PURSSELL, Sidney William
| Service Number: | 3439 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 25 July 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 13th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 22 April 1885 |
| Home Town: | Stanmore, Marrickville, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Painter |
| Died: | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 2 December 1965, aged 80 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Rookwood Cemeteries & Crematorium, New South Wales Plot Anglican Section 19, Grave 2026 |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 25 Jul 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 3439, 13th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 13 Oct 1915: | Involvement Private, 3439, 13th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '11' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Port Lincoln embarkation_ship_number: A17 public_note: '' | |
| 13 Oct 1915: | Embarked Private, 3439, 13th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Port Lincoln, Sydney | |
| 4 Feb 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Corporal, 13th Infantry Battalion | |
| 4 Feb 1917: | Honoured Military Medal | |
| 15 Feb 1918: | Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant, 13th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Sergeant Sidney W. Purssell was the older brother of 666 Corporal Charles Augustus Purssell 2nd Australian Machine Gun Company, who was killed in action at Bullecourt, France on 11 May 1917.
Their mother, Mary Adelaide Purssell had divorced their father in 1901 and she had remarried a W. H. Gardner and was living in Hawthorn, Victoria.
Sydney William Purssell was married to Louisa Jane in 1912 and they had two children before he enlisted in mid-1915.
Sydney joined the 13th Battalion in France during October 1916, and was recommended for a Military Medal during the 13th Battalion’ s epic battle to capture Stormy Trench on 4 February 1917.
“On night 4th/5th February, 1917, during the attack on STORMY TRENCH, east of GUEUDECOURT, Lance Corporal PURSSELL distinguished himself by the calm and efficient way in which he took charge of the men in his vicinity and pushed on with the consolidation of the newly won position. When the Platoon Commander and all his senior N.C.O.s became casualties, he took charge of the platoon and commended it with great skill. Later he was placed in charge of ration parties carrying through the enemy barrage and over an open space swept by hostile machine gun fire.”
After the battle of Bullecourt, he was sent to hospital sick with debility and trench fever. He rejoined the 13th Battalion during July 1917. He was promoted to Sergeant and was then wounded again on 1 May 1918, a gunshot wound to the forearm which fractured both the bones. He was evacuated to England in June 1918 and was returned to Australia during March 1919.
Sidney eventually raised a family of four children in Sydney, and he passed away there during 1965, at 81 years of age.