Johnson, Cecil Godsen
295 Private Cecil Gosden Johnson - Royal Australian Navy Bridging Train & Australian Provost Corps
Cecil was born in Fremantle on the 2nd May 1893 to Frederick and Naomi Johnson. He had a younger brother Clarence born in 1892. He was educated and grew up in Fremantle.
When he was 18 in 1910 Cecil joined the Royal Navy. He had been previously working as a Hotel Boy in Fremantle.
The 1911 English census lists him as serving in Royal Navy at Hong Kong, being listed as the rank of Boy 1st Class. It appears he served for a few years before transferring back to the Royal Australian Navy reserve. Cecil had served on the HMS Psyche and HMS Challenger.
In 1913 he found employment in Fremantle as a Horse and Motor Driver for Donaldson & Collins Ltd and also the Red Cross Aerated Water Company.
It appears that in 1915 Cecil was living and working at 25 Pakenham Street Fremantle. (later renumbered to 3 Pakenham Street).
Cecil had been previously married to Mabel Bacchus and a son Charles and daughter Elizabeth had been born pre war. They all resided in Pakenham Street.
Due to his previous navy experience Cecil had applied to join the Royal Australian Navy Bridging Train. He was told to report to the Royal Australian Navy office in Cliff Street Fremantle (see below)
After Cecil filled in his application he was accepted for service in the Royal Australian Navy Bridging Train on the 17th April 1915. The medical examiner recorded Cecil's physical attributes as;
Height - 5 feet 5 & 1/2 inches tall;
Chest Measurement - 37 inches;
Complexion - Fresh;
Eyes - Blue;
Hair - Brown.
He was passed as fit for service in this unit by the Commander LS Bracegirdle.
Cecil had been sent across to Melbourne to complete his training and in June 1915 the Royal Australian Navy Bridging Train departed from Port Melbourne aboard the transport ship HMAT Port Macquarie.
Cecil had been given the rank of AB Driver.
The 1st Royal Australian Naval Bridging Train (RANBT) was intended to be a horse-drawn engineering unit that could support operations on the Western Front. A ‘train’ was a series of wagons that carried a unit’s building materials and the other equipment needed to build roads, railways and bridges.
However after arrival in Egypt, the RANBT was sent on to Gallipoli, firstly to Imbros Island and then to Suvla Bay.
According to the Royal Australian Navy website;
Early on 7 August, the RANBT landed under fire at Suvla Bay. The men quickly constructed a pontoon pier to better move supplies and reinforcements ashore. They were camped at Suvla, on Kangaroo Beach, and the RANBT, built and maintained wharves and piers; unloaded stores from ships; controlled the supply of fresh water to front line troops; built a light railway for stores movement and carried out repairs in an open air workshop.
The men of the RANBT were among the last to leave the Anzac and Suvla Battlfield on the 20th December 1915 when Gallipoli was evacuated. Cecil served with his unit through their time on Gallipoli.
The RANBT then returned to Egypt and spent 1916 maintaining and operating the bridges over the Suez Canal in Egypt. Cecil and his unit took part in the amphibious assault on Turkish positions at El Arish.
During the early part of 1916 Cecil had been hospitalised with venereal disease but only had a month in hospital before rejoining his unit.
Australian authorities disbanded the RANBT on 27 March 1917, and the men were given a choice of serving further in other Australian units or be returned to Australia. Cecil decided to continue serving and was sent to the Australian Military Police (Australian Provosts Corps). It was responsible for battlefield traffic control, security duties, prisoner of war handling, the investigation of service offences, maintaining discipline and the running of military prisons.
However before he was officially taken on strength, Cecil had to undergo another fitness examination which he passed.
Cecil served through the rest of 1917 and into 1918 for the Australian Provost Corps in Cairo, Moascar, Suez, Port Said, Kantara and Abbassia.
On 4th March 1919 Cecil boarded the troopship Port Sydney for the journey home, reaching Fremantle on the 1st April 1919. Cecil was then discharged from the AIF on the 24th May 1919.
He then returned home and two more daughters were born, Florence in 1920 and Betty in 1922.
After he had departed for service overseas his family had been living at 32 Grey Street Fremantle. (later renumbered to 10 Grey Street).
By the mid 1920's the family had moved to Fremantle Road Victoria Park and he was working as a stoker. However Cecil soon was employed by the Lighthouse Service. In 1923 he was stationed at Point Moore for six months and then from 1923-1928 was working as Eclipse Island Albany as a lighthouse keeper. This island is 17 kilometres due south of Albany.
Cecil was there for a few years before transferring to Point Cloates near Ningaloo for five years from 1928 to 1933, then from 1933 to 1937 was stationed at the Lighthouse at Cape Naturaliste. From 1937 to 1941 the early war years, Cecil was based at Cape Leeuwin.
From the 1940's to 1950's Cecil was based at Port Don in the Northern Territory and then the North West Cape.
After retiring Cecil moved back to Perth. He died on the 23rd December 1963 aged 70 in Brentwood WA. He was buried in Karrakatta Cemetery plot Anglican OC 0451.
His wife Mabel died on the 2nd July 1979.