DYBALL, Cecil Gregory
| Service Number: | 3137 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Private |
| Last Unit: | 55th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Yass, New South Wales, Australia, 24 September 1894 |
| Home Town: | Yass, Yass Valley, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Horse Breaker |
| Died: | Heart Disease , Beechworth, Victoria, Australia, 11 May 1971, aged 76 years |
| Cemetery: |
Beechworth Cemetery, Victoria Buried at 3.00 pm on Thursday 13.05.1971 in the Methodist - Section A - Plot 792. Cecil Dyball was originally interred alone in an unmarked grave. However, in 2019 a successful application by the Beechworth Cemetery Trust resulted in him being afforded a full military grave by the Dept. of Veterans Affairs |
| Memorials: | Yass & District WW1 Roll of Honour, Yass Methodist Church Honour Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 11 Nov 1916: | Involvement Private, 3137, 55th Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '19' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Suevic embarkation_ship_number: A29 public_note: '' | |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Nov 1916: | Embarked Private, 3137, 55th Infantry Battalion, HMAT Suevic, Sydney |
Cecil Gregory Dyball
Cecil Gregory Dyball was born on the 24th September 1894 in Yass, Southern New South Wales. He was the third child and second son of fourteen children of William and Margaret Louisa Dyball (nee Dyball). On the 16th October 1916 he enlisted in the 1st A.I.F. at Goulburn, N.S.W. at the age of twenty-two years and one month This was his third attempt to join, having been rejected previously due to deficient vision. He was single at the time and worked as a Horse-breaker. Following initial training, Private Dyball, Service Number 3137 was assigned to the 35th Battalion, as part of the 8th Reinforcements. On the 11th November 1916, he embarked from Sydney aboard (A29) HMAT “Suevic” for the European conflict. During the voyage, Private Dyball became ill and was hospitalised at Capetown, South Africa suffering from measles, meningitis and bronchitis. On recovering, Private Dyball re-embarked on the 10th March 1917 aboard (A18) HMAT “Wiltshire” and disembarked at Devonport, England on the 11th April 1917.
Three weeks after disembarking, Private Dyball was assigned to the 62nd Battalion. On the 23rd August 1917, Private Dyball embarked at Plymouth for France to reinforce the 3rd Division. On the 1st September 1917, he was transferred to the 35th Battalion. During fighting around Passchendaele, Belgium, (France) Private Dyball was wounded in action and received gunshot wounds to his face, right hand and legs. He was subsequently invalided to England and hospitalised at the 6th General Hospital. Private Dyball was later diagnosed with deficient vision. He embarked from England on the 14th January 1919 and was invalided back to Australia, arriving on the SS “City of York”.
Cecil Dyball married Ethel Isabella Margurite Hamilton in 1919. Their son, Cecil Donald Walter Dyball was born in 1927 but died the following year. After the War, records have Cecil residing in the Lilydale area from 1922 until 1936, Collingwood in 1939, Fitzroy in 1941, Northcote in 1942, Alphington in 1949 and living in Wangaratta in 1967 and 1968. Cecil was admitted to the Ovens and Murray Home - Beechworth on the 18th December 1968 and was an inpatient there for three years and five months, up until his death. He died on the 11th May 1971 of heart disease. He was buried on the 13th May 1971 in an unmarked grave in the Beechworth Cemetery - Wesleyan Section – Plot 792. Following efforts by the Beechworth Cemetery Trust, a full military grave has since been constructed for Private Dyball by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Service Medals Awarded:
1914 – 1915 Star
British War Medal
Victory Medal
Robert Scott – for the Beechworth Cemetery Trust.
Submitted 8 May 2019 by Robert Scott