Dawson, William Thomas
Second Lieutenant William Thomas Dawson - 28th Battalion AIF
William Thomas Dawson was born in Perth WA on the 26th October 1890 to William and Ellen Dawson. He was one of eleven siblings born into the family.
The family then spent time in Perth and Collie. William had served in the Cadets and also four years with the Citizens Military Forces.
Pre Great War William was living at St Gerrard Canning Road East Fremantle.
In September 1914 William had enlisted for service and been assigned to the 16th Battalion but was then discharged as temporarily medically unfit. On the 24th May 1915 William enlisted again into the Australian Imperial Force. He was found to be fit for enlistment with the medical examiner recording his physical attributes as;
Height - 5 feet 7 & 1/4 inches tall;
Weight - 137lbs;
Chest Measurement - 34-36 inches;
Complexion - Fair;
Eyes - Blue;
Hair - Light.
Upon his successful enlisted William was sent to Blackboy Hill Camp where he was initially assigned to the 7th Reinforcements to the 11th battalion however after a day he was transferred to "D" Company of the 28th Battalion and given the regimental number 1114 with the rank of Sergeant.
This group trained in WA until they embarked from Fremantle aboard the H.M.A.T. “Ascanius” on the 29th June 1915. After their arrival in Egypt in late July they were given further training and were soon told to prepare to head for Gallipoli.
On the 4th September 1915 the Battalion embarked from Egypt and made their way to the peninsula. After the 28th Battalion arrived at Anzac they were sent to part of the newly captured territory to hold the new trenches around positions such as the Apex. The 28th were not involved in any major actions on Gallipoli but still had a steady stream of casualties due to Turkish fire and health issues due to the cold weather.
William remained with them until the Battalion was withdrawn from the peninsula in late December 1915. The 28th Battalion firstly was taken to Mudros and then returned to Egypt on the 10th January 1916.
William trained with the 28th Battalion for the next two months in the Egyptian desert as they also held a portion of the Suez Canal defence line. On the 16th March 1916 the 28th Battalion arrived at Alexandria Harbour and proceeded to board a troopship which took them to France, where they arrived at Marseilles on the 21st March 1916. They then entrained north and arrived near Armentieres and took up a position on the Western Front for the first time near Fleurbaix.
The 28th Battalion remained in this sector until June 1916 when they transferred for a short period to Messines. In early July they were then transferred to the Somme battlefield. On July 22nd the 1st Australian Division had captured Pozieres village and they remained under heavy German shellfire until they were relieved by the 2nd Division a week later. The 28th Battalion came into the line and almost immediately were ordered to attack the German trench line known as OG1 as part of a general advance by the 2nd Division. Just prior to this advance William was promoted to the rank of Second Lieutenant.
The 28th Battalion had the hardest task as they were attacking along the highest elevation on the battlefield and were subject to heavy German machine gun fire. The survivors made it to the German line and found an unbroken stretch of thick barbed wire and as they were attempting to get through, many men were shot down.
During the advance William was shot through the left arm. He had his wound dressed at the Field Ambulance Station and was then sent to the 44th Casualty Clearing Station. William had further treatment here and was then put on an ambulance train for Etaples where he was admitted to No.26 General Hospital. He only spent a few days here before being shipped to England.
He was initially sent to the 2nd Western General Hospital in Manchester before being sent to Haigh Lawn Hospital in Cheshire and then on the 2nd September 1916 was taken to the 1st Eastern General Hospital. He then was sent to the AIF base camp for several weeks.
On the 16th October 1916 William returned to France and then rejoined the 28th Battalion on the 6th November 1916. The 28th Battalion were then situated on the Somme battlefield and they saw much action at Flers in November 1916.
William only lasted 12 days as he was evacuated ill on the 18th November. Sent to the South African Field Ambulance he was diagnosed with rheumatism and myalgia. He was then sent to No.2 Red Cross Hospital at Rouen. He remained there until the 5th December 1916 and was then sent to England.
On arrival William was sent to the 3rd London General Hospital and would remain there for several weeks. William was given extensive medical tests and it was recommended that he be returned to Australia for six months to see if his condition improved.
On the 14th January 1917 William boarded the hospital ship Kanowna at Southampton and set sail for home, reaching Fremantle on the 8th March 1917.
William was medically assessed at No.8 Australian General Hospital in South Terrace Fremantle and found to be no longer fit for active service. He was discharged from the AIF on the 23rd June 1917.
On the 31st January 1918 William married Alice Lawley in Collie - and they would have seven children, with Marie born in 1918, Jack in 1921, William in 1924, Patricia in 1926, Teresa in 1928, Elizabeth in 1932 and Alice in 1935.
William was back in Base Hospital Fremantle in 1919 but as his health improved he took up mining work in Collie.
William would remain living and working in Collie.
He died on 10th February 1949 in Collie aged 59. He was buried in Collie General Cemetery.