HUGHES, John
| Service Number: | VX11812 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 27 February 1940 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 2nd/2nd Pioneer Battalion |
| Born: | Mildura, Victoria, Australia , 14 December 1917 |
| Home Town: | Sunbury, Hume, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Illness while a POW of the Japanese, Burma, 18 October 1943, aged 25 years |
| Cemetery: |
Thanbyuzayat War Cemetery, (Burma) Thanbyuzayat War Cemetery, Thanbyuzayat, Mon State, Myanmar |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Private, VX11812 | |
|---|---|---|
| 27 Feb 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Private, VX11812, 2nd/2nd Pioneer Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
John was raised as the youngest of nine children of Edwin Frederick Hughes (b1866 in Hobsons Bay, Victoria) and Sophia Elizabeth Mayman (b1873 in Sunbury, Victoria). Edwin - a Gardener - and Sophia (aka Elizabeth) married in 1894 at Wallam, Victoria. Edwin and Elizabeth raised their family in the Corio region, where Edwin was a Farmer. John's birth records identify his mother as Mary Emily (his older sister).
John was a Labourer in Sydneham Victoria in February 1940 when he enlisted in the Australian Army. He served in Syria and Java (Private; Service No:VX11812) and was a PoW with 2/2 Pioneer Battalion at 80 Kilo Camp in Burma when he died in 1943. Older brother John (Jack) Frederick Hughes (Private; Service No:2026) and Brother-in-Law Albert Ernest Matcott (Private; Service No:3564) served in WWI, Brother Leslie George Hughes (Lance Corporal; Service No:VX20379) and Brother-in-Law Colin Robert Landon Wilson (Corpral; Service No:VX24012) served in WWII.