Toohey, John Maurice

No.3795 – Private John Toohey – 12^th Battalion AIF

John Maurice Toohey was born in North Fremantle in 1895 to James and John Toohey. He was the eldest of five children with Michael being born in 1898, Maurice in 1900, Patrick in 1902 and Albert in 1904. The family lived in Victoria Avenue North Fremantle and John was educated in Fremantle. He also served in the cadets while at school and continued his service in the Citizen Military Forces. After leaving school John took up work as a clerk but he also was employed as a labourer. John was also a good sportsman and played Australian Rules football for the North Fremantle Football Club.

His father worked for the WA Government Railways and thus the family moved around a bit. Prior to the Great War his father was based at Darkan but John was working at Kalgoorlie. John himself worked for the WA Government Railways from 1910-1914. On the 15^th August 1915 John went to the Kalgoorlie Drill Hall to enlist in the AIF. He was passed as fit for service with the medical examiner finding him to be 5 feet 10 inches tall; weight of 168lbs; chest measurement of 33-35 inches; fair complexion; blue eyes and sandy hair. His religious denomination was Roman Catholic.

Upon his successful enlistment John was sent to Blackboy Hill Camp where he was assigned to No.24 Training Depot. He remained there until the 28^th October when he was sent to No.22 Training Depot. The same day John was transferred to the 12^th Reinforcements to the 12^th Battalion AIF. This group trained in WA for the next several weeks while they waited for their embarkation orders to arrive. These orders finally came through and on the 17^th December 1915 John and his group boarded the HMAT Ajana in Fremantle Harbour and set sail overseas.

The journey to Egypt took over three weeks and it wasn’t until early January 1916 that they arrived in Egypt. After being disembarked the men were sent into the 3^rd Training Battalion where they commenced further training. The 12^th Battalion had recently arrived back from Gallipoli but as they were soon at full complement of numbers, John was retained in the 3^rd Training Battalion for the time being. It wasn’t actually until the 17^th March 1916 that John was taken on strength of the 12^th Battalion.

He only had a short time training with his unit in Egypt as twelve days after joining them the 12^th Battalion departed Alexandria Harbour aboard a troopship and set sail for France, arriving at Marseilles on the 5^th April 1916. John and his battalion were disembarked and marched through the city to the railway station where they boarded trains which took them to northern France.

They arrived in the Armentieres region where they were initially billeted and they were then sent to the Fleurbaix sector of the Western Front where they would have their first experience of trench warfare in France. They began to undertake the regular duties of the front line infantryman such as general fatigues; repairing trenches and patrolling No Man’s Land. The 12^th Battalion remained in this sector until early July 1916.

After leaving this sector the 12^th Battalion, as part of the 1^st Australian Division were sent south to the Somme battlefield. They went into the line near Pozieres on the 19^th July and within a few days they would advance and capture this village from the Germans. On the 23^rd July the assault went ahead and the 12^th Battalion was heavily involved, with Pozieres village being successfully captured. After losing this village the Germans unleashed a hurricane bombardment of this area and the men of the 1^st Division had to endure several days under this fire.

The 12^th Battalion had a large amount of casualties but John came through unscathed. On the 28^th July the 12^th Battalion was relieved for a rest and they were able to have a few weeks out of the line. In the meantime the 2^nd & 4^th Australian Divisions had advanced the line towards the German strongpoint known as Mouquet farm. By mid August the 12^th Battalion arrived back in the front line and on the 19^th August were detailed to advance on Mouquet Farm.

This assault was unsuccessful and the survivors withdrew to their original line. John was initially reported as missing in action and it was reported by No.4252 Private WJ Welsh of the 12^th Battalion that John was seen by several 12^th Battalion soldiers lying badly wounded in No Man’s Land and it was thought that he must have died where he lay. Further to this it was later reported that John’s identification disc was taken off his body by a soldier from the 15^th Battalion and handed into authorities.

However No.3067 Private AM Bean stated that the morning following the assault he saw John being helped into the German lines by two German stretcher bearers. This report may have raised hope in the Toohey family but there was never any word from the Red Cross that John was taken prisoner. For a while John’s status was kept as being ‘missing in action’. A court of enquiry held in June 1917 finally changed John’s status to being killed in action on the 19^th August 1916.

As his body was never recovered John Toohey is commemorated on the Villers-Bretonneux Memorial. News of his death reaching home didn’t stop his younger brother enlisting. In 1916 sixteen year old Maurice Leo Toohey enlisted in the AIF. He was assigned to the 32^nd Battalion reinforcements with the regimental no.4032 and he served with this unit in France and Belgium in 1917. At Polygon Wood near Ypres on the 30^th September 1917 Maurice was shot in the head and severely wounded. Fortunately he survived this wound and was sent back to WA in 1918.