SMITH, James Dawson
| Service Number: | 3433 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 7 August 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 4th Light Trench Mortar Battery |
| Born: | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 12 March 1896 |
| Home Town: | Spring Hill, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Killed in action, France, 11 April 1917, aged 21 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Villers-Bretonneux Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 7 Aug 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3433, 15th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 21 Oct 1915: | Involvement Private, 3433, 15th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '11' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Seang Bee embarkation_ship_number: A48 public_note: '' | |
| 21 Oct 1915: | Embarked Private, 3433, 15th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Seang Bee, Brisbane | |
| 11 Apr 1917: | Involvement Private, 3433, 4th Light Trench Mortar Battery, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 3433 awm_unit: 4th Australian Light Trench Mortar Battery awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1917-04-11 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
James Dawson Smith was the son of William Dawson and Margaret Smith of Spring Hill, Queensland.
His older brother, 5833 Pte. Robert Ernest Smith 15th Battalion was killed in action during an attack on Stormy Trench near Gueudecourt on 1 February 1917, aged 27.
Another brother, 969 Pte. William Sydney Smith 11th Trench Mortar Battery, was twice wounded in 1918 and returned to Australia in 1919.
James enlisted in the 15th Battalion but was transferred to the 4th Light Trench Mortar Battery during 1916. He was reported as missing at Bullecourt on 11 April 1917. It would be over six months before his death was confirmed by a Court of Enquiry.
The two brothers were reported missing for a long time which caused the parents a lot of anguish. The father, William D. Smith wrote to Base Records in 1921, “How is it that I can get no information as to how the poor lad was killed or where he is buried?”