LAYDON, James William
| Service Number: | 5365 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 26 February 1916, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 25th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Durham, England, 1 June 1882 |
| Home Town: | West End, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Natural causes, Brisbane, Queensland, 18 October 1955, aged 73 years |
| Cemetery: |
Mount Thompson Memorial Gardens & Crematorium, Queensland Columbarium 2, Section 6 |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 26 Feb 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5365, Brisbane, Queensland | |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Aug 1916: | Involvement Private, 5365, 25th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Brisbane embarkation_ship: HMAT Itonus embarkation_ship_number: A50 public_note: '' | |
| 8 Aug 1916: | Embarked Private, 5365, 25th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Itonus, Brisbane | |
| 10 Jun 1918: | Wounded AIF WW1, Private, 5365, 25th Infantry Battalion, "Peaceful Penetration - Low-Cost, High-Gain Tactics on the Western Front", GSW (right thigh) | |
| 21 Aug 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 5365, 25th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour James William Laydon's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Paul Trevor
'LIFER – James William Laydon.
It was a fine evening, dinner and a show at the glorious Tivoli Theatre. Shortly after 8:30pm shots rang out, Ex- Parliamentarian Whitford was dead and James William Laydon was on the run. Jealousy, the green-eyed monster had struck a fatal blow and it would strike a ruinous path through two families. Laydon – “I was taught at the war to kill my enemies, I killed many there that never did me any harm. Shooting was too good for that mongrel”
At the time of his arrest, Laydon was working as a Labourer. He had however been a soldier in the first world war and was a carpenter by trade. His army record is of an excellent character. During his service he served in the battle of the Somme. Wounded and gassed, he certainly had seen and done some horrible things in service for his country. When war broke out he enlisted voluntarily, serving the entire war and returning to Australia in 1919. It was his excellent record that he would later rely upon in his defence.
Understandably, times were tough during the war, his wife with three children, 8,6 and 1 would have had a difficult time of it. Money would have been tight. It was times like this that one would seek the assistance of friends. You see, the Whitford’s and the Laydon’s were friendly. It comes as no surprise that a struggling Mrs Laydon would have sought help from her friend Mr Whitford. It was the alleged help that she received that was the root cause of all of this trouble.' READ MORE (boggoroadgaol.com)
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