Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Albert Charles Datson was born in on the 9th of May in 1887, to parents Absalom Charles Datson, and Eliza Datson (born Collins). His father was born in 1854, and his mother was born in 1850. This age difference was quite unusual at the time, as his mother was a little older than his father. Both of his parents lived in Broken Hill, New South Wales, unlike Albert, who lived in Adelaide. Albert was born in Manoora, South Australia but grew up in Peake, South Australia. He had five siblings, though only the name of one is known; Lily Datson. His religion was Baptist.

Albert was fair skinned, with blue eyes and brown hair. He was 5ft  3¼ in, and weighed 127lbs. The only noticeable scars he had, were three vaccine marks on his left hand.

Albert worked as a packer for the South Australian Railways. In regards to the earlier forms of railways (such as the one Albert worked on), being a packer entails the process of lifting a sleeper up and packing new stones under it to correct the level of the track on the railway, or to fill up holes that have developed in particular areas.

He enlisted on 29th June 1916, in Adelaide, and on this same day, he underwent a medical examination in Mitcham, Adelaide, which he passed, and was considered fit for duty. In addition, on June 29th he took the oath that wast to be taken by any persons enlisting.

When Albert enlisted, he did so for the 43rd Battalion of the 3rd Reinforcement. He enlisted as a private which is the lowest rank, and stayed that way all throughout his time serving in Australia’s military forces.  He and the rest of these Reinforcements embarked at Adelaide on A.68 Anchises on August 28th of 1916. They made their way toward England, and after they arrived, on November 11th, 1916, Albert transferred to the 37th Battalion.

Although it isn’t specified what battles Albert fought in, it can be assumed he fought with his battalion during their battles. Eleven days after his transfer, on November 22nd, Albert and the 37th Battalion proceeded to France. Within a week of landing in France, they began to occupy trenches on the Western Front, this was the beginning of a terrible winter.

On April 27th, 1917 Albert detached for duty with the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company, and only re-joined on June 5th of the same year. The first major battle that the 37th fought in, was at Messines which is in Belgium. This was fought between the 7th and 9th of June in 1917. After this, the battalion still fought in another 2 major attacks in this area. One of which is the battle of Broodseinde, which caused many thousands of Australian casualties. The 37th Battalion was back in France in late March of 1918 to meet the German Army’s offensive attack. 

In September 1918 multiple battalions were forced to disband to come to the aid of other battalions, the 37th was one of these. In effect, on the 12th of October 1918 the 37th Battalion of 90 men, was disbanded. Due to this, Albert Charles Datson was transferred to the 38th battalion, though by this time, they had already fought in their last major action of the war, which was the Australian & American operation which breached the defences of the Hindenburg Line along the St Quentin Canal, between the 29th of September and the 2nd of October in 1918.

With the 38th battalion, Albert proceeded to England on February 28th, 1919. From here on May 20th, 1919, they began their journey back to Australia, and arrived soon after.

Some battle honours that the 37th battalion had won while he was a part of it, included the Battle of Broodseinde, which was awarded for their involvement in the successful assault and capture. This win was essential in the weakening of German forces, this was on the 4th of October 1917. Another battle honour would be for participating in the assault and occupation of the Messines Ridge on the Western Front from the 7th of June 1917 to the 14th of June 1917.

Much isn’t known about any of Albert’s friendships during his time in service, but he did seem to have some sort of friendship with Private Marks Betts. On the 14th of March 1917, a woman named Miss M. Betts living in North Terrace, Adelaide, enquired about the service number of Private Albert Datson through a letter, believing that he would have information on the death of her cousin Private Mark Betts. He died on the 12th of October 1917, which was during the time of the battle of Broodseinde, so he may have perished during this fight. In this letter, Miss M. Betts talks about how long Mark and Albert spent together during their time in France and how she believed he may know specific details about her cousin’s death.

Originally, when she first sent the letter to the A.R.C Information Bureau, they could not find someone who matched the name “Albert Datson”, though after looking further, they found an “Albert Charles Datson” and were able to give her the information she desired.  To this day it is unknown what she did with the information, and whether she was eventually able to contact him.

After Albert’s return to Australia, he was awarded two medals for his bravery and service in the war. The first one was awarded on September 1st, 1921, and the second was awarded on August 25th, 1922. When Albert joined the army, he was single and had no kids. The details of his life after his return to Australia are unknown.

Albert married Emily Rose Ellis in 1921 and they made their home at Reynell St, Gelland (now West Croydon). He re-enlisted on 12 April 1942 and served with 1 Battalion Volunteer Defence Corps.