THOMPSON, Hiram Preston
| Service Numbers: | 301, 688 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen |
| Born: | Stanley, Victoria, Australia, 1876 |
| Home Town: | Stanley, Indigo, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Soldier, Checker- Sth. African Railways |
| Died: | Lymphadenoma & Cardiac Failure, Durban, Natal, South Africa, 15 June 1927 |
| Cemetery: |
Durban (Stellawood) Cemetery, South Africa |
| Memorials: |
Boer War Service
| 1 Oct 1899: | Involvement Private, 301, Queensland Imperial Bushmen | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Oct 1899: | Involvement Private, 688 | |
| 19 May 1900: | Embarked Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 301, 4th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 475 notes 4th QIB embarked 18 May 1900 aboard Manchester Port arriving Beira 14 Jun 1900. | |
| 17 Dec 1900: | Discharged Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 301, 4th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, National Archives Australia- Boer War Dossier notes invalided returned to Australia aboard Empire arriving Brisbane 10 Dec 1900, discharged 17 Dec 1900. | |
| 26 Sep 1901: | Embarked Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 688, 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 506 notes 2nd Draft of the 6th QIB embarked at Sydney 26 Sep 1901 aboard Harlech Castle arriving Cape Town 26 Oct 1901. | |
| 23 Jun 1902: | Discharged Australian and Colonial Military Forces - Boer War Contingents, Private, 688, 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen, AWM Boer War Unit Details, Murray p. 508 notes 6th QIB embarked at Durban 17 May 1902 aboard Devon returning to Australia arriving Brisbane 17 Jun 1902, disbanded 23 Jun 1902. |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Claude McKelvey
Hiram Preston Thompson served twice in the South African (Boer) War. First service was as a Private S.N. 301 in the 4th Queensland Imperial Bushmen. When he enlisted for his first service he gave his N.O.K. as Hiram Thompson at Stanley, Victoria. His second service was as a Private S.N. 688 in the 2nd Draft of the 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen. In the AWM Boer War Nominal Roll for this second service, Murray, p. 519 notes every officer and man except one, had served in 3rd and 4th Queensland Contingents.
(sources- AWM Boer War Nominal Roll, Murray p. 485 & 519; The Queenslander, 19 May 1900 p. 940).
Biography contributed by Claude McKelvey
Note- while he enlisted and served under the name Hiram Preston Thompson he was born Hiram Preston Bigelow see details in biography below.
Hiram Preston Thompson served twice in the South African (Boer) War. First service was as a Private S.N. 301, 4th Queensland Imperial Bushmen. Second service was as a Private S.N. 688, 6th Queensland Imperial Bushmen (2nd Draft).
When he joined the 4th QIB in 1900 and his details were published with the rank and file in The Queenslander, 19 May 1900, he noted his N.O.K. as Hiram Thompson, Stanley P.O., via Beechworth, Victoria. In the Boer War Service Paybooks for the 4th QIB, Bk 5 p. 4, it is noted he gave his contact details as c/- J. C. Bigelow, Bloomfield, Stanley, via Beechworth. He was invalided from service with the 4th QIB returning to brisbane where he was discharged 17 Dec 1900.
About 8 months later he was selected in the Second Draft of the 6th QIB and embarked again for South Africa in Sep 1901. All but one of the members of the draft had served previously in either the 3rd QMI or 4th QIB contingents in South Africa and were assembled as reinforcements for the 5th and 6th QIB contingents already in South Africa.
Men in the draft were not recorded in the original nominal roll for the 6th QIB. He is however, recorded in the Boer War Service Paybooks for the 5th QIB (to which he was allotted), Bk 4 p. 129, where it is noted he directed part of his pay to Mrs. J. C. Bigelow, Stanley P.O., via Beechworth, Victoria. The paybooks do not give a date or place of discharge, however, it appears he remained to live in South Africa.
It is unclear why he enlisted under the surname Thompson, which was his mother's maiden name. His mother Margaret Thompson had married Joshua Cushman Bigelow in 1856 and Hiram was the 11th of their 12 children born between 1857 and 1879.
Hiram Preston Bigelow (aka Thompson) was born in 1876 at Stanley, Victoria, a son to Joshua Cushman Bigelow and Margaret Bigelow (nee Thompson). When he completed his service with the 6th QIB he remained living in South Africa. He married Ida Oliver on 8 Apr 1913 at Durban, South Africa, where they lived and had 1 child. Attached in the link to his Find-A-Grave memorial are copies of his death certificate.
(source- AWM Boer War Nominal Roll, Murray p. 485 & 519; Qld State Archives- Boer War Service Paybooks 4th QIB, Bk 5 p. 4, and 5th QIB, bk 4 p. 129; "South Africa, Natal, Civil Marriages, 1845-1955", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KDCR-499 : Sat Jul 20 01:31:10 UTC 2024), Entry for Hiram Preston Bigelow and Ida Oliver, 08 Apr 1913; "South Africa, Natal, Civil Deaths, 1863-1955", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:8DNG-XPPZ : Sun Jan 12 19:16:13 UTC 2025), Entry for Hiram Preston Bigelow, 15 Jun 1927).
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