SAPPER DACRE TYNAN
6956 – 2nd Tunnelling Company
Dacre Tynan was the son of Richard and Annie Elizabeth Burnside (formerly McBiar) Tynan and born at Mount Morgan, Queensland on February 4, 1891. In 1913 he was working as a labourer at the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company and residing at Cemetery Road, Mount Morgan with his wife Nellie Ellen (nee Welsh) whom he married on February 6, 1912.
The following article appeared in the Rockhampton Morning Bulletin on Friday November 26, 1915:
At the Central District Central Recruiting Depot in Rockhampton on April 22, 1916 he passed the medical examination for active service abroad. The twenty-five year old completed Attestation Forms on April 28, 1916 giving measurements of height 173cms (5ft 8ins), weight 66.8kgs (147lbs) with a chest size of 98cms (38½ins) noted on the sheet. Dark was his complexion with brown eyes and black hair and his eyes tested to fair vision. Church of England was his religious faith and his wife Nellie Ellen Tynan of Cemetery Road, Mount Morgan, Qld was nominated as next of kin with three-fifths of his pay allotted to support her. Swearing in took place the same day.
Acknowledgement to the departing volunteers appeared in The Capricornian on May 6, 1916:
Basic training as a Private commenced with the 11th Depot Battalion at Enoggera camp, Brisbane, Qld on May 2 concluding on May 30 when he was transferred to the 5th Reinforcements to the 49th Battalion for intensive training until August 18, 1916. Further duties with the Reserve Company followed to November 29 when drafted into the Engineers Depot the next day becoming a Sapper and completed their training on January 31, 1917. During this time Home Leave had been granted and was relocated to the Miners’ Depot on February 1. Two days later at their training camp at Seymour, Victoria further instruction was continued until February 27, 1917 being assigned to the February, 1917 Reinforcements to the Tunnelling Companies with the regimental number 6956.
The transport HMAT A9 Shropshire embarked from Melbourne, Vic on May 11, 1917 with 168 members of the February Reinforcements on board. Sapper Tynan left Australian waters from Fremantle harbour and after crossing the Indian Ocean the ship docked at Durban, South Africa. Next Port-of-call was Capetown to refuel. The following Offence was dealt with on June 23, 1916:
Offence:Capetown 21/6/17 absent without leave from 4.30 p.m. 21/6/17 to 11 p.m.
21/6/17.
Award:10 days C.B. [confined to barracks] by Brig-General S. Wallents
Forfeiture:1 days pay.
Another stopover at an unrecorded harbour followed completing the trip-sheet. After being at sea for 70 days the voyage terminated at Plymouth, England on July 19, 1917. The three officers and 165 other ranks were detrained to Tidworth while two were hospitalised at Plymouth and they marched into the Nos 1 & 3 camps at Parkhouse for further training for the front.
On August 18, 1917 the Reinforcements departed Southampton and proceeded to France arriving at the Aust General Base Depot at Rouelles the next day.
Sapper Tynan was assigned to the 1st Anzac Entrenching Battalion on September 5 and attached on October 31, 1917 to this advanced section of the Base Depot that organised works near the lines and through duties, would accustom the reinforcements to war conditions before being assigned to a company in the field.
He was taken on strength with the 2nd Tunnelling Company on November 30, 1917.
Meanwhile back home on December 5, 1917 the Roll of Honour Board for employees of the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company Ltd was publicly displayed. The name Tynan D appears on the Honour Board as he was an employee of the Company when he enlisted.
Was taken sick to the 57th Field Ambulance on January 4, 1918 then transferred to the 5th Casualty Clearing Station suffering from Scabies and returned to duty on January 10, 1918.
On March 12, 1918 he was wounded in action being gassed by a shell and attended to at the 149th Field Ambulance before being sent to the 12th General Hospital in Rouen. On March 18 was conveyed to England on the hospital ship St Patrick and admitted to the 5th London General Hospital in Lambeth. Notification was sent to his wife from Base Records on March 26, 1918 that he had been wounded (gassed) and the following day advised he was now in hospital.
A transfer to the 1st Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield on April 5, 1918 followed then discharged to the No. 2 Command Depot and later reported to the No. 3 Depot at Hurdcott.
On May 8, 1918 disciplinary action was taken at Hurdcott for the following:
Offence:Salisbury 4/5/18 A.W.L. from midnight 3/5/18 till 8 p.m. 6/5/18.
Award:Forfeits 3 days pay by Lt Col T. Flintoff.
Total forfeiture:6 days pay.
Central Queensland soldiers on the Front were in contact with Mrs H.G. Wheeler working in London co-ordinating the Central Queensland Comfort Fund and each week sent report-letters naming those men she had been in contact with during the week. These were published in the Rockhampton newspapers to give relatives reliable news of their men abroad. Her address was care of the Agent-General, Queensland Office, London.
The following are extracts from her letters home published in the Rockhampton Morning Bulletin on April 26, 1918 in which she imparts news of Sapper Tynan:
He marched out to join the Overseas Training Brigade on May 14 and proceeded to France from Southampton on May 31, 1918 arriving at the A.G.B.D. in Rouelles the next day and left to return to his unit on June 5 rejoining them on June 10, 1918.
Service continued without incident and was with his unit when the Armistice was declared. The Tunnelling Companies remained in service as part of the Army of Occupation assisting with rehabilitation of roads and bridges clearing them of mines and shells in their area.
On December 16, 1918 he was charged with the following Crime in the Field:
Crime:Conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline in that at
Bussiors on 15/12/18 he failed to remove a mine according to instructions.
Award:20 days F.P. No. 2 [Field punishment No. 2] ordered by C.O. 2nd Tun Coy
Total forfeiture:20 days pay. 16/12/18
This sentence was quashed by authority of the Deputy Assistant Adjutant General, London and no date of the authority was recorded.
Further news home was published in the Rockhampton Morning Bulletin:
The company was ordered to return to Base Depot on April 12, 1919 to prepare for their return to England. They returned to the Aust Base Depot 2 on April 18 and crossed the English Channel the next day marching into the No. 2 Group camp.
Letters with snippets of news were again published in the Rockhampton Morning Bulletin:
After demobilisation Sapper Tynan departed on the H.T. Mahia for the voyage to Australia. On July 15, 1919 his wife was advised of his impending return.
Her news was reported in The Capricornian on July 19, 1919
The ship docked in Sydney, NSW (2nd M.D.) on July 20, 1919 and returned to Brisbane, Qld (1st M.D.) a short time later.
Military Discharge was issued in Brisbane (1st M.D.) on August 28, 1919 at the termination of his period of enlistment.
The British War Medal (29038) and the Victory Medal (27752) were issued to Sapper 6956 Dacre Tynan, 2nd Tunnelling Company for serving his country.
In 1923 he was brought before the Small Debts Court for non payment for goods.
The Rockhampton Morning Bulletin on Tuesday July 1, 1924 reported his state of affairs:
In 1925 their residence was Cemetery Road, Mount Morgan and he was a miner.
A Statement of his Service was sent to the Repatriation Commission on August 1, 1933.
He wrote to Base Records from 44 Cairns Street, Red Hill, Brisbane under the name David Tynan requesting a duplicate Discharge Certificate and Returned Soldier’s Badge. In a Statutory Declaration on August 2, 1935 declared that both had been destroyed through his tent catching fire and everything was burned to the ground (when working for the Railway). The Badge (5688) and Certificate were posted on August 7, 1935.
In 1943 his address was 43 Hope Street, South Brisbane and from 1949 to 1954 was residing at 17 Jumna Court, Hill End, Brisbane.
Dacre Tynan died on August 11, 1962 aged 71 years. The Courier-Mail issue for Tuesday August 14, 1962 has the following:
The following paragraph was published in Queenslanders’ Who Fought in the Great War:
TYNAN, Dacre. 2nd Tunnelling Company.
Born and educated at Mt Morgan. The son of Mr. And Mrs. Tynan, of Mt Morgan. Married to Nellie Welsh, daughter of Ellen and the late Richard Welsh, of Mt Morgan. Enlisted 11th May, 1916, at Mt Morgan, and went into Enoggera Camp, attached to 2nd Tunnellers. Sailed for England per S.S. “Shropshire” May, 1917, and arrived July 1917, where he went to Salisbury Plain. Left for France 3rd September, 1917, was gassed 19th March, 1918, and sent to hospital in England. On recovery sent back to France, where he went on the Army of Occupation in Belgium.
GUNNER LESLIE WILLIAM TYNAN
3205 – 12th Field Artillery Brigade
Leslie William Tynan was born in 1896 in Mount Morgan, Qld and was brother of Dacre Tynan. He became a miner.
At almost twenty years of age he enlisted for active service abroad on June 20, 1916 at the Central District Central Recruiting Depot in Rockhampton, Qld. Passing the medical examination personal details were 168cms (5ft 6ins) in height and weighed 63.6kgs (140lbs) with a chest measurement of 93cms (36½ins). Of dark complexion with brown eyes and black hair he had one distinctive scar on his left leg. The eye test was passed with good vision and nominated Presbyterian was his faith. Next-of-kin was his mother Mrs Annie Elizabeth Tynan of Cemetery Road, Mount Morgan and allotted four-fifths of his pay to her. ‘The Oath of Allegiance’ was signed and taken the same day.
Basic training commenced at the 11th Depot Battalion, Enoggera, Brisbane from June 23 until August 12 when sent to the 6th Reinforcements to the Pioneer Battalion until September 27 then joined the Compound Company at Lytton camp till November 3, 1916. A transfer to the 7th Reinforcements Pioneer Battalion followed being assigned the regimental number 3205 and they embarked from Brisbane on November 17, 1916 on the transport HMAT Kyarra. The troops arrived at Plymouth on January 30, 1917.
On February 16, 1917 he entered the Middlesex War Hospital, Napsbury with Pneumonia. Recovered, he went back to camp and later admitted to the Aust Dermatological Hospital at Bulford for treatment of a social disease on March 9, 1917. After forty-one days care returned to the Pioneer Training Battalion at Fovant.
On September 6, 1917 the following was dealt with:
Offence:Durrington 3/9/17 Overstaying leave A.W.L. from midnight 2/9/17 to
9.30 p.m. 5/9/17
Award:7 days F.P. No. 2 by Lt-Col Coulter
Total forfeiture:10 days pay.
He was mustered as a gunner for Artillery Details on November 3, 1917 and taken on strength at Heytesbury, England and departed Southampton for France on January 16, 1918 arriving at the Aust General Base Depot the next day. He marched out to join the 12th Aust Field Artillery Brigade three days later and was taken on strength in Belgium on January 22, 1918.
On March 21, 1918 Gunner Tynan was killed in action in the field and was buried at Dranoutre Military Cemetery, 2½ miles N.N.E. of Bailleul.
His mother was advised by Base Records and the following appeared in the Rockhampton Morning Bulletin on Monday April 8, 1918:
Personal belongings were to return to his family on June 20, 1918 in Case No. 1227 on the transport Barunga and recorded as ‘lost at sea.’
The following year a memorial notice appeared in the Rockhampton Morning Bulletin on Friday March 21, 1919:
Photos of his grave were sent in triplicate to his mother on July 7, 1920.
The British War Medal (53679) and the Victory Medal (52878) were awarded to Gunner 3205 Leslie William Tynan, 4th Pioneer Battalion / 12th Field Artillery Brigade for his supreme sacrifice for his country. These were sent to his father along with the Memorial Plaque (341529) and Memorial Scroll (341529) on October 24, 1922.
Location of his grave is in Section I of portion K in grave no. 11 of the Dranoutre Military Cemetery, France.
His entry in the book Queenslanders’ Who Fought in the Great War reads:
Commonwealth War Graves Commission entry:
[12th AFA Brigade
Buried Dranoutre Military Cemetery I.K.11
Son of Richard and Annie Elizabeth Tynan, of Mount Morgan, Queensland, Australia.]
Leslie’s name also is recorded on the Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company’s Roll of Honour – Tynan L.W.
LEST WE FORGET
© Donna Baldey 2011