Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Harry Oscar Goldfinch was an Australian soldier who fought during WW1. Born in 1897 in Thebarton, South Australia, he was educated at Adelaide High School. Before joining the military, Goldfinch worked as a clerk. He was initially turned away from service for his height (5’2”). He successfully enlisted on the 1st of May 1916, just above the minimum age of enlistment at 18 years and seven months. At this age, Goldfinch was required to have parental permission to enlist. This document is also attached, in which his mother, Eliza Ann, gave permission to Goldfinch. As he was unmarried, his next of kin was his mother. Goldfinch enlisted as a Private and continued with this rank until he joined the 2nd Australian Division Signals Company. His service number was 5583.

On the 28th of August 1916, Goldfinch boarded the HMAT Anchises in Adelaide bound for France. This boat made five voyages between the allied territories of Egypt, England, France, and Australia during WW1. The boat was sunk off the West Coast of the United Kingdom during WW2 in 1941.

Hamilton Camp and Rollestone Camp were military camps in Rollestone, England from 1916 until the end of WW2 in 1945. Goldfinch arrived in France after his voyage on the 5th of March 1917. He then travelled to Rollestone, England on the same day. At midnight on the 19th of March 1917, Goldfinch was Absent Without Leave (AWL) until the following day at noon. For his crime, he forfeited one day’s pay (5 shillings).

On the 5th of April 1917, Goldfinch left the Rollestone Camp and headed to the Western Front in France. After four days, he joined the 27th Infantry Battalion. Infantry were standard foot soldiers in WW1. This unit had previously been in Gallipoli and elsewhere on the Eastern Front and received reinforcements (such as Goldfinch himself) to go and fight on the Western Front. They arrived in France in April of 1916, which is about a year before Goldfinch joined them. Goldfinch served during:

·      The Battle of Broodseinde Ridge

·      The Battle of Menin Road

Goldfinch served in this Battalion for almost a year, until he left to join the 2nd Australian Division Signals Company on the 26th of March 1918.

The Battle of Broodseinde Ridge was the third operation of the Ypres Offensive, launched by Herbert Plummer. It took place near the town of Ypres in western Belgium. The objectives were 1500 metres in enemy territory, and the attack was to be preceded by an artillery bombardment. At 5am on October 4th, 1917, the battalion was in formation for the attack, and they moved forward to ANZAC Ridge (Ypres Salient). 70 minutes after attacking, the Battalion moved forward to a position ‘in rear of objective one.’ At 8:10 AM, after seizing the first objective, the Battalion moved to aid the 2nd infantry battalion in seizing objective 2. On the 5th of October, the Battalion withdrew (presumably for heavy casualties) but left machine gunners to hold the line. On the 6th, the Battalion withdrew again and received orders to relieve the 2/6th Manchester Regiment, which they completed at 10pm. 24 hours later, they were relieved by the 17th Battalion and moved back to Railway Wood. After reorganising and equipping, the battalion moved to ANZAC Ridge to be a reserve force for the 5th and 6th AIF brigades on the 9th. The Battalion moved forward to occupy Old Red Line. On the 10th, the Battalion moved back from Old Red Line to Ypres and travelled back to Steenvorde in France. The battle resulted in the Allies gaining all objectives with 6,500 casualties.

The Battle of Menin Road also took place in Ypres, as part of the Third Battle of Ypres. The objective was to control additional sections of the curving ridge, East of Ypres. Menin Road crossed through this territory. This battle was an excellent example of the use of artillery fire in WW1. On the 19th of September 1917, the 27th Battalion moved from Ypres to Westhoek ridge under artillery fire with no casualties. The Battalion controlled the ridge and were in formation by 3:50am. At 5:40am on the 20th (zero hour), the artillery, machine gun barrages and infantry advanced under cover of ‘the most intense and accurate barrage’ the recorder had ever seen. When the Allied forces reached the German ‘pillboxes’ the artillery were still firing on the Germans, causing them to be unable to shoot the Battalion without being blown up. The Battalion’s objective was reached ‘without difficulty and on time’. Trenches were dug between Polygon Wood and Albert Redoubt and the position was consolidated. After this, the Germans and Allies exchanged artillery fire for the next two days with no ground won or lost, and the Germans mounted several unsuccessful ground assaults. In the morning of the 21st, word was received that the 27th Battalion would be relieved by the 23rd Battalion AIF. This was completed by 1:00am the next day. The attack was successful, with the Allies taking all their objectives despite 5,000 casualties.

On the 26th of March 1918, Goldfinch detached from the 27th Battalion to join the 2nd Australian Division Signals Company, which he did four days later. When he joined this unit, his rank was changed to Sapper, which is the signals equivalent of a Private. This Unit (and the Sappers in them) focused on creating telecommunications from Headquarters to the front line. ‘Linies’ were tasked with rolling out wire connecting field telephones at the allied force’s most advanced positions. They usually completed their duties at night as to not be seen by the enemy, which could cause them to become lost on the front line. They were often the only moving thing on the battlefield, and so naturally attracted fire. Lines would often get broken by artillery fire and were therefore buried when possible. This meant that the linies would have to constantly locate and repair breaks in the line.

Goldfinch was a despatch rider in the signals company. Despatch riders delivered messages across the battlefield when no telephone lines were available. They also commonly did their work at night as to avoid enemy fire. Goldfinch is pictured below with a motorcycle he used to do his work. When Goldfinch served in this unit, they were focused in France and Belgium on the Western front. Goldfinch served in Signals until he returned home on the 7th of July 1919. While on the front line, Goldfinch was despatch riding when he stopped to go to sleep. A fellow soldier threw a ground sheet (essentially a rain jacket) on him. That night, a bomb exploded next to Goldfinch, and he was buried alive. Luckily, the ground sheet had enough of an air pocket so that Goldfinch could be dug out before he suffocated.

On the 22nd of August 1918, Goldfinch fell ill and went to hospital. It is unclear what disease he had, but it kept him out of the fight for almost a month, until the 18th of September. This period was the beginning of the Spanish Influenza pandemic, which could have been what Goldfinch caught. Other common diseases in the trenches of WW1 include trench foot, trench fever, typhoid fever, and dysentery. In total, an estimated 2 million people died of disease during WW1.

On the 7th of July 1919, Harry Oscar Goldfinch embarked on a journey home to South Australia. The war had officially ended more than half a year beforehand, but with over 130,000 troops to be returned home, this process took a very long time. The first soldiers to return home were the ones that had served longest, which pushed Goldfinch a long way down the line as he only entered the war halfway through. In fact, the very last Australian soldiers to come home returned only three months later, on the 22nd of September.

Due to his time despatch riding in WW1, Goldfinch developed quite a fondness for motorbikes. When he got home, he invested all his savings into uninsured motorbikes, all of which got burnt up when the shed he stored them in caught fire. After this, he allegedly became a stickler for insurance. One year after returning home, Goldfinch was in the newspaper on the 15th of October 1920 for driving a motorcycle too fast down North Terrace and was fined three pounds and fifteen shillings. He also was fined for not renewing his licence. He moved from Thebarton to the Eastern suburbs and continued work as a clerk for Eudunda Farmers on North Terrace. He rose to the positions of Company Secretary and Board member. He played district cricket for West Torrens, bowls at Burnside RSL, and is known to have played bridge with Sir Donald Bradman. He was married to Phyllis Stormonth on the 29th of January 1927, with whom he had three children: Vivienne, Graham, and Philippa. On the 14th of August 1979, Goldfinch died at age 81 and was cremated at Centennial Park in the South Adelaide suburb of Pasadena. His ashes were scattered at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church, also on North Terrace, where he was bursar during his life.

Thank you to Philippa Ridgway (Born Philippa Goldfinch) for interview