BERRY, Frederick
| Service Number: | 137 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 18 August 1914, An original of B Company |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 2nd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 1895 |
| Home Town: | Eastwood, Ryde, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Plasterer |
| Died: | Died of wounds, Egypt, 15 November 1915 |
| Cemetery: |
Alexandria (Chatby) Military and War Memorial Cemetery B 97, |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 18 Aug 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 137, 2nd Infantry Battalion, An original of B Company | |
|---|---|---|
| 18 Oct 1914: | Involvement Private, 137, 2nd Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Suffolk embarkation_ship_number: A23 public_note: '' | |
| 18 Oct 1914: | Embarked Private, 137, 2nd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Suffolk, Sydney |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
Frederick Berry of Eastwood NSW enlisted in August 1914, aged 19 years and 7 months. His father and two brothers also served during WW1.
Fred was an original member of B Company of the 2nd Battalion which left Sydney 18 October 1914. He served at the Landing on the 25 April 1915 and was wounded in action 4 May 1915 and evacuated to Cairo. After his recovery he rejoined the 2nd Battalion on Gallipoli sometime during September 1915 only to be wounded in action again at Anzac on the 8 November 1915. His wounds were serious, gunshot wounds to his right thigh and ankle and he was evacuated by hospital ship immediately. Berry suffered a fractured femur and gangrene infection resulted in the amputation of his leg. He died in hospital in Alexandria Egypt only two days after arriving, and is buried in the Chatby War Cemetery. His mother, Jane Berry was awarded a pension of 39 pounds per annum. She wrote to the AIF in November 1916, “I would deem it a great favour if any of his personal effects were sent to me, as I would like something in memory of him, his sorrowing though proud mother, I am yours most respectfully, Mrs. Jane Berry.”
His older brother, 1133 Sergeant James Berry, enlisted in March 1915, aged 29 and left Australia as an original member of D Company of the 20th Battalion AIF in June 1915. He also served on Gallipoli from early August 1915, and was still there when his brother was mortally wounded in November 1915. He was taken off Anzac during the general evacuation and was slightly wounded in the right hand at Pozieres in France on the 3 August 1916. During 1918 he was awarded a Military Medal for bravery.
A third brother, 20-year-old 1150 Private Edward Henry Berry enlisted in October 1915, in the 12th Light Horse Regiment AIF, and left Sydney the same month. He served with his regiment in Egypt and the Middle East for the entire war, and managed to take a photograph of his brother’s grave in Alexandria. Edward returned to Australia in July 1919.
The boys’ father, James Berry enlisted last, at the age of 43, in December 1915. He gave his occupation as a master plasterer, and it is interesting to note that his three sons all gave their jobs as plasterers. James served in France with the 1st Tunnelling Company AIF, but was evacuated to England suffering from cystitis and then sent home to Australia in May 1917, medically unfit due to debility and age.
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