MATCHETT, Henry Wilson
| Service Number: | 1579 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 9 December 1914, Enlisted at Liverpool, NSW |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 3rd Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Woollahra, New South Wales, Australia, 16 May 1891 |
| Home Town: | Woollahra, Woollahra, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Tram Conductor |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Gallipoli, Turkey, 19 May 1915, aged 24 years |
| Cemetery: |
Shrapnel Valley Cemetery, Gallipoli Special Memorial, Row B, Grave 3 Rev. W. McKenzie officiated Headstone inscription reads: Their glory shall not be blotted out, |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Haymarket NSW Government Railway and Tramway Honour Board |
World War 1 Service
| 9 Dec 1914: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 1579, 3rd Infantry Battalion, Enlisted at Liverpool, NSW | |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Feb 1915: | Involvement Private, 1579, 3rd Infantry Battalion, ANZAC / Gallipoli, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '7' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Seang Choon embarkation_ship_number: A49 public_note: '' | |
| 11 Feb 1915: | Embarked Private, 1579, 3rd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Seang Choon, Sydney |
Help us honour Henry Wilson Matchett's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Carol Foster
Son of Samuel Matchett of 64 Adelaide Street, Woollahra, NSW
Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal
Biography contributed by John Oakes
Harry (or Henry) Wilson MATCHETT, (Service Number 1579) was born on 16th May 1891 at Woollahra. He began work as a casual tram conductor for the NSW Tramways on 18th September 1912 in Sydney. The next year he became a permanent employee, though he reverted to casual and then back to permanent before being released from duty to join the Expeditionary Forces on 10th December 1914. He had enlisted at Liverpool the day before and, being unmarried, had given his mother as his next of kin.
He was allotted to the 3rd Reinforcements to the 3rd Australian Infantry Battalion. He embarked at Sydney on HMT ‘Seang Choon’ on 11th February 1915.
He reached the battlefield at Gallipoli on 7th May and was killed in action on 19th May 1915.
He was buried in the Shrapnel Valley Cemetery, Anzac, about 400 yards SE of Anzac Cove, by Principal Chaplain Rev W McKenzie.
Matchett’s father was awarded a pension of £39 per annum, and his step-mother £13. Two step-brothers, Samuel and Timothy also applied for pensions, but they were rejected as they were not dependant on him.
- based on the Australian War Memorial Honour Roll and notes for the Great Sydney Central Station Honour Board.