HELMORE, Basil Arthur
| Service Number: | 30249 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 5 September 1916, Sydney, New South Wales |
| Last Rank: | Gunner |
| Last Unit: | 2nd Divisional Ammunition Column |
| Born: | Newcastle, New South Wales, 28 February 1897 |
| Home Town: | Waratah West, Newcastle, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Articled law clerk |
| Died: | Natural causes, Newcastle, New South Wales, 4 November 1973, aged 76 years |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Newcastle High School Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 5 Sep 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 30249, Sydney, New South Wales | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Nov 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Gunner, 30249, 2nd Divisional Ammunition Column, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '22' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Benalla embarkation_ship_number: A24 public_note: '' | |
| 9 Nov 1916: | Embarked AIF WW1, Gunner, 30249, 2nd Divisional Ammunition Column, HMAT Benalla, Sydney | |
| 8 Aug 2018: | Involvement The Battle of Amiens |
Help us honour Basil Arthur Helmore's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by John Edwards
"Basil Arthur Helmore (1897-1973), solicitor and businessman, was born on 28 February 1897 at Newcastle, New South Wales, eldest surviving child of Ernest Arthur James Helmore, a company secretary from London, and his Queensland-born wife Gertrude, née Allbon. Basil attended Cooks Hill Superior Public and Newcastle High schools. In 1913 he topped the State in French and Latin at the Leaving certificate, and that year won a prize for an essay on the first entry into Sydney Harbour of the Australian Fleet on 4 October.
Helmore was articled to William Sparke of the legal firm, Sparke & Millard, in 1914, and passed the Solicitors' Admission Board examinations. His articles having been suspended, he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on 5 September 1916. He trained as a gunner and sailed for England in the Benalla in November. After further training at Larkhill, Wiltshire, he served with the 4th Field Artillery Brigade on the Western Front from August 1917. His diaries and letters to his father revealed affection, a passionate nature that was well controlled, and a love of the French language. On 18 October 1918 he was posted for duty with the A.I.F. Education Scheme. He was to maintain an enduring correspondence with the friends he had made, including 'Jacqueline', an attractive member of the French family with whom he had been billeted. He returned to Sydney in June 1919 and was discharged on 14 July..." - READ MORE LINK (adb.anu.edu.au)
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