LAFFAN, William Michael
| Service Number: | 68689 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 1st to 17th (VIC) Reinforcements |
| Born: | Kew, Victoria, Australia, date not yet discovered |
| Home Town: | Richmond (V), Yarra, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Telephone Mechanic |
| Died: | Died of Illness, Pnuemonia, Australia, 12 December 1918, age not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Rockingham Cemetery, Western Australia Rockingham Cemetery, Rockingham, Western Australia, Australia |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Coogee "Boonah" Tragedy Memorial, Hawthorn Postmaster General's Department Victoria 1, Postmaster General's Department Victoria 2 |
World War 1 Service
| 22 Oct 1918: | Involvement Private, 68689, 1st to 17th (VIC) Reinforcements, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '20' embarkation_place: Adelaide embarkation_ship: HMAT Boonah embarkation_ship_number: A36 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Oct 1918: | Embarked Private, 68689, 1st to 17th (VIC) Reinforcements, HMAT Boonah, Adelaide | |
| 12 Dec 1918: | Involvement Private, 68689, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 68689 awm_unit: 14th General Service Reinforcements awm_rank: Private awm_died_date: 1918-12-12 |
Private William Michael Laffan
The troopship, 'Boonah' arrived back in Fremantle in 1918 bearing soldiers infected with the Spanish Flu then rampant in South Africa where the ship had docked. A number of the soldiers, quarantined at Woodman Point, and the nurses attending them died.
William died from that disease on 12 December 1918 and was buried at East Rockingham cemetery that day (ER: RC 2). He was just 20 years of age, from Kew, Victoria.
A room in the museum at the former quarantine station, and a Boonah memorial outside the former Isolation Hospital commemorates the tragic loss of life. William and other men and women were also honoured at a Boonah Century Commemoration Ceremony at the former quarantine station in December 2018.
68689 Private / W.M. Laffen [sic] / Australian Imperial Force / 12th December 1918.
AWM Roll of Honour, Panel 185.
Lest We Forget.
Submitted 31 May 2025 by gail dodd