HARVIE, Cecil Gilmore
| Service Number: | 328 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 27th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Blacks Rocks, South Australia, 1916 |
| Home Town: | Black Rock, Orroroo/Carrieton, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farm Labourer |
| Died: | 11 December 1963, cause of death not yet discovered, place of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Murray Bridge (Adelaide Road) Cemetery, S.A. Murray Bridge, Rural City of Murray Bridge, South Australia, Australia |
| Memorials: | Orroroo District Roll of Honour WW1, Tea Tree Gully Hope Valley Methodist Church and District Roll of Honor |
World War 1 Service
| 31 May 1915: | Embarked Private, 328, 27th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Geelong, Adelaide | |
|---|---|---|
| 31 May 1915: | Involvement Private, 328, 27th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '15' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Geelong embarkation_ship_number: A2 public_note: '' | |
| 10 Jun 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, 328, After embarking from Adelaide, he stopped somewhere to meet soliders as the 1st Reinforcements of the 27th Battalion. They then left Australia as a group in June - an unknown day. They arrived in Egypt to train for 2 months. | |
| 9 Sep 1915: | Embarked AIF WW1, Embarked from Egypt (unknown exact date, but likely 9th September) and arrived in Gallipoli on the 12th. | |
| 12 Sep 1915: | Involvement AIF WW1, The 27th Battalion supported the New Zealand and Australian Division in Gallipoli. Unknown exact end date, but left the peninsula mid-December. | |
| 28 Jul 1916: | Involvement AIF WW1, Fought first major battle at Pozieres, France. The battalion entered the trenches on the 7th of April. | |
| 25 Aug 1916: | Wounded AIF WW1, Cecil was wounded in action, sustaining a gun shot wound with shrapnel in his left elbow. He boarded a ship from Boulogne, France, to England. He was admitted to 2 Northern Gerneral Hospital and was discharged on the 12th of October. He rejoined his battalion on the 23rd of December 1916. | |
| 24 Feb 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, 70th Infantry Battalion, Transferred from 27th Battalion to the 70th Battalion as a plan for the 6th Division. Exact date unknown. | |
| 19 Sep 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, 27th Infantry Battalion, Transferred back to 27th Battalion due to abandonment of 6th Division plan. | |
| 22 May 1918: | Wounded AIF WW1, Severely wounded in action due to shrapnel in wrist and thigh. Admitted to hospital, recovered and sent back to battalion on 16th of October. | |
| 13 Apr 1919: | Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 328, 27th Infantry Battalion, Discharged soon after a dental examination. Cecil returned to Australia on 23rd of February 1919. | |
| Date unknown: | Wounded 328, 27th Infantry Battalion |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Modbury High School
Cecil was born and raised a Baptist at Blacks Rocks, South Australia. His exact date of birth isn’t known, however it’s likely to be in June 1890. Cecil was the 11th of 12 children. His siblings were John, Emma, Matthew, William Ernest, Lydia, William, Ernest, Edwin, Alvine, Reuben and Rosie. Some of his siblings moved to Benger, Western Australia. His father was William Harvie, born in Scotland on the 31st of July 1844. His mother was Emma Harvie (nee Hatchard), born in England on the 8th of December, 1849. They married on the 5th of July 1870. After her husband passed away in 1910, she remarried and became Emma Amber. Emma passed away on the 9th of February 1928. Before enlisting in the war, Cecil was a farm labourer, which was a common occupation for those who grew up in country areas. On his medical certificates, Cecil was described as being 5ft 8 ½ inches tall, weighing 146 pounds, with dark brown hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.
Cecil enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) on the 6th of February 1915 and given the service number 328. His mother Emma Amber was his nominated next of kin. Cecil transferred to the 27th Battalion on the 16th of March 1915.
Cecil embarked from Adelaide, South Australia, as part of the 1st Reinforcements. He was on board HMAT A2 Geelong on the 31st of May 1915, at age 24. From here, he joined with the battalion, and they left Australia in June to train in Egypt for two months.
The 27th Battalion disembarked in Gallipoli on the 12th of September. In Gallipoli, the battalion supported the New Zealand and Australian Division (which were part of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps). Cecil was taken ill with a debility 2nd December 1915 and was transferred from the peninsula to hospital. He was diagnosed with influenza at the No 1 Auxiliary hospital in Heliopolis. He was transferred to convalesce at depot before being discharged back to duty in 13th February 1916.
He rejoined his battalion on the 6th of March. They then moved to France as part of the 7th Brigade with the 2nd Australian Division. The 27th Battalion entered the trenches on the 7th of April 1916 and fought their first major battle at Pozieres. This battle lasted from the 28th of July to the 5th of August. Cecil was wounded in action, where he sustained a gunshot wound with shrapnel in his left elbow on the 25th of August 1916. He boarded the hospital ship from Boulogne, France, called ‘Jan Breydel’ to England. He was admitted to 2 Northern General Hospital at Becketts Park, Leeds, Yorkshire on the 29th of August.
Cecil recovered from his injuries and was discharged from hospital on the 18th of October. He proceeded overseas to France on 4th December. On 14th December he was 14 days confined to camp for misconduct while on parade on the 11th December. He rejoined his unit on the 23rd December
On the 13th of January 1917, Cecil was admitted to Edmonton Military Hospital with a sprained left ankle. The injury was considered slight. After his stay in hospital he was granted furlough.
During Cecil’s time off the battlefield, he was transferred from the 27th Battalion to the 70th Battalion. On the 19th of September Cecil was transferred back to the 27th Battalion. He marched out with the 69th Drafting Battalion as part of the process of returning to active service.
Cecil was part of the battalion’s next major battle on the 20th of September 1917. The battalion was part of the 2nd Division’s first wave at the battle of Menin Road, followed by another win, of Broodseinde Ridge on the 4th of October.
On the 22nd of May 1918 Cecil was severely wounded in action with shrapnel in his wrist and right thigh. On his medical records, he was admitted to the Line of Communication Hospital Field Medical Unit on the 27th of May. The next entry was his admission to the First Australian General Hospital in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England on the 30th of May. Cecil was then discharged from hospital on 28th of June and continued to recover at the Convalescent Depot at Le Tréport, France, until the 12th of July. He rejoined the 27th Battalion on the 16th of October.
The 27th Battalion’s final battles were in October 1918, when it helped break through the Beaurevoir Line. After the war ended, Cecil was again sick, rejoining his battalion on the 18th of January. On the 29th of January he left the Australian Infantry Base Depot (AIBD) in England and returned to Australia on the 23rd of February 1919. The battalion was officially disbanded on the 4th of June. After Cecil’s 4 years and 127 days of service, he was awarded three medals: the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and a Victory Medal.
After returning home, he likely continued his job as a farm labourer. At some point, he then moved to Sherlock, South Australia, along with a couple of his siblings. Cecil joined the Sherlock Cricket Club after moving. On Friday the 9th of May 1947, he was mentioned in the Advertiser newspaper for being presented a cup for best batting average at the club
He died at the age of 73 on the 11th of December in 1963. He is buried at Murray Bridge, South Australia.
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