HAWKE, Albert James Wheatley
| Service Number: | 79 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 14 January 1916, at Adelaide |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 43rd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Hindmarsh, South Australia, Australia, October 1890 |
| Home Town: | Hindmarsh, Charles Sturt, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Cooper |
| Died: | Adelaide, South Australia, 17 April 1963, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Hindmarsh Cemetery, S.A. |
| Memorials: |
World War 1 Service
| 14 Jan 1916: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 79, 43rd Infantry Battalion, at Adelaide | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Jun 1916: | Involvement Private, 79, 43rd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '18' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Afric embarkation_ship_number: A19 public_note: '' | |
| 9 Jun 1916: | Embarked Private, 79, 43rd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Afric, Adelaide |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Saint Ignatius' College
Albert James Wheatley Hawke was born in Hindmarsh, South Australia. Albert Hawke was 26 and three months when he enlisted in the war; January 14th, 1916. From the age on his enlistment papers, it is assumed (approximately) he was born sometime in October 1890. Hawke worked as a cooper before joining the war. Albert Hawke did in fact have a next of kin, it was his mother, Louie Hawke. She and Hawke shared the same address, their home was situated on Manton Street, Hindmarsh, South Australia. Albert Hawke was described as being 5’7 and a half man, weighing 148 kilograms. He held a fair complexion and had blue eyes and light brown hair. He was a religious man, identifying as a Baptist.
Hawke enlisted in the war from Adelaide, SA, and embarked on board the HMAT A19 Afric on the 9th of June 1916. Albert Hawke was a private, he was transferred on the 7th of March 1916. He then proceeded to embark to France on the 25th of November that very same year. Hawke’s first recorded sickness was in France, on the 16th of April 1917. He was then cured of his sickness on the 28th of July. Albert Hawke re-joined the 43rd battalion on the 3rd of August 1917. However, Hawke proceeded to get sick two more times, the first- or rather, the second, on the 10th of August. The third time he was deemed sick was on the 20th of November.
As for battles, Hawke had his fair share. One of these said battles was the Third Battle of Ypres, commencing in October 1917. Hawke was not present the battle of Messiness in June 1917 as Hawke was unwell. The Third Battle of Ypres, was a much larger battle, attacking around Broodseinde at the start of June and then around Passchendaele a week later. The 43rd battalion was successful in helping their allies (the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Newfoundland, and Rhodesia) advance 1,800 metres during their attack on Passchendaele. The battle took place on the Western front, similar to the Battle of Messines.
Albert Hawke embarked from H.M.S St Denis for England as he was diagnosed with trench foot on the 19th of December. Hawke most likely contracted trench foot due to the cold, muddy, harsh conditions of the trenches he worked in for hours on end each day. Hawke soon returned to Australia from England’s “Balmoral Castle” on the 1st of February 1918, still plagued with trench foot. He was later discharged from a medical centre in 4MD, known as the Military District located in South Australia and Broken Hill, Torrowangee, and Silverton in New South Wales (his specific location unknown) on the 28th of April 1918.
Albert Hawke did in fact return from the war, and lived to the age of 75, his date of death the 17th of April 1963. He was not only a son, but also husband to wife Frances Clara, as it is stated on his gravestone, located in Hindmarsh cemetery.
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