LANCE CORPORAL ARTHUR GORDON-BROWN
805 – 2nd Tunnelling Company / 1st Aust Motor Transport Company
Brisbane, Queensland was the birthplace of Arthur Gordon-Brown on April 24, 1890 the son of William Robert and Catherine Elizabeth (nee Hassall) Brown. Military experience was gained spending six months with the Queensland Rifles.
He married on September 5, 1912 to Elizabeth May Rogers and they had four children. In 1913 his residence was Flinders Street, Townsville with the occupation of Motor Driver.
The following was printed in the Townsville Daily Bulletin on Friday March 28, 1913:
At the Brisbane Recruiting Depot on September 1, 1915 he enlisted at twenty-seven years of age for service abroad. Passing the medical examination Attestation forms were completed and his description on enlistment was 168cms (5ft 6ins) tall, weighed 53kgs (117lbs) with a chest expansion of 82-87cms (32-34ins). His brown eyes passed the eye test with good vision and had a dark complexion with dark brown hair. Church of England was his religion. Next-of-kin was his wife Mrs Elizabeth Mary Brown of Zillmere, Brisbane and he allotted three-fifths of his pay to support her and their children. He was sworn in the same day.
Basic training would have taken place at Enoggera camp, Brisbane then sent to The Warren, Marrickville, NSW and assigned to the 15th Reinforcement to the 3rd Field Artillery Brigade on December 18, 1915 in the rank of Gunner. On January 17, 1916 he was relocated as a Sapper in the No.2 Company Mining Corps. On the day of his departure he was appointed to the rank of Motor Lorry Driver.
At a civic parade in the Domain, Sydney on Saturday February 19, 1916, a large crowd of relations and friends of the departing Miners lined the four sides of the parade ground. Sixty police and 100 Garrison Military Police were on hand to keep the crowds within bounds. The scene was an inspiriting one. On the extreme right flank, facing the saluting base, were companies of the Rifle Club School; next came a detachment of the 4th King’s Shropshire Light Infantry, then the bands of the Light Horse, Liverpool Depot, and the Miners’ on the left, rank upon rank, the Miners’ Battalion.
The Corps boarded HMAT A38 Ulysses in Sydney, NSW on February 20 and sailed for the European theatre. Arriving in Melbourne, Victoria on February 22 the Miners camped at Broadmeadows for a stay of 7 days while further cargo was loaded.
Another parade was held at the Broadmeadows camp on March 1, the Miners’ Corps being inspected by the Governor-General, as Commander-in-Chief of the Commonwealth military forces.
Leaving Melbourne on March 1, Ulysses arrived at Fremantle, Western Australia on March 7 where a further 53 members were taken on board.
On Wednesday March 8, 1916 the whole force, with their band and equipment, paraded at Fremantle prior to leaving Victoria Quay at 9.30 o’clock.
The ship hit a reef when leaving Fremantle harbour, stripping the plates for 40 feet and, although there was a gap in the outside plate, the inner bilge plates were not punctured. The men on board nicknamed her ‘Useless’. The Miners were off-loaded and sent to the Blackboy Hill Camp where further training was conducted.
The Mining Corps comprised 1303 members at the time they embarked with a Headquarters of 40; No.1 Company – 390; No.2 Company – 380; No.3 Company – 392, and 101 members of the 1st Reinforcements.
Finally departing Fremantle on April 1, Ulysses voyaged via Suez, Port Said and Alexandria in Egypt. The Captain of the ship was reluctant to take Ulysses out of the Suez Canal because he felt the weight of the ship made it impossible to manoeuvre in the situation of a submarine attack. The troops were transhipped to HM Transport B.1 Ansonia, then on to Valetta, Malta before disembarking at Marseilles, France on May 5, 1916. As a unit they entrained at Marseilles on May 7 and detrained on May 11 at Hazebrouck.
A ‘Mining Corps’ did not fit in the British Expeditionary Force, and the Corps was disbanded and three Australian Tunnelling Companies were formed. The Technical Staff of the Corps Headquarters, plus some technically qualified men from the individual companies, was formed into the entirely new Australian Electrical and Mechanical Mining and Boring Company (AEMMBC), better known as the ‘Alphabetical Company’.
On October 29, 1916 he reverted to the rank of Motor Driver. Two months later he was transferred to the 2nd Tunnelling Company on December 29, 1916.
His service continued without incident until March 17, 1917 when he was slightly wounded in action but remained on duty.
Base Records advised his wife on March 30, 1917 that her husband had been slightly wounded in action.
A promotion to the rank of Lance Corporal was granted on May 19, 1917.
He was transferred to the Aust Army Service Corps (Motor Transport) in accordance with A.I.F. Orders on August 14, 1917 and taken on strength the same day after detachment from the 2nd Tunnelling Company.
Leave to the United Kingdom was granted on January 20, 1918 but the date he returned to his unit went unrecorded.
He went sick to the 29th Casualty Clearing Station on February 15, 1918 with a Septic Wound to his head and was conveyed on A.T.11 to the 2nd Canadian General Hospital remaining until released to the 3rd Convalescent Depot.
While convalescing, Lance Corporal Brown was taken on strength from the 2nd A.D.M.T.C. to the A.D.M.T.C. on March 12, 1918.
On March 15 he was transferred to the 39th General Hospital at Havre with a Social Disease and after fourteen days curative care a new disease supervened and he was sent to the 2nd General Hospital with Tonsillitis. Released five days later he marched in to the Aust General Base Depot and left to rejoin his unit on April 21, 1918. On May 2, 1918 he was attached for duty with the 2nd Tunnelling Company.
He reported sick to the 15th Aust Field Ambulance on June 21, 1918 and admitted with Myocarditis (Inflammation of muscular substance of the heart) and moved to the 61st Casualty Clearing Station. The next day he was transported on Aust Train to Rouen entering the 10th General Hospital. On June 27 he went to rest at the No. 2 Convalescent Depot.
He reported on July 24, 1918 to the 3rd Medical Board Base Depot and marched out two days later classified with temporary debility B2 and returned to Havre entering the A.G.B.D. On September 8 was classed with B1 (D.A.H.) [Disordered Action of Heart] embarked for England arriving the next day at the No. 2 Command Depot at Weymouth. Nine days later he was relocated to the No.4 C.D. at Hurdcott classed with B1A debility.
On the day Peace was declared he appeared before Major N.M. Young for the following:
AWL 2359 8/11/18 to 1400 10/11/18
Case dismissed.
He left a day later on November 12, 1918 and was attached for duty with M.T.S. Chelsea, Tidworth from the 2nd A.M.T.C.
He was again in trouble for the following:
Tidworth: AWL 2400 14/11/18 to 1200 15/11/18
Award: Reprimanded by Lieut K.O. Forrer 16/11/18
Total forfeiture: 1 days pay.
Special Orders were issued on December 1, 1918 for the Lance Corporal to leave M.T.S. Chelsea and march out to the No.2 C.D. to await his return home.
He embarked on March 5, 1919 from Portland, England on board H.T. Nevasa to return to Australia for discharge. His wife was advised by Base Records on March 25, 1919 of his impending return. The ship docked in Brisbane (1st M.D.) on April 25, 1919.
Military Discharge was issued in Brisbane (1st M.D.) on June 15, 1919 as medically unfit – disability not stated but probably due to disordered action of the heart.
For serving his country L/Cpl 805 Arthur Gordon-Brown, 2nd Tunnelling Company / Aust Motor Transport Company received the British War Medal (12123) and the Victory Medal (11964).
Particulars of Service were forward on August 20, 1924 to the Brisbane Department of Repatriation.
In 1925 he was a farmer at Church Road, Zillmere, Brisbane.
In The Brisbane Courier on Saturday September 6, 1930 the following was reported:
On October 13, 1931 he remarried to Mary Lyons.
The Brisbane Courier on Thursday June 23, 1932 reported the following news:
A further Statement of Service was sent to the Department of Repatriation in Brisbane on January 19, 1932.
Later that year this article appeared in the Townsville Daily Bulletin on Thursday September 29, 1932:
Listed on the Electoral Rolls for 1936/37 at Clermont he was working as a salesman then relocated later that year to 11 North Street, Spring, Hill with the same occupation.
He wrote from Tin Can Bay, via Gympie on May 13, 1940 stating he had lost his Returned Soldiers Badge (139278) and the Silver Badge (40939) and requested possible duplicate badges. He quoted his Discharge No. as 59480. A reply stamped May 23, 1940 noted payment requests of 6d and 1/ for the replacement of these badges.
In 1943 home was Anzac Avenue and Ashmore Road, Redcliffe, Qld and in 1949 was the hotelkeeper at the Columbia Hotel in Gympie, Qld.
Arthur Gordon-Brown passed away on July 28, 1954 aged 66 years. Arrangements were printed in The Courier Mail on Friday July 30 and Saturday July 31, 1954:
His war grave and plaque are located in the monumental portion GP3 of Lutwyche Cemetery, Brisbane within section 48D in grave No. 22.
© Donna Baldey 2012
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