BUXTON, William Charles
| Service Number: | 1622 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 28 March 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 36th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Inverell, New South Wales, Australia, 1897 |
| Home Town: | Inverell, Inverell, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Inverell Public School, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Carpenter |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 7 June 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
Strand Military Cemetery, Ploegsteert, Wallonie, Belgium Plot VIII, Row C, Grave No. 5 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Inverell & District Memorial Olympic Pool WW1 Honour Roll, Inverell Intermediate High School Roll of Honour, Inverell War Memorial, Moree ANZAC Centenary Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 28 Mar 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1622, 36th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 13 May 1916: | Involvement Private, 1622, 36th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '17' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Beltana embarkation_ship_number: A72 public_note: '' | |
| 13 May 1916: | Embarked Private, 1622, 36th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Beltana, Sydney |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
William was born at Inverell in 1897 and educated at Inverell Public School. He lived with his parents William and Annie in Granville Street Inverell. When he enlisted William was a carpenter having served a five-year apprenticeship with local builder S.H. Curry. William was just underage, and his father signed his attestation papers giving consent for his son to enlist.
William left Inverell by train with eighteen other volunteers on 29 March 1916 and became a member of the 36th Battalion. William was a member of the "Kurrajongs"— who marched from Inverell to Sydney on a recruiting campaign. With the 3rd Division his battalion went to France at the end of the year, and endured the severe freezing winter of 1916-17. William took part in the Battle of Messines where he was one of many killed in action on 7 June 1917. He was just twenty years old. He was originally buried in “Old No Man's Land in our wire in front of Anton's Farm just N.E. of Wytschaete, 1 mile south of Messines, Belgium. His remains were later shifted to Strand Military Cemetery, Ploegsteert, Belgium. His name is inscribed on the Inverell Honour Roll and Cenotaph. In 1919 he was one of the 215 men for whom a memorial tree was planted in Kurrajong Parade.
Moree Gwydir Examiner 10 July 1917.
INVERELL'S 'BLACK THURSDAY.' 'KURRAJONGS' SUFFER SEVERELY.
Thursday, July 5, will long be remembered in Inverell as probably the saddest day in her history. An all pervading gloom spread like a pall over the town, and everywhere little knots of people discussed in subdued tones the fateful news which flashed over the wires throughout the day and plunged so many of the community into the darkness of unspeakable grief. Everywhere flags were run down to half-mast. The dates given, from 6th to 10th June (inclusive) indicate that the losses were sustained in fighting at Messines Ridge, or thereabouts, where the 33rd, 34th, and 36th Battalions, including the 'Kurrajongs, were heavily, though gloriously engaged. Thursday's tidings told of the death of many men from Inverell and district.
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