Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

John was born on the 11th November 1909 at Tantanoola near Mount Gambier on the Limestone Coast of South Australia. He was the third generation of Seebohms to live in the Tantanoola area. His paternal grandfather, William was one of the first European families to settle in the region with John’s father, Edward Douglas (Dougal) being one of six sons and four daughters. Edward (Ted) married Alice Guerin with the couple having seven children. John was the fourth son, with older brothers Herbert Edward, Reginald William, Clarence (Clarry) John (Jack) and having three sisters, Mary Veronica (Rene), Kathleen, and Sheila Mary. The children all attended the local Millicent School.
Jack’s father, Ted was also an active worker but when John was 24, his father was breaking in a young horse when it bolted. Unfortunately, the cart hit a pile of stones on the side of the road and overturned. Ted was taken to the Millicent Thyne Hospital with a broken collarbone, three broken ribs and a badly-crushed shoulder. Just two years later In November ’36 Ted was returning from the Tantanoola cheese factory with a cart load of milk cans when his horse shied at something in a drain, colliding with a horse drawn lorry coming in the opposite direction. Ted’s cart was overturned, throwing him heavily on to the road. Another bout of hospitalisation revealed a broken shoulder blade and abrasions.
Jack, a useful footballer for Tantanoola, married Phyllis May Jackson on the 8th February ’36 in the St Andrew Manse at Mount Gambier. The couple were struck a cruel blow with the death of their day-old son, Kevin John on the 15th June, ‘37 in Mount Gambier. He was buried in the Mount Gambier Lake Terrace Cemetery Section K 115.
Jack’s oldest brother Herbert (born in October 1899) had enlisted as an 18-year-old to serve in WWI with the 43rd Battalion, fighting in France and contracted influenza, causing him to be hospitalised. Unfortunately, he appeared to have lost both his discharge papers and returned service badge which would have helped the labourer to gain employment, particularly during the Depression years. With WWII erupting, he again offered his service on the 2nd October ‘39, amending his birthdate to 1900 and his age as 39 years 11 months. He was allocated to the 4th Garrison battalion as S212442. He was discharged on the 29th February ‘40 with his papers recording ‘Considered his services are no longer required’. He then enlisted on the 14th March ’40 aged 40 as S212800, but was discharged on June 20th that year with his papers again recording that ‘his services are no longer required’. In his third attempt on the 1st March ’40 Herbert changed his date of birth to a more youthful 34 year old and a birth date of 1906. The then rabbit trapper claimed to have no previous service and became SX1914 with the 2nd AIF but was discharged on the 14th March because of ‘False Attestation’ His last attempt saw him become SX5759.
Jack’s older brother, Reginald was the next to enlist, just after his 34th birthday, on the 6th July ’40. He was allocated the number SX8177 and placed in the 2/48th Battalion. By September ’40 the local paper reported that Herbert was home on leave. Adding that ‘Private Seebohm, who was on active service in the last war, had a long period on garrison duty before joining the second A.I.F. He is with the second 43rd battalion. His brother Reg ("Gun Alley") Seebohm, of football fame, is also in camp at Wayville.’


31-year-old Jack, a labourer, was the third of Ted’s sons to enlist at the nearby town of Millicent on the 19th July ’41, nominating his wife Phyllis as his next of kin. As a ‘supplementary family’ he also nominated his brother, Private Herbert Seebohm, then still serving with the 2/1 Battalion. Jack was allocated the number SX14283 and initially placed in the 9th Armoured Regiment but was soon transferred as he lacked the skills to be a driver mechanic. A few days were spent with the 2/43rd reinforcements before Jack was allocated to the 2/48th Battalion with Reg. He was farewelled in October ’41.
November ’41 saw him embarking for the Middle East, arriving at the end of the month. Three months later in March ’42 Jack was hospitalised with a back condition, lumbago which may have been caused by the volume of equipment soldiers carried. Seven months later in October, he sustained gunshot wounds to his right arm and wrist in action, spending time in hospital.
That month, Montgomery had ordered the 9th Battalion to attack northward. This included an all-out attack on the strategically positioned Trig 29. Conditions were ever-changing and the fighting continuous. Jack’s 2/48th Battalion prepared for the second battle of El Alamein which began on October 23rd. The evening was described by John Glenn in ‘Tobruk to Tarakan’ as ‘an occasional burst from a machine gun disturbed the night of 24th October. Nevertheless, it was a busy time for the tired men. Little or no sleep could be had. A hot meal sent forward after dark was quickly swallowed. There was no time for yarning. Defences had to be improved, more digging and wiring done, and patrols sent out.’ He later added that ‘the 2/48th had stirred up a real hornets’ nest.’ On that night alone 9 of the Battalion were killed and 20 wounded in action. Of these 16 were from South Australia and the remainder from Western Australia.
Glenn explains they were ‘running into particularly stiff opposition to the west of the Trig point. It was only after hard fighting, with heavy casualties on both sides, that they were able to consolidate on their objective. Gradually the platoon, small in number to start with, was being whittled away and those remaining were being forced to go to ground.’ At the end of the night the battalion had just 41 men still standing. John Glenn best summarised the soldiers’ efforts. ‘Truly it can be said of these men, “They fought themselves and their enemy to a standstill until flesh and blood could stand no more, then they went on fighting.”
Back home the November issue of the Chronicle carried an extensive list of the cost to the soldiers involved inJack’s battalion. SX11130 Pte. Ernest W S. Moore from Nth. Kensington and SX13756 Pte. Edward G. Davis, from Salisbury were killed in action. SX8096 A-Cpl. Henry D. Laughton, from King's Park was listed as Dangerously Wounded. Many others were listed as wounded in action including SX10316 Mjr. Geoffrey S. Edmunds, Toorak; SX9064 Lt. Hugh F. Treloar, Adelaide; SX8402 Pte. Arnold R. Dolan, Renmark; SX6910 Pte. Hoard Major, Woodville; SX6832 Pte. Walter J. Fennell, Berri; SX13701 Pte. Frank M. Lowe, Whyalla; SX7609 Pte. Colin H. Rickard, Penola; SX7411 Pte. Walter H. J. Hay, Murray Bridge; SX7122 Pte. Percival G. Bartholomew, Narrung; SX11828 Pte. Roy H. Winter, Thebarton; SX7242 Pte. P. A. Pfeiffer, Berri; SX7130 Pte. Eric A. Goold, Salisbury; SX6829 L-Cpl. Clement R. P. Billing, Pinnaroo; SX10501 Pte. Hedley K. Bonython, Burnside; SX7591 Cpl. Jack S. Bowers, Unley; SX7666 Pte. Eric J. Chuck, Kalangadoo; SX8810 Pte. Havard (Howard) R. Crabb, Whyalla; SX13683 Pte. Sydney L. Farrell Broken Hill: SX7657 Pte. Myers A. Geraghy, Pt . Macdonnell; SX7266 Sgt. Neil Gilchrist, Balaklava; SX9376 Pte. Harold H. Gogel, Moorook; SX11131 Pte. H. N. Headon, Adelaide; SX7642 Pte Donald J. Kerin, Burra; SX8837 Pte. Edgar V. W. Lynch, Adelaide; SX9445 Pte. Lawerence H. Mickan, Cummins; SX7025 A-L/Cpl. Paul B. Morrissey King's Park; SX9530 Pte. David R. Munn, Colonel Light Gardens: SX5030 Pte. Eric R. Olds, Adelaide; SX8239 Pte. Colin R. Parsons, Minlaton; SX8904 Pte. Keith Player, Warooka; SX6915 Cpl. Glyn H. Pope, Cheltenham; SX13012 Pte. Jack Ralla, Brompton; SX7410 Cpl. Robert F. G. Ranford, Davington; SX14283 Pte. John D Seebohm, Tantanoola; SX11302 Pte. Walter Sharp, Magill; SX7206 Pte. Ronald. C. Smith, Helmsdale; SX6894 Pte. Thomas V. Trish, Mile End; SX7221 Pte. William H. Vivian, Albert Park; SX7689 Pte. John E. Wakeman, Robe; SX11160 Pte. Samuel E. Welsh, Adelaide and SX7808 Sgt, Jack K. Weston, Appila.
The South Eastern Times also carried the news of their local young men being wounded. ‘Reports of three Millicent soldiers of the A.I.F. having been wounded in action have been received by their relatives. They are Private Alan Wylie and Private Con. Fitzgerald, both of Hatherleigh, and Private J. Seebohm, of Millicent. They all enlisted from this district. and have been on active service abroad for a comparatively long period.’ All three were from the 2/48th Battalion.
Jack was charged with ‘Conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline’, receiving a £2 fine just prior to his battalion leaving the Middle East. He and his fellow 2/48th Battalion were finally able to leave the Middle East and return to Australia via Melbourne, arriving on the 25th February ’43. Early in May ’43 a huge gathering, organised by the Red Cross ladies, welcomed the local soldiers home from the Middle East. ‘As the guest entered the Hall a guard of honour was formed, and "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow" was sung followed by the National Anthem, and the "Song of Australia". morning tea was served.’ Numerous speeches were made before Jack’s brother, Reg responded and “spoke very highly of the work the Red Cross was doing, and said he found the Red Cross nurses most kind. Pte. R. Seebohm makes the third son of Mr. and Mrs. E Seebohm who has recently returned from abroad. He was in the Middle East for 16 months, and during that time he was unfortunate enough to spend 11 months in the hospital, owing to war injuries. However, he is looking fit again.’
Unfortunately for Jack, on the voyage home he was diagnosed with Fibrosis, the forming of scar tissue. Then within two months was diagnosed with Von Recklinghausen’s disease where lesions or tumors grow along nerve tissues of the skin. This caused him to be discharged as ‘medically unfit for service’ on the 21st July ’43. His brother, Reg was also discharged later that year in November because of the injuries he had sustained.
In a further blow, Jack was granted a divorce from Phyllis in May ’44. Then Alice his 75-year-old mother, died at Millicent on the 16th April ‘50 and his father, Edward died on August 26th 1951 at his Millicent home.
Jack was fortunate to later enjoy family life, marrying Eliza May Gardener with the couple enjoying bringing up two girls, Barbara Dawn and Kaye Lynette.
Aged 53, Jack died on the 9th September 1963 and is buried in the Millicent Cemetery, old section Section C Grave 4. Eliza lived to be 84. She died on the 15th November 1989 and now rests with Jack.
Researched and written by Kaye Lee, daughter of Bryan Holmes SX8133 2/48th Battalion.