Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Before the war:
William John Evans was one of the many soldiers who took part in World War I. He was born in Deniliquin, NSW, in approximately April 1886, and grew up in Millicent, SA, where he lived up until he left for the war. William was a Roman Catholic. He was also married to Mrs M. M. W. Evans and they had one child. The service record suggests that they lived in Millicent but his wife later lived on 153 North Terrace, West Adelaide, SA.
 
William was 5 feet and 9.5 inches in height, weighed 145.5 pounds and his chest measurement was 36 inches. He had a medium fair complexion, with grey eyes and light brown hair. William had 6/6 vision in his left and right eye, meaning that his eye sight was normal.
 
William Evans was a labourer before he enrolled for the war, which suggested that he was a very strong and a fit man, as there is a lot of physical and manual work involved with being a labourer, which requires high physical fitness and strength. This may have helped make the months of training and service much easier for him, especially compared to the soldiers who had office jobs and other jobs which didn’t require strength and fitness. However, the conditions were found to be harsh for everyone, no matter how fit and strong they were. Labourers’ work included laying foundations, fitting windows, clearing sites, building walls, digging trenches, and ordering equipment for construction processes, etc. 
 
During the war:
William enlisted for the war on the 9th March 1916. His AWM Embarkment Roll number was 23/27/4, he was assigned the service number 5836. William began in the 10th Battalion. He embarked on the 27th June 1916, from Melbourne, on the HMAT Barambah A37 ship, at the age of 30. He arrived at Plymouth in England on 25th August 1916.
 
From the time William embarked to go to battle, his daily rate, excluding deferred pay, was 5 shillings.His allotment in Australia, daily, was 4 shillings. This seems to suggest that of the 5 shillings he earnt per day, he sent 4 back to his family- which was very generous, if you compare it to the other soldiers. William’s daily net pay, excluding allotment was 1 shilling – this is what he would receive on the front to help with his needs. His daily rate, which he received after completing their service with the expeditionary force, was 1 shilling.
 
When he arrived in France, in October 1916, William was temporarily transferred to the 48th Infantry Battalion before soon ending up in the Army Service Corps as a Driver, where he spent the remainder of the war. On 19th November 1916, William was sent to hospital with influenza.  William committed a crime in Havre France on the 23rd November, as he broke out of the hospital for around an hour (3pm to 4pm) and remained absent until he was apprehended by the military police. After committing the crime, William lost four days’ worth of pay. William took on strength of the 7th company on the 9th December 1916, then on the 16th, he was appointed a driver to complete establishment in France.
 
William was a part of the Australian Army Service Corps. The service, or the combat support helped the army fields operate effectively. Originally, the Australian Army had two main service corps; the Ordnance Corps and the Service Corps.
Ordnance Corps:They were generally responsible for machinery and ammunitions, as well as it organised the supply and storage of ammunition and the repair and maintenance of machinery, weapons and vehicles.
Army Corps:This corps was responsible for the transport and provision of supplies and rations, other than machinery or ammunition; this included the delivery of mail to the troops. This corps also provided additional transport resources for moving troops.
 
There were three different parts of the service corps which William could have contributed to. These were:
Transport: Which included the transport of supplies, mail and personnel by land, sea and air; electrical and mechanical engineers.
Maintenance: Recovered and repaired machinery, vehicles, electronic equipment and weapons.
Supplies: Helped provide supplies for the two sets of allies; the Central Powers(Germany, Austria-Hungary and their allies)and the Triple Entente (Britain, France and Russia).
 
As a driver in the Army Service Corps (ASC), it was likely that the role William played involved horse transportation, because the Horse Transport section was the largest element. The ASC provided an important role in the war, as the soldiers couldn’t fight without food, equipment and ammunition. The Horse Transport was important as their job was providing all their supplies and because the soldiers couldn’t move without the horses or vehicles.
 
William was detached from salvage duty on the 18th January 1917. He took leave from France on the 19th July until the 29th (10-day leave). 
 
William was detached for duty at the 4th Army farm on the 30thJanuary 1918; he re-joined the unit from detachment on the 23rdMarch.
 
William's service records shows that on the 4thMarch 1919, William was promoted to temporary corporal. He was sent to England on the 15thMarch. The war diary record suggests that on the 6thApril 1919, he may have reverted back to his usual rank of being a driver. William embarked for Australia on 20th May 1919.

 
Bibliography:
https://online.clickview.com.au/share?sharecode=9e32d392
https://vwma.org.au/explore/units/55
https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/regiments-and-corps/the-army-service-corps-in-the-first-world-war/
https://www.awm.gov.au/people/roll-search
https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/awm-media/collection/RCDIG1067552/large/5372288.JPG
https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1910732
https://vwma.org.au/explore/units/324
https://www.awm.gov.au/learn/understanding-military-structure/army/service-corps