Cartwright, Thomas Clift
No.1235 - Private Thomas Clift Cartwright – 32nd Battalion AIF
Thomas Clift Cartwright was born in Richmond NSW in 1895 to Thomas & Emma Cartwright. The family moved across to Western Australia while Tom was still a boy and took up residence in Rose Street South Fremantle. Tom was educated at Fremantle State School and also became a member of the 86A Cadets. After leaving school he took up work as a stableman and horseman. In 1911 Tom was living at 101 Hope Street Fremantle.
On the 14th July 1915 he presented himself at the Perth recruitment office and was accepted for service to the AIF. The medical examiner found Thomas to be 5 feet 7 ½ inches in height; weight of 115 lbs; chest measurement of 33-35 inches; light complexion, blue eyes and fair hair. His religious denomination was Church of England.
Tom was initially assigned to No.16 Depot Company and then in August was attached to D Company of the newly forming 32nd Battalion AIF. This was a joint South Australian and West Australian battalion and after their initial training in WA, both C & D Companies travelled to Adelaide SA to complete their training. The whole battalion trained in Adelaide till their departure on the transport ship H.M.A.T. “Geelong”. Their ship arrived in Egypt on the 18th December 1915. No doubt the men had been expecting to be heading for Gallipoli, though two days after their arrival in Egypt; the final troops were pulled out from the Anzac battlefield.
The 32nd Battalion therefore continued their training in the Egyptian desert and also garrisoned the Suez Canal Defence line. In February 1916 the AIF expanded and from their 8th Brigade being a solitary Brigade it now joined up with the new 14th & 15th Brigades to form the 5th Division AIF. This division trained in Egypt until June 1916. On the 17th June they left Alexandria and arrived at Marseilles on the 23rd June 1916. They were immediately sent north to the region around Fleurbaix where they were just supposed to gain front line experience. However this proved a fallacy, as they were rushed into a disastrous attack at Fromelles on July 19th 1916. For many in the 32nd Battalion their attack was their first time in the actual front line.
The 32nd Battalion advanced and took the German position but due to their flank being up in the air and lack of protective cover in the German trench they were soon surrounded and only a few men of the 32nd made it back. Tom was killed during the attack, though no eyewitness reports state where exactly he was killed. However after the battles the Germans collected the dead and removed their discs and placed them into various pits near a place called Pheasant Wood. After the war the war graves parties missed this area and therefore the remains of the fallen were not recovered. However due to the perseverance of one Victorian, Lambis Englezos, he gathered enough evidence to show that these men were still there.
Research was conducted and documents in Tom’s files show that the Germans returned his disc to the Red Cross and he was on their list of men buried. So it was certain that Tom was one of the men transferred to the new Fromelles Military Cemetery in 2010. However as there was nothing identifiable on his body & DNA was not conclusive, and as of 2025 his remains have yet to be officially identified in the new cemetery.
Tom’s next of Kin was his mother Emma Cartwright from Rose St South Fremantle, later moving to Attfield Street. Emma Died in 1917 and was buried at Fremantle Cemetery Ang-AA-0711. Father was deceased pre war.
There was a brother, Samuel Cartwright who enlisted in Sydney in 1917 and served with the 4th Battalion in 1917/18. He was badly gassed and sent back to Australia. He was discharged in NSW.
Another younger brother, James Cartwright from Suffolk St Fremantle dealt with Thomas Cartwright’s belongings & medals.
Thomas’s sister Catherine Pidcock died on the 07/07/1922 and is buried at Fremantle Cemetery Ang-AA-684.