19999
MORGAN, George Evan
| Service Number: | 1936 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 20 January 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | 41st Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Booleroo Centre, South Australia, Australia, 27 April 1898 |
| Home Town: | Melrose, Mount Remarkable, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, 1955, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Kalgoorlie Cemetery, Western Australia |
| Memorials: | Melrose School Roll of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 20 Jan 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1936, 12th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Apr 1915: | Involvement Private, 1936, 12th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '10' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Port Lincoln embarkation_ship_number: A17 public_note: '' | |
| 1 Apr 1915: | Embarked Private, 1936, 12th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Port Lincoln, Adelaide | |
| 1 Mar 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 52nd Infantry Battalion | |
| 3 Sep 1916: | Honoured Military Medal, Mouquet Farm | |
| 19 Aug 1918: | Transferred AIF WW1, Sergeant, 42nd Infantry Battalion | |
| 1 Sep 1918: | Honoured Military Medal and bar, Mont St Quentin / Peronne | |
| 11 Nov 1918: | Involvement Sergeant, 1936, 41st Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Brooks
George Evan Morgan enlisted in January 1915 at 17 years of age, giving his sister as next of kin. He was the son of Mr. Jonathan George Morgan, who was a lifelong resident of Melrose and the Mount Remarkable area in South Australia. The father entered the service of Mr. J. H. Angas as a shepherd at the age of 9 years and remained in his employ until the property was taken over by the Willowie Land and Pastoral Company, in whose service he remained until his death. For many years he occupied the position of head drover on the Mount Remarkable station and he passed away in 1914, only months before his son George enlisted.
He served at Gallipoli with the 12th Battalion and was treated for shell shock and septic leg sores during the heavy fighting during August 1915. He was evacuated to Egypt but returned to the Dardanelles during October 1915. After the evacuation of Gallipoli, he was transferred to the 52nd Battalion during the reorganisation of the AIF in 1916.
He took part in the very heavy fighting at Mouquet Farm in which the 52nd Battalion played a major role on the 3 September 1916. He was awarded a Military Medal for working a Lewis Gun with great daring and skill alongside another soldier, Martin Malone. The held a position in a shell crater, detached from the line, and fought Germans sniping from a communication trench until they established dominance over the enemy. Morgan also ran out some 30-40 yards from their position and dragged in a wounded German.
He was promoted to Sergeant during April 1917 and was later sent to England as an instructor for several months. He returned to the Western Front later in 1917 before he fell sick and was returned to England. When he returned to the fighting during August 1918, he was posted to the 42nd Battalion. He was awarded a Bar to his Military Medal for displaying exceptional courage and initiative as a Sergeant at Peronne on 1 September 1918.
When the 42nd Battalion was disbanded during October 1918, Morgan was transferred to the 41st Battalion, the fourth battalion he had been a member of since the start of the war. When he returned home during March 1919, George Evan Morgan M.M. and Bar was still not 21 years of age.