Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

The small coastal town, Elliston near Port Lincoln on the Eyre Peninsula, is where Roland John Linfield (‘Rolly’) was born to James and Eleanor Hood on the 6th September, 1912. He was the third son and youngest of four children with siblings Walter James (Wallie), Donald Alan and Agnes Elizabeth Daphne. James was considered one of the West Coast pioneers. As a youngster, he went to Elliston to initially help his father work the property at Mount Wedge. However, with the announcement of gold being found in Western Australia, he and another adventurer decided to try their luck chasing gold. They travelled to the fields by camel, experiencing many adventures on the way. Unfortunately, his fellow adventurer, Walter Whitehead died of enteric fever on the goldfields and James decided to return to Port Adelaide by boat. He later married Eleanor Whitehead, before going to Broken Hill, where he was employed by B.H.P. for several years.
James returned to the coast to briefly take up farming at Mount Wedge, when Rolly was born, before purchasing a property in the Mount Cooper district of Streaky Bay in 1915, when Rollie was two years old. James then devoted his time and efforts to farming and grazing. He took an active part in the local community, constantly striving to improve conditions for the locals, including clearing and surfacing the very primitive road between Witera and Yandra, including to the local Witera school which opened in 1928.
Roland was just 20 when his mother, Eleanor became ill on Christmas Eve and was taken to the Streaky Bay Hospital for treatment but died four days later, on the 28th December ’32. She was 60 years old. With sons to continue the farming and grazing, James retired to live in Adelaide in ’39 but continued to take an interest in his farms and to help out the ‘boys’.
As well as his farming work, Roland was a handy cricketer for the Colley Cricket Club, also proving to be a competent high jumper in the ’40 Elliston New Year Sports Competition where he placed second after his cousin, Tom Hood.
With the outbreak of WWII, a huge campaign by the AIF rolled out in country areas with the aim of attracting fit young, single men to enlist. 27-year-old Roland was one of a number of locals who enlisted on the 2nd July 1940 being allocated the number SX7548. Fellow Port Lincoln man, Bill Barwick also enlisted the same day becoming SX7547 with both being allocated to the newly formed 2/48th Battalion.
From the delightful Streaky Bay environment, Roland spent his early days in the close confines and cold of the Pavilions, now part of the Royal Adelaide Showgrounds. Then he and other new enlistees headed to Woodside for their preliminary training. This area was not a particularly popular winter camp, because of the severe cold and wet, however the enlistees generally enjoyed the life and looked forward to commencing the next phase of their training. Roland was one of several who suffered the ravages of "dog's disease" a term commonly used for influenza. He recuperated at home before being on official pre-embarkation leave.
He formally returned home to Colley on pre-embarkation leave in October where a large crowd of friends from Streaky Bay, Talia, Calca, Pt. Kenny and Chandada gathered at the Colley Hall to bid farewell to Ptes. R. J. Hood and Andrew J. Robertson, SX4819. Traditionally, the evening began with the singing of "God save the King” before the two new enlistees were escorted into the hall by WWI Diggers. They were wished the best of luck, with speakers praising the young men for their involvement in local activities. This included a representative speaking on behalf of the Colley Cricket Club, emphasised Rolly's sterling qualities as a sportsman. The young men were then presented with a parcel, comprising socks, mittens and a scarf; and also a roll of notes on behalf of the Cheer-up Girls. Rolly, in a brief and witty speech, suitably responded. "For They are Jolly Gool Fellows" was then lustily sung by the assemblage. The evening concluded with the usual sumptuous country. supper.
Soon after, he and his fellow 2/48th Battalion, boarded the Stratheden for the Middle East, on the 7th November 1940 and disembarked on the 17th December. The next stop was to Tobruk at the start of April 1941 where the dust, flies, heat, minimal water supplies and constant bombardment were quite a challenge to these fresh new enlistees. Once there, they completed a few months training in Cyrenaica. Soon after arriving in the Middle East Rolly was graded as a Group III Rangetaker, a role that required good eyesight and sound mathematical skills to calculate the distance of a target using a rangefinder, aiming and locking onto the target prior to firing whilst also allowing for such factors as wind. Being calm under pressure involved specific expertise and skill. However, he relinquished this role with his promotion to Acting Corporal July ’41. Rolly was to become one of the famed Rats of Tobruk. Conditions in the Middle East were totally different to life on Eyre Peninsula. The battalion was soon involved in intense conflicts where they gained the reputation for being the most highly decorated but decimated battalion. The 2/48th was subjected to heavy, constant German shelling, forcing the men to shelter in the pits they had dug.
Initially Rolly nominated his father, James as his next of kin but as the war, incorrectly predicted to be over early, continued, and his father aged, Rolly nominated his sister Daphne. Roland’s leadership skills were recognised with his promotion to Corporal in August ’41, later that year attending Infantry School, Mortar Wing and qualifying in the field. In the challenging conditions experienced in the Middle East, Roland contracted an upper respiratory tract infection, closely followed by sinusitis requiring him to be treated by the field ambulance. By July ’42 he was promoted to Sergeant but soon after was twice affected by hepatitis, treated in hospital with the last bout being in January ’43. It was fortuitous that he was soon to leave the Middle East in February, returning to Australia via Melbourne. He was still very unwell on the return ship, continuing to be treated for hepatitis and dermatitis.
In the meantime, his retired father, James (Jas) continued to help his Elliston farming son with shearing in August ’42 with the Port Lincoln Times reporting that ‘Although he has reached the three score and ten limit he is prepared to do his part to keep the wheels turning during the war.’
Back home, a social was held for Rolly, then a Sergeant, on his return to Mount Cooper with Privates Ern Starkey SX11155 and Andy Robinson SX13175, both from his 2/48th Battalion. Coincidentally, a new teacher, Miss Daddow (Margery Queale Daddow from Thrington) had been appointed to the Port Kenny School in August ’42 having previously taught at Koongawa. She quickly gaining a reputation for her generous involvement in the community and her joyous end-of-year children’s concert in which she also performed and sang. She became immersed in the local community, active as President of the Port Kenny Patriotic Club, and was the Red Cross Queen, ironically for the Airforce.
An unfortunate fracture of his little finger occurred in May ’43 but this did not prevent Rolly heading to Milne Bay in August. As did so many soldiers, Roland contracted malaria in October that year, closely followed the next month by scrub typhus, both requiring hospital stays.
He finally left New Guinea in February ’44, returning to Australia via Brisbane and then back home where the local Patriotic Committee immediately organised a social for him and Ern Starkey in Collie Hall in March. Residents came from adjoining towns of Calca, Poochera, Talia, Port Kenny and Venus Bay. Spontaneous applause welcomed them as they marched down the hall accompanied by the returned soldiers from WWI. A series of speeches followed before the president of the patriotic committee gave each soldier an envelope containing the usual £2. Genuine pleasure was expressed at seeing the ‘boys’ again. Dancing then continued throughout the evening.
Soon after, a Leap Year Ball was also organised at Port Kenny in aid of the Legacy Club Appeal. Rolly and his dancing partner, schoolteacher Margery Daddow, won an unusual novelty dance called ‘lemon and orange’. Rollie chose that leave time to propose to Margery with the two marrying on the 21st April ’44 at the Victoria Square Methodist Church in Kadina. Rolly chose Margery’s brother, Herbert for his best man. Not unexpectedly Rolly went AWOL for three days from the 24th to the 27th for which he was reprimanded and docked 4 days’ pay.
Back on duty, by July Rolly was diagnosed with a high fever (Pyrexia of Unknown Origin) and malaria again flared causing a further bout of hospitalisation. He recovered sufficiently to then leave Cairns in April the following year, arriving at Morotai for about five months of service at Tarakan and the ‘mopping up’ towards the end of the war.
Rolly was promoted to Senior Sergeant in March ’46 with the highlight of that year being the arrival of a daughter, Margery Anne on December 9th in the Kadina Hospital. Rolly was finally discharged on the 13th January ’47 to have time with his young family and also two precious years with his father. Aged 77, James died in June ’49 at his home in Clarence Gardens, later being buried at Centennial Park Cemetery.
Rolly and Marjorie had three children, with the next two: Anne Rosemary Ethel born in January ‘50 and Graham Linfield in March ‘53.
59-year-old Margery pre-deceased Roland in January 1980. Roland was living in South Brighton at the time of his death, aged 91, on the 9th August 2004 and is buried at Centennial Park at Pasadena in Lawn 1 Path 35 Grave 1801.
Researched and written by Kaye Lee, daughter of Bryan Holmes SX8133 2/48th Battalion.