DEANS, Harry Bertram
| Service Number: | 4164 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 50th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Birmingham, London, England, 1885 |
| Home Town: | Kensington, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Printer |
| Died: | Train Accident, place of death not yet discovered, date not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
West Terrace Cemetery (AIF Section) Row 9 West Grave 9 |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 11 Jan 1916: | Involvement Private, 4164, 10th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Borda embarkation_ship_number: A30 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Jan 1916: | Embarked Private, 4164, 10th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Borda, Adelaide | |
| 11 Nov 1918: | Involvement Private, 4164, 50th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour Harry Bertram Deans's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by St Ignatius' College
Harry Bertram Deans, born sometime during June of 1885 in Birmingham, London to parents of unknown names. He later migrated to Kensington, Adelaide on an unknown date, was married to a woman named Flora Ellen and spent his life working as a printer before his enlistment in 1915. Prior to his enlistment, he was not trained by the military or the army in any sort of way in Australia, and yet, on the 24th of August in 1915, a 5 foot 7, 30 years and 2-month-old Deans found himself enlisting into the 10th Battalion in Adelaide, South Australia.
The 10th Battalion was originally raised within weeks of the declaration of war during August 1914 and was embarked for overseas just 2 months later. After a short stop in Albany, Western Australia, they proceeded to Egypt arriving in early December. This meant that the Battalion was already fighting before Deans joined in battle, the Battalion remained at Gallipoli participating in protecting and guarding the beachhead before being ordered away from the peninsula along with remaining allied forces towards Egypt during December. Deans embarked the HMAT A30 Borda on the 11th of January 1916 and the Battalion sometime during the retreat to Egypt, where the Battalion stayed until March 1916.
While in Egypt, Deans was transferred to the newly raised Battalion (at the time), the 50th Battalion during 26th of February 1916. He was joined by almost half of the veterans from the 10th Battalion while the other half was fresh reinforcements sent from South Australia.
Unfortunately, Deans was admitted to the 13th Field ambulance on the 10th of May 1916 with pyrexia (raised in body heat, fever) which was caused by an unknown reason, but was discharged back to duty after recovery the following day on the 11th. However, it didn’t end here. He was once again admitted to the 54th Casualty Clearing Station on the 27th of May 1916 with a report of a synovitis (swollen/inflammation of a joint) on his right knee. He was later transferred to the 1st Australian Stationary Hospital in Ismailia, Egypt with his synovitis developing into a loose cartilage. He was eventually transferred to the 3rd Australian General Hospital in Abbassia (now called El-Abaseya) on the 29th of May 1916 for further inspection. While there, he was deemed unfit for battle and was expected to return to Australia back to his home sometime in the middle of August 1916. Deans commenced his journey back to Australia on board the HT ‘Clan McGillivray’ on the 10th of July 1916 and disembarked Melbourne 14th of August. Deans was initially discharged from the unit on the 15th of August 1916, then was finally discharged back to his home in Scott Street, Kensington, South Australia on the 30th of August 1916.
Deans was later killed in a train accident on the 18th of January 1927 when he was aged 42. He was later buried in the AIF Cemetery, Row 9 west grave 9, West terrace, Adelaide.
References:
- 10th Australian Infantry Battalion 2016, Awm.gov.au, viewed 30 March 2022, <https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/U51450#:~:text=The%20Battalion%20participated%20in%20the,German%20Army%20in%20this%20war%22.>.
(Australian War Memorial – 10th Infantry Battalion)
- 50th Australian Infantry Battalion 2016, Awm.gov.au, viewed 30 March 2022, <https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/U51490>.
(Australian War Memorial – 50th Infantry Battalion)
- NSW, S 2018, 3rd Australian General Hospital, State Library of NSW, viewed 30 March 2022, <https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/stories/3rd-australian-general-hospital>.
(State Library of NSW)
- Details 2016, Adfa.edu.au, viewed 31 March 2022, <https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=76440>.
(The AIF Project)
- Private Harry Bertram Deans 2016, Awm.gov.au, viewed 31 March 2022, <https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/P10847663>.
(Australian War Memorial – Private Harry Bertram Deans)
- Terrace, V 2022, View digital copy, Naa.gov.au, viewed 31 March 2022, <https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=3495280>.
(National Archives of Australia – Harry Bertram Deans, digital copy)
- Item details 2022, Naa.gov.au, viewed 31 March 2022, <https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/DetailsReports/ItemDetail.aspx?Barcode=3495280&isAv=N>.
(National Archives of Australia – Harry Bertram Deans)