Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

William Ernest George (Bill) was the second son of Harold Leslie and Ethel Snider. Harold had served in WWI with the 32nd Infantry battalion as 2726. Born in Brompton on the 21st October 1919, Bill had two brothers, Owen Louis and Robert Harold, both of whom were known by their middle names. The boys grew up in Peterborough (formerly called Petersburg) in the mid-north of South Australia where they attended the local Peterborough School. Bill and Harold particularly, were regularly mentioned for their academic performances each year. Similarly, all three boys performed well in races held at the Christmas Tree Fete at the conclusion of the year. This included a mixture of flat races and novelty potato and three legged races. As Harold worked in the Railways the family also attended the Peterborough Railway Picnic Sports at Ucolta Park. Special trains ran from Cockburn, Terowie and Peterborough West, plus three from Peterborough. Some families would drive cars for the huge get-together. In ’32 over 1000 children were present with the committee providing free lollies, fruit, seesaws, swings, ocean wave and races. The latter included a race for 10 -12-year-olds which Bill won. (Coincidentally an older Ralph Holmes also won the Youth’s 100-yard handicap. Ralph’s younger brother, Bryan and Bill were later to serve together in the 2/48th battalion.)
Bill also proved to be a talented all-rounder in cricket. Whilst at school, he competed for the prestigious P. H. Lewis Challenge Cup, between the St. Joseph's and Primary School teams. Bill’s fine opening partnership of 52 runs with Laurie Ley (25) and Bill’s 20 contributed as did his creditable bowling and fielding which gave the Primary School the win.
Post school, Bill worked as a labourer and was also serving with the Militia. A very strong recruiting campaign was conducted for the A.I.F. in a huge drive aimed at fit young country men; Bill then enlisted just prior to his 21st birthday in July 1940 at Wayville, the same day as Bryan Holmes who became SX8133. There both was allocated to the newly formed 2/48th Battalion with Bill awarded the number SX8178. (His brother, Robert Harold, also enlisted in February the following year and became Leading Aircraftman 28753. ) Initial days for Bill and Bryan were spent in the cold of the Pavilions, now part of the Royal Adelaide Showgrounds before the new enlistees headed to Woodside for their preliminary training.
Back home on pre-embarkation leave the Mayor of Peterborough held a farewell at the magnificent Town Hall, which also included an orchestra playing tunes popular at the time. The Mayor gave an eulogistic speech, which was reported in the Times and Northern Advertiser, of October ’40. "Ladies and gentlemen, as you are well aware, we are again gathered tonight to pay honor and tribute to the fine array of young Australian Soldiers we have with us. We are all extremely proud of the fact that they are here tonight, proud of the step they have taken, and feel sure that they will play their part, having answered the call of the Empire, and their country. That they are going to honor Australia by their actions is certain, and we hope they will if possible exceed the deeds of valor accomplished by the men of the first A.I.F. These young men will probably be sailing away from our shores, and I know it is the hope and desire of everyone that they will have God Speed and a safe return. If that is accomplished we will have no fear that these young men will come back after victory has been won, crowned with deeds of valor, and I trust we will have the honor of assembling here again to welcome them back.” Five of those honoured were with the 2/48th Battalion with Bill. They included Alex. Harding 2/48th SX8454 William Snider 2/48th SX8178, John Dolan 2/48th SX7675, George H. Dickinson 2/48th SX7649, Walter Faulkner 2/48th SX5150, and Eric Smith 2/48th SX4472.
Wally Bills, a returned WWI soldier also spoke in farewell: “It does not seem long ago since I was one of those being farewelled, not in this Hall, and I hope that all these men will have as much fun as I did, taking the good with the bad. I notice amongst the assembly, the faces of parents of some of the boys, and to them I would like to say a word of cheer in that it is not all hard and rough, and the lads will have many good times. All can say to them is that if they keep their humor they will get on alright. They are fine looking men, and I am sure they will do well and that they will be a credit to the Town from which they have enlisted, and on behalf of the Returned Soldiers' Association I wish them the best of Good Luck. I feel sure that we have as much faith in them as anybody could have, and that they will make good, and we only hope that they will all be spared to come back." Of those with the 2/48th Battalion, George Dickinson was killed on the 18th April ’41 and Alex Harding on the 22nd July ’42.
Each of the young men were presented with a farewell parcel, to which Alex Harding responded. Returning to the 2/48th the Battalion contingent then embarked on the Stratheden for the Middle East, on the 7th November 1940, arriving on the 19th December 1940 where his Battalion completed a few months training in Cyrenaica. On arrival, Bill was graded as Group III Driver Mechanic for two months before returning to his battalion. From there, he was soon on his way to serve in Tobruk, Syria and Egypt. By the start of April 1941, the 2/48th were in Tobruk where the dust, flies, heat, minimal water supplies and constant bombardment were quite a challenge to new enlistees. They were to become the famed Rats of Tobruk. Conditions were constantly challenging and dangerous, with the list of injuries, deaths and captures being reported back home.
By September ’41, Roy Grubb SX6059, also in the 2/48th Battalion, had written to the local Times and Northern Advertiser expressing his appreciation for the handknitted pullover he had received from a Mrs Kahle. He added “What added considerably to my pleasure at receiving the pullover, was the fact that it had come from Peterborough, for that town was my home for five years prior to my enlistment. Since embarkation however I understand that my parents have been transferred to Adelaide. I hope however through my work always to have an interest in Peterborough. I suppose you know of Alex Harding and Bill Snider. They are both in this battalion and I see them quite frequently. They are both doing good jobs. (Alex has recently been promoted to the rank of Corporal).”
Within a year, the news was less welcome ‘Mr. and Mrs. Snider, of Peterborough West, have been advised that their second son, Cpl. William George Snider, was wounded in action on July 18. He joined the A.I.F. in June 1940 and sailed from Australia in November of that year. He served eight months in Tobruk, then was in Syria and Egypt.’ The Chronicle carried this news and that of Alex Harding’s death. It was sobering times for those in Peterborough.
By March the following year, Bill, Arnold Pink SX13622 and Bryan Holmes all from the 2/48th Battalion were home on leave in Peterborough. An indication of the poor conditions on Bill’s return to his battalion saw him contract tonsilitis in November. Finally in February he was able to head home from the Middle East, arriving in Melbourne later that month. A brief ‘escape’ in that city caused him to lose three day’s pay. This brief time preceded training in Queensland before the battalion was sent to New Guinea and a totally different war, conditions and enemy. A challenge to his superior, reaction to the heat and humidity and reverting to the rank of Private were all prior to Bill being wounded in action in November ’43, for the third time. ‘Mr and Mrs H. L. Snider, of Peterborough have been advised that their son, William George Snider, has been wounded in action in New Guinea. He enlisted in June 1940, was a "Rat of Tobruk" for eight months. He took part in the El Alamein campaign, and was wounded twice while in the Middle East. He came back to Australia last February.’ Others from his Battalion to also be wounded were Pte. Henry A. G. Bear, 2/48th Moonaree; SX18085 Pte. L. S. Corcoran. 2/48th Millicent: SX8178 Cpl. W. E. G. Snider. 2/48th Peterborough: SX15909 Pte. John M. Tomney, 2/48th Fowler’s Bay and SX16794 Pte. Colin P. Tonkin, 2/48th Wynarka. All these fellow soldiers survived their wounds and the war.
A brief mention is made in Mark Johnson’s recent book, Derrick VC In His Own Words about the circumstances of the acquisition of this injury. “Tanks now operating again & ridge occupied after a brief but hard fight. A Coy. Moving up to take over advance with tanks. Had only gone 150 degrees along road when 2 M.G.s opened on the forward tank and 9Pl were pinned down. 7Pl moved along the road received 4 casualties Cpl Tom Woodall, Cpl Bill Snider, Pts George Chapman & Jack Stevens. Tom Woodall died later. By dusk we had pushed the Jap off & supported by Don Coy consolidated the won posn.”
Leaving New Guinea behind, Bill returned via Brisbane, where again he had an unofficial three day ‘holiday’ for which he was again fined. Back home on leave, better events happened. Bill married Edith Ellen Clinch on the 18th March, ’44 in the Ottoway Congregational Church. Soon after, his youngest brother Harold married Brenda Keane on June 24th at St James’ Church in Mile End with Louis as best man and Bill as his groomsman.
John Glenn in his book Tobruk to Tarakan tells of the training for amphibious landings practiced on HMAS Manoora in preparation for actual landing at Tarakan. This was to be the last mission for the 2/48th Battalion. On April 22nd, ’44 having been informed that landing craft would be unable to beach in the mud, collapsible landing craft were used. Bill’s recollection was that:
“We had orders for troops to train for amphibious landings by way of small boats of shallow draft, towed by ship’s launches. These boats would hold about eighteen men each. Gerry Bellenger of Headquarters Company was looking after the small engine, Lieutenant ‘Diver’ Derrick being in charge. Our landing boat was swamped a few minutes after leaving the side of the Manoora, and in a matter of seconds all men were struggling in the water, fully equipped. I grabbed a trailing rope form the launch as it went past and hung on. As far as I could make out the swamping was caused by the backwash from the towing vessel, plus too great a speed causing the craft to nose in. A quick check up on the Manoora showed that J. Hayden, L.M. Corrigan, L.G. Turley and E.A. Lewis had lost their lives. Derrick immediately reported that the manner in which the landing crafts were being used was suicidal, and that the life jackets supplied were useless to men fully equipped and weighed down with ammunition, grenades and weapons. To add weight to his report he had himself lowered into the water, and proved conclusively that the jackets could not support a man in full battle order.” The resultant drownings were an utter disaster.
Bill contracted malaria that month, causing him to be hospitalised in Australia but eventually returned to Tarakan the following year.
Just before dawn on the 23rd May ’45 a huge offensive was launched by the Japanese, ‘yelling and screaming, in a great wave of screeching wave of humanity, and battered themselves against the rock like defence of A company.’ John Glenn in Tobruk to Tarakan shares Bill’s vivid recollection of the event:
“It was after the capture of this feature that “Diver’ was hit. Seven Platoon numbered eighteen men at the time we took the pimple, and ammunition was down to about fifty rounds per man. On top of this we were cut off from Knoll 1by about 200 yards of dense jungle. The night was very quiet, the Japs could have been a thousand miles away. Those not on sentry stretched out and hoped for a few hours sleep. I was about three feet from ‘Diver’, who took the most exposed position across the pathway that led to Knoll 3, which was about seventy yards away, overlooking our position. Around about 3:30 am a short machine-gun burst broke the silence of the night and swept our area. Diver’s reaction was to sit up immediately for a quick check. To our dismay a longer burst followed. Diver was hit in the stomach and thigh. Even so, he continued to give orders until he could be evacuated some hours later. At 4 am the Nip launched a full-scale attack, it was touch and go but we knocked him back. We had been reduced in numbers and had about ten rounds a man left. It was not until after 7 am that contact could be made with company headquarters, when it was decided to beat a tactful withdrawal with the wounded while to going was good.”
Having seen and experienced so much of war and lost good friends, Bill was finally discharged in September ’45 with the Times and Northern Advertiser delightedly reporting that ‘We are pleased to know that Bill Snider is home to stay. He arrived in Peterborough this week with his wife and is staying with his parents. Bill spent 5 years in the A.I.F abroad and in the Pacific.’ Bill and Edith (Edie) welcomed their daughter, Nita Edith in October ’46, a son Terry Stanley Dec 20 1947, a daughter, Kay in March 12 1949 and Stephen William in 1952.
Aged 58, Bill died on the 10th December, 1977 and was buried at the Enfield Memorial Park in the Rose Garden Memorial Site (GCN 16) with his son, Stephen William who died aged 32 in 1984. Edith lived to be 80 and died in 2006. She is now resting with Bill in the Enfield Memorial Park as is their son, Terry who died on 12th September ’96, his partner Theresa and their four-year-old son Danny. Both Theresa and Danny died in an horrific fire on 7th September ‘95.
Researched and written by Kaye Lee, daughter of Bryan Holmes SX8133, 2/48th Battalion.