EDMISTONE, George
| Service Number: | 2012 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 4th Light Horse Brigade Machine Gun Squadron |
| Born: | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 2 December 1893 |
| Home Town: | Alton Downs, Rockhampton, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Alton Downs State School, Queensland, Australia |
| Occupation: | grazier |
| Died: | Cancer, Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia, 12 July 1970, aged 76 years |
| Cemetery: |
Rockhampton Crematorium, Qld |
| Memorials: | Alton Downs War Memorial |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Oct 1916: | Involvement Private, 2012, 11th Light Horse Regiment, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Clan MacEwen embarkation_ship_number: A65 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Oct 1916: | Embarked Private, 2012, 11th Light Horse Regiment, HMAT Clan MacEwen, Melbourne | |
| 11 Nov 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Private, 2012, 3rd Light Horse Regiment, Reported for duty for the 3rd Light Horse Training Regiment on 11 November 1916 in Moascar, Egypt and taken on strength. | |
| 24 Feb 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Private, 4th Light Horse Brigade Machine Gun Squadron, Transferred to 4th Light Horse Brigade Machine Gun Squadron and taken on strength in Ismailia, Egypt |
Help us honour George Edmistone's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Owen Fuller
George Edmistone grew up on his parents property called "Oshtimo" at Alton Downs, just to the west of Rockhampton in Central Queensland. He attended Alton Downs State School.
At the age of 22, George enlisted in the 1st Australian Imperial Force at Rockhampton on 20 May 1916. After some training in the New England district of New South Wales, George departed Melbourne on the "Clan McEwan" for service overseas with the 11th Australian Light Horse Regiment.
During the war, George served in the Sinai and Palestine campaigns in the Middle East. Although, initially with the 11th Australian Light Horse Regiment George transferred to the 4th Australian Light Horse Machine Gun Squadron.
George was one of the men who served under Lieutenant-General Sir Harry Chauvel who made the famous capture of Beersheba and Gaza.
While serving in the Middle East, George became dangeously ill with pneumonia. He developed paralysis in his legs due to peripheral neuritis and was unable to walk. He was sent home on the "Port Darwin" disembarking in New South Wales on 17 August 1918 before being discharged from the 1st Australian Imperial Force on 12 February 1919.
His decorations included the 1914/15 Star, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.
Upon returning to Central Queensland, George continued his recovery and married Aurora Drake in 1921, settling on a 100-acre dairy farm at Kalapa where they began raising a family. They remained there until 1929 when they relocated to a 11,500 acre property called "Wandobah" at Goowarra, near Dingo.
George had a life-long passion for horses and was the first horseman out at the first Dingo Rodeo in 1945.
After retiring to the Capricorn Coast in 1966, George died in Rockhampton in 1970. He was cremated at the Rockhampton Crematorium.
George's name is listed (along with those of his brother James and cousin Alexander) on war memorials at Alton Downs, Yeppoon and Emu Park.
Click images to start slideshow.