Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

No Railway employment record card can be located for James BLACK (Service Number 1716), although there are several entries in the NSW Government Gazette in 1911 and 1914 and probably three or four men of that name employed at the time, but none of them imply motor driving as the position.
There are also two men by the name who were killed on active service and the most likely candidate describes his calling as ‘Motor Driver’ which while not precluding railway employment, does not confirm it either. The other ‘James Black’ was born in Hamilton, Victoria and enlisted in Melbourne, describing himself as a labourer.
Whichever of the employees Black was, the role he had with the NSW Railways was a menial one. He had been born in November 1880 at Petersham.
His attestation papers which ask marital status, at first had ‘no’, but this is changed to ‘yes’, so it must be assumed that Black was newly married, to Mary.
There appears to be no record of his embarkation from Australia, but he joined the 2nd Battalion at Gallipoli on 26 May 1915. In June he was evacuated to hospital in Alexandria but returned to Gallipoli at the end of the month. He was reported missing, between 6 and 9 August 1915, the Battle of Lone Pine, though this was soon changed to killed in action.
At an Enquiry into his fate several witnesses stated what they had seen.
The record of Cpl Haggath’s testimony is:-
‘Witness states that he knew Black well. He was called “Jim” and came from Surrey Hills in Sydney. He came over with the 4th reinforcements. Witness saw him lying on the ground at Lone Pine on or about 7th August. He was then dead. He was lying between our trenches and the Turks’ trenches, so witness thinks he must have been killed in the charge.’
Since he has no known grave, he is recorded at Lone Pine Memorial, Gallipoli
(NAA B2455-3087461)