Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Thomas Augustine O’Sullivan was born at Glebe, New South Wales on November 24 1924.
Thomas was the sixth child of Thomas and Mary O’Sullivan. Preceded by five sisters, he was the first son. Later he was to be joined by another sister and five other brothers.
Tom was educated at the Christian Brothers College at Lewisham, his home was at Dulwich Hill, near Sydney.
In his early teens, Tom became interested in boxing. His father had tutored him in the skills of that sport, Dad being the holder of a gold medal. On one occasion Dad came to regret the quality of his tutoring, as Tom by far, bettered him in a sparring match.
At an early age, Tom decided to strike out on his own. He moved to Victoria in 1941 where he resided for a time.
The War in the Pacific was escalating, and in 1942 he enlisted in the Australian army. January 1943 saw him training at Bathurst, New South Wales with A Company I.T.B.
In May 1944 he was transferred to Queensland with 5 Platoon, H Q Company, 25th Infantry battalion with the rank of Private.
His unit was called into action and sailed from Brisbane, for Bougainville in October 1944.
Before his departure, Tom received news in a wire from his mother, that his father had passed away suddenly on August 28th.
On the 28th of March 1945, at the age of 20, Tom was killed in action. The tank in which he was traveling struck a mine.
His remains were interred at Lae in Papua New Guinea.
On October 26th 1946, Tom was finally laid to rest at Bomana War Cemetery in Papua New Guinea.

Thomas Augustine O'Sullivan enlisted as Thomas 'Sullivan' due to personal reasons. His birth surname was actually O'Sullivan. He was named after his father Thomas Augustine O'Sullivan senior.
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Eldest son of Thomas Augustine O'Sullivan (Snr) and Mary Christina Denham. Brother of Mary, Catherine, Ellen, Patricia, Margaret, James, Cornelius, Rosemarie, Joseph, Vincent and Anthony.
Thomas served in the 25th Battalion of the Australian Infantry Force in World War Two in Papua New Guinea.