CLARKE, Thomas Osborne
| Other Name: | Clarke, Thomas Osmund |
|---|---|
| Service Number: | 5068 |
| Enlisted: | 10 January 1916 |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 46th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia , October 1894 |
| Home Town: | Richmond (V), Yarra, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Windsor State School, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation: | Potter |
| Died: | Died of wounds, France, 13 February 1917 |
| Cemetery: |
Dernancourt Communal Cemetery Extension Plot V, Row B, Grave No. 6. UNTIL THE DAY DAWNS AND SHADOWS FLEE AWAY |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 10 Jan 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5068, 14th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 14 Mar 1916: | Involvement Private, 5068, 14th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '11' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Anchises embarkation_ship_number: A68 public_note: '' | |
| 14 Mar 1916: | Embarked Private, 5068, 14th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Anchises, Melbourne | |
| 16 Aug 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 46th Infantry Battalion |
Help us honour Thomas Osborne Clarke's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Thomas was the son of William Osmund and Alice Clarke, of 38, Charles St., Richmond, Victoria, Australia. His mother was a widow when he enlisted early in 1916.
Thomas served for over six months with the 14th Battalion on the Western Front, before he was mortally wounded on 12 February 1917. He was admitted to the 45th Casualty Clearing Station with shrapnel wounds to his left thigh, left arm and penetrating wounds to the abdomen. He died of his wounds the next day.
His older brother, 3791 Pte. William Bernard Clarke 21st Battalion AIF, was killed in action at Mouquet Farm, France on 24 August 1916, aged 24.
A younger brother, 488 Private Phillip Robert Clarke served with the 29th Battalion in France, right through 1916 to 1918, and was returned to Australia in August 1919.
The Richmond Guardian 10 March 1917, noted Thomas’s death.
“Tragic loss has come on the mother of three Burnley sons who marched bravely away when the war call sounded. Mrs. A. Clarke, now of 38 Charles Street, Richmond, but formerly of Cutter Street, Burnley, lost her son, William B. Clarke, killed in action, only a few months ago. He was 23 years of age. This week the sad news came through that Private Thomas Clarke, the third eldest son, aged 21 years, had on February 13 died of wounds received in action. The sorrowful mother is hopeful that her youngest son, Private Philip R. Clarke (19 years), who is still with the A.I.F., will be spared to her.”
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