widely known to the French people during the war. 1

After arriving at Marseilles, soldiers of the Australian Infantry Force, were needed on the Western Front. Percival and the 7th Brigade were sent to the frontline near Rue Marie. On the first day of April 1916, near Rue Marie, Percival was appointed as Lance Corporal. Later in the year of 1916, he was promoted to Corporal, as the previot.ru;orporal had died, which is an acknowledgement of his leadership skills and respect he earnt from his comrades.

Percival suffered burns to his hands, face and legs, and was admitted into hospital on the 15th of March 1917, possibly caused by a bomb explosion during a training drill. Three days later, Percival left France to receive treatment and care at the Royal Victorian Hospital, in England. After spending over a month there, Percival was transferred to the 1st Auxiliary Hospital in Harefield England, to receive additional support and care. Percival demonstrated great perseverance, recovering quickly. Almost a month after being transferred, he was sent to Perham training camp. Percival did not spend a great deal of time there (only fourteen days), as he was needed back in France.

Just before Armistice Day, Percival returned to England and on the 1st of November 1918 he was promoted to Lance Sergeant. xactly one month later, he was promoted to Sergeant. Percival returned to Australia aboard the Tras-os Montes on the 8th of April 1919 and later in that year, he was discharged at the 4th Military District.

Percival was a man who not only demonstrated the ANZAC Spirit characteristics of perseverance and mateship on the battlefield, but also on the sports field. He played football and cricket, locally for Jamestown. His natural disposition to work with mates on and off the field as well as his talent and playing ability saw Percival recognised by more elite teams. On the 19th of July 1919, Percival played football in the 27th Battalion football team where they defeated the 10th Battalion. He was possibly scouted by the North Adelaide Football Club during this exhibition match, and became a player at the North Adelaide Football Club from 1919-1921. In those three years North Adelaide played in three consecutive grand finals and in their 1920 Premiership win, Percival contributed two goals.

Percival married Mollie Buscoombe in 1922. The couple had six children together, three sons and three daughters. They lived and worked on their family farm located at Belalie, just up the road from Percival's childhood home at Manoora.

Whilst many young Australians made the ultimate sacrifice on the battlefield, Percival was fortunate to return home. However, he did not get to live a long and fulfilled life. Despite preserving through the First World War and solidifying mateship on the battlefield and sporting ground, Percival's life was tragically cut short. He died of an unknown cause in the Jamestown Hospital on the 30th of December 1936. He was 42 years of age. He is one of thousands of ANZACs who will be forever remembered for honourably serving their country.

Reference List

AIF Divisions: 1916 n.d., Following the Twenty-Second, viewed 17 May 2021, <https://anzac-22nd­ battalion.com/aif-divisions-1916/>.

Department of Veterans' Affairs 4 Jan 2021, Training Australian Anny Recruits During World War I, OVA Anzac Portal, Australian Government, viewed 12 May 2021, <https://anzacportal.dva.gov.au/wars-and-missions/ww1 /military-organisation/training>.

Frost, Percival William 2021, North Adelaide Football Club, viewed 23 May 2021, <https://nafc.com.au/history/search?type=player&id=d49323e1-3494-47a1-8ab9-51f2e61fbef3>.

Scotch College succeeds Kyre as Presbyterian school for boys in Adelaide suburb of Torrens Park in .,.,--,.,919 2021, viewed 23 May 2021, <https://adelaideaz.com/articles/scotch-college-succeeds-kyre-college-as- 1-1resbyterian-school-for-boys-at-torrens-park-in-1919>.

Virtual War Memorial Australia n.d., Percival William (bunny) Frost, viewed 12 May 2021, <https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/375916>.

1937 'Mr! P. W. Frost', Chronicle (Adelaide, SA: 1895- 1954), 14 January, p. 60., viewed 23 May 2021, <http://trove.nla.gov.au/nla.news-article92467602>

Documents:

National Archives of Australia n.d., Frost Percival William: SERN 2363: POB Manoora SA: POE Keswick SA: NOK M Frost Annie Elizabeth Copies of, War Documents, National Archives of Australia, N.p

Personal:

Frost, W 2021, Percival Frost Headstone, Photograph, Jamestown

Frost, W 2021, Percival William Frost Obituary- Page out of Frost Bible, Photograph Frost, W 2021, The Frost Brothers in Order- Page out of Frost Bible, Photograph