Bushby, Harold Sydney

No.4162 – Private Harold Sydney Bushby – 11^th Battalion AIF

Harold Sydney Bushby was born in Marrickville New South Wales in 1897 to William and Sarah Bushby. The family moved across to Western Australia while Harold was still young and set up residence at 14 South St Fremantle. Harold attended the local Fremantle primary school and served in the Royal Australian Naval Cadets. He continued this work in the Naval Cadets while working as a Telegraph Messenger and Civil Servant. On the 17^th September 1915 Harold presented himself at the Perth recruitment office, and as he was only 18 years old at the time, he also carried the consent form that both parents had signed.

The medical examiner in Perth found Harold to be 5 feet 7 ½ inches in height; weight of 130 lbs; chest measurement of 34-37 inches; sallow complexion; brown eyes and dark brown hair. His religious denomination was Congregational.

Harold was initially allotted to No.30 Depot but on the 9^th November 1915 was assigned to the 13^th Reinforcements to the 11^th Battalion AIF. This group trained in Western Australia until they embarked from Fremantle on the H.M.A.T. “Borda” on the 17^th January 1916. They reached Egypt on the 9^th February 1916 and Harry and his reinforcement group were sent to the 3^rd Training Battalion. On the 8^th March 1916 Harry was admitted to hospital with influenza but had soon recovered and went back to the training unit. Harry departed from Egypt on the 29^th March 1916 and on arrival in Marseilles France, traveled north to Etaples and joined the 1^st Australian Division Base Depot on the 8^th April 1916. He stayed here till the 24^th May when he finally left to join the 11^th Battalion, reaching them in the field on the 27^th May 1916. On the 30^th May 1916 the 11thn Battalion had large casualties when the Germans launches a trench raid against them but it seems that Harold got through unscathed. On the 11^th June he was ill and was sent to the 3^rd Field Ambulance where he was diagnosed with mumps. Evacuated back to the 1^st Casualty Clearing Station, Harold was then admitted to No.7 General Hospital at St Omer. After a few weeks in hospital he had recovered and rejoined the 11^th Battalion on the 7^th July 1916. The 11^th were soon to take part in the Battle of the Somme. On the 21^st July 1916, the 1^st Division units prepared for their role in the capture of Pozieres. The 11^th Battalion captured the territory allotted to it though the Germans unleashed hell on the Australians in one of the heaviest barrages of the war. Many in the 11^th were hit and though Harold escaped major harm he had to be evacuated back to the 3^rd Casualty Clearing Station suffering from shell shock. He was sent further on to the 1^st Canadian General Hospital at Etaples and stayed there till the 2^nd August when he was sent to the 6^th Convalescent Depot. On the 4^th August he marched into the 1^st Australian Division Base Depot where he spent the next two months, only rejoining the 11^th Battalion on the 1^st October 1916.

Harry spent the next three months with the battalion on the Somme battlefield in the vicinity of Flers; however on the 2^nd January 1917 he was evacuated back to the 3^rd Field Ambulance with pyrexia of unknown origin. He was then sent to the 36^th Casualty Clearing Station and on the 4^th January 1917 reached the 1^st General Hospital at Etretat. Two weeks were spent here and on the 18^th January Harry was sent back to England where he was admitted to the 3^rd Australian General Hospital at Brighton.

Harry slowly recovered and on the 9^th March he marched into camp at Perham Downs and was classified as fit for service. About this time a 6^th Division was being formed in England and many men recovering from wounds or sickness were not sent back to their units in France but taken on strength of these new units. Thus Harry was sent to form part of the new 70^th Battalion. The next few months would be spent in England training with his new unit. On the 26^th July he was admitted to hospital with Scabies but had recovered three days later. In August he underwent training at the Signal School and thus qualified as a signaller. On the 19^th September he marched back into the 3^rd Training Battalion as the 6^th Division had been disbanded due to lack of reinforcements. He rejoined the 11^th Battalion near Passchendaele on the 23^rd October 1917. The next few months the 11^th Battalion would be spending in the vicinity of Warneton and Messines. On the 13^th January 1918 Harry was sent back to the 2^nd Field Ambulance with pyrexia of unknown origin but had returned to the battalion by the 19^th.

On the 26^th January 1918 Harold was killed with another soldier when a German mortar shell exploded in their dugout. He was buried just behind Messines Ridge and after the war was exhumed to Messines Ridge British Cemetery in plot I.A.41