ORR, Edwin John Keith
| Service Number: | SX14343 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 3 January 1941, Keswick, SA |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 8th Division Ammunition Sub-Park |
| Born: | Kalangadoo, South Australia, 17 November 1921 |
| Home Town: | Bordertown, Tatiara, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer and Truck driver |
| Died: | Illness whilst a Prisoner of the Japanese , Borneo, 20 March 1945, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Adelaide WW2 Wall of Remembrance, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, Bendigo Sandakan Prisoner of War Memorial, Bordertown WW2 Roll of Honour, Labuan Memorial, Labuan Federal Territory, Malaysia |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Jan 1941: | Enlisted Keswick, SA | |
|---|---|---|
| 3 Sep 1941: | Enlisted Wayville, SA | |
| 20 Mar 1945: | Involvement Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, SX14343, 8th Division Ammunition Sub-Park |
Army Service
SX14343 PTE Edwin John Keith Orr served with the 8th Division Ammunition Sub-park in Malaya and Singapore. As a POW he left the Changi POW Camp on 28 March 1943 for Borneo on the DeKlerk as part of E Force.
Traveling via Kuching, Edwin arrived at Berhala Island on 14 Apr 43. Worked on the Sandakan airstrip and died on 4 March 1945.
Edwin is remembered with a plaque at the Labuan War Cemetery - panel 26.
Submitted 12 April 2022 by Robert Kenny
Biography contributed by Faithe Jones
Son of Andrew Isaac and Kate Orr, of Bordertown, South Australia.
Private E. J. K. (Keith) Orr, who died in a P.O.W. Camp at Ranur, Borneo, on March 20, 1945, was the second son of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Isaac Orr, and he was born at Kalangadoo on November 17, 1921. He was 23 years of age.
He was a member of the Third Light Horse for about three years before he enlisted, and was only five weeks in camp when he was sent to Malaya with the 8th Division, Ammunition Sub-Park.
Besides his parents he leaves two brothers, Sgt. Eric Andrew Orr, A.I.F., just returned from the 7th Division, Borneo, and Leon Scott, A.I.F., Rabaul, with the 16th A.M.C.U., and two sisters, Mrs. Bradshaw (Kathleen), Altona, Victoria, and Zoe Rosemarie, Bordertown. He was a member of the Church of England.
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