GRIFFITHS, Ernest William
| Service Number: | Officer |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 31 May 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Major |
| Last Unit: | 14th Australian General Hospital |
| Born: | Adelaide, South Australia , 14 December 1881 |
| Home Town: | Adelaide, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Adelaide University, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Doctor |
| Died: | Ryde, New South Wales, Australia, 12 September 1949, aged 67 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Adelaide University of Adelaide WW1 Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 31 May 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Captain, Officer, 1st Australian General Hospital | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Jun 1915: | Involvement Captain, 1st Australian General Hospital, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '23' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Wandilla embarkation_ship_number: A62 public_note: '' | |
| 17 Jun 1915: | Embarked Captain, 1st Australian General Hospital, HMAT Wandilla, Melbourne | |
| 20 Jun 1917: | Promoted AIF WW1, Major, 14th Australian General Hospital | |
| 5 Apr 1918: | Discharged AIF WW1 |
Dr Ernest William GRIFFITHS
"Ernest William Griffiths was born in Adelaide in December 1881, the son of William and Emily Griffiths. Griffiths studied medicine at the University of Adelaide and was one of the three to graduate in 1906 after the reopening of the medical school following the ‘Adelaide Hospital Row’. He gained a first class pass. Griffiths first practised at Mannum, South Australia soon after the first telephone exchange was installed; his number was Mannum 7. He went to England in 1910 for further experience. He returned to Adelaide and went into general practice."
Katherine Eagles.
Submitted 15 August 2020 by Katherine Eagles
Biography contributed by Sharyn Roberts
Excerpt from Blood Sweat and Fears: Medical Practitioners and Medical Students of South Australian who Served in World War 1. Courtesy of the Authors
Ernest William Griffiths was born in Adelaide in December 1881, the son of William and Cherubinia Griffiths*. Griffiths studied medicine at the University of Adelaide and was one of the three to graduate in 1906 after the reopening of the medical school following the ‘Adelaide Hospital Row’. He gained a first class pass. Griffiths first practised at Mannum, South Australia soon after the first telephone exchange was installed; his number was Mannum 7. He went to England in 1910 for further experience. He returned to Adelaide and went into general practice.
Griffiths enlisted in the AIF on the 14th May 1915 in 4MD. He was 34 years old, single and his brother, G T Griffiths of Henley Beach Rd, Mile End, was nominated as his next of kin. He married Floris Clare Hay on the 2nd March 1916 and changed his next of kin to his wife of “Vespray” Prescott Terrace, Rose Park. He was 5ft 6ins, weighed 143lbs, of fair complexion and mid brown hair. Griffiths embarked for the Middle East from Melbourne in June with the reinforcements for 1 AGH. Soon after his arrival in Egypt he became ill from paratyphoid, and was sent back to Australia in December 1915 for three months rest. He returned to Egypt in September 1916. He expected to be posted to 3 AGH, however this unit had moved to England, so he was posted to 14 AGH instead. He was transferred to the RANBT in November 1916. He served at El Arish and Gaza, and when it was disbanded he returned to 14 AGH. He was promoted Major in June 1917 and posted to the Details Camp at Moascar. He returned to Australia in February 1918 and took up a position at Keswick Hospital. His appointment was terminated on the 5th April 1918. He was issued with the 1914-15 Star, the British War medal and the Victory Medal.
Griffiths returned to his medical practice in Adelaide after the war. He sued the Tramways Trust in Adelaide in 1924 over the resumption of a house and land which he owned. Griffiths claimed that the property was worth far more than the Trust’s valuation. He had his car, a 1924 Dodge stolen from his residence at Henley Beach Rd, Mile End in 1925. Griffiths moved to Ryde, NSW in 1933 and was an Honorary Medical Officer at Ryde District Hospital. Here he started legal proceeding against a neighbour over a parcel of land rented for a market garden. Ernest William Griffiths died on 12th September 1949 at Gloucester House. He was survived by his wife Floris, 2 sons and 2 daughters and 6 grandchildren.
*Correction requested by Granddaughter (replacing Emily)
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