Farrell, Michael by Central Coast Council

Gosford District Casualties of World War One Bragg,Farrell, Edmund Allen Michael

Service Number Number 3485 1494 Service Killed in Action May 1915 Killed in Action 29th19th October 1917 Gallipoli Peninsula Belgium

Gosford City Council gratefully acknowledges the voluntary efforts of Benalyn Campbell And Vivienne Tranter in compiling this resource

The information in this file has been extracted from official records held in the The Australian War Memorial and National Archives of Australia (ÂŠ Commonwealth of Australia [National Archives of Australia] 2013) Further information on this soldier may be found online at: Commonwealth War Graves The AIF project Content advisory: This file may potentially contain disturbing accounts of service-related injury and death, disease and family grief. Adult supervision is recommended for children using these resources. Individual files should be viewed within the context provided by wider research on service conditions in the 1st AIF. This resource is presented by Gosford City Council for research purposes only. Please note that copyright for resources contained within remains with the original copyright owners.

NAME

Farrell, Michael

SERVICE NO

3485

UNIT RANK

Private

AGE at Enlistment

30 yrs 10 mths

PLACE OF BIRTH

Narrandera, NSW

ADDRESS OCCUPATION

Labourer

DATE OF ENLISTMENT

30 Aug 1915

PLACE OF ENLISTMENT PREVIOUS SERVICE

Qld

NEXT OF KIN

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION

Father;- Thomas Farrell- Gosford (Died) Eld Brother D D Farrell 40 Percival St. W Kogarah Brother;- John Farrell 4468 3rd Btn. (Deceased) Sister;- Nellie Farrell- later Mrs Harry Walsh. Mr Harry Farrell, Granville Height-5’9¼”. Weight-11st.10lbs. Chest-34-36½ Complexion-Fresh. Eyes-Blue. Hair-D Brown.

RELIGION

R/C

EMBARKED

Brisbane 31 Jan 1916 per “Kayarra”

DISEMBARKED NOTES WOUNDED/ILLNESS

5 Nov 1916- wounded GSW Head – France, invalid Eng. Returned Unit France 9 Mar 1917. 27 Apr 1917- GSW Lower Jaw. Ret Unit France 8 Jun 1917.

DIED

29 Oct 1917- Belgium

BURIED

Ypres Reservoir M Cem.

MEDALS

British War Medal-29846, Victory Medal-29664. Memorial Plaque & Scroll337491. to Brother D D Farrell

DEPENDANTS PERSONAL EFFECTS WILL CORRESPONDENCE REMARKS

Beneficiary;- Sister Mrs Agnes Bridget Walsh, Brunswick Heads Mullimbimby NSW Brother;- D D Farrell Sister;- A B Walsh

Gosford Times 29th November 1917 Roll of Honor Farrell- Killed in action in France October 27th, 1917, Private Michael Farrell, third son of the late Thomas and Mrs. Farrell, of Hawkesbury River and Gosford. Aged 32 years. He did his duty.

Gosford Times 29th November 1917 Word has been received that Private Mick Farrell, of Wamberal, has been wounded a second time. Privates Don and Jack Farrell have also been wounded, but the last heard was that they had returned to the firing line.

Gosford Times 29th November 1917 The Farrell Family Word has been received that Private Michael Farrell, of Wamberal, was killed in action in France last October. His brother Jack, was killed some time previously, and the third brother, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Domâ&#x20AC;?, is still in the firing line. The Farrell boys were fine soldiers, and in uniform looked every inch the man. Their father, who was laid to rest at Wamberal last year, was very proud of his sons, and always said that if they fell in battle it would be with their face to the enemy.

Gosford Times 29th November 1917 Private Mick Farrell The many local friends of Private Mick Farrell will regret to learn that his sister, Mrs. Walsh, of Tweed Heads, had received a cable stating that he was killed in action in France on October 27th last. He was a son of the late Thos. And Mrs. Farrell, and though born at Hawkesbury River, came to Gosford when a mere boy, his father holding position of ganger on the railway line here for many years. On leaving school he passed into the employ of Mrs. Worley, and so remained until attaining manhood, when he left Gosford to take up a position on the railways of New South Wales, and later went to Mackay, Queensland, where he was at the time he enlisted. After spending final leave with his father at Wamberal, he sailed for the front a few days before Christmas, 1915, with the 8th Reinforcements 26th Battalion. As a soldier he proved himself to be of the “right stuff”, and as a man he was esteemed by those who knew him. The battle of Pozieres brought him his first serious injury-gun-shot wound in the head-which necessitated him spending many months in hospital in England, during which time he wrote of the great kindness displayed to him by the nurses and English people generally. But life away from the scene of battle did not satisfy him, and his letters stated that he was “wearying to be back on the other side of the Channel where the real sport was”. He had not long returned to duty, however, when he was again wounded, and, on recovering, was sent to a school of instruction in sniping and observing, and through particulars are not yet to hand it would seem that he met his death in the discharge of his duties, as his most recent letter stated that, that was what he expected to be doing. An elder brother, Private John Farrell (known in his Battalion as “Honest John”) was killed on May 6 of this year, and Mick wrote that he had “a big score to wipe off against the enemy for his brother’s death,” words that he was fast carrying into effect, according to letters received from a younger brother, Private Dom Farrell, who still remains on active service

Gosford Times 30th October 1919 Roll of Honor Farrell- In loving memory of my dear brother, Michael, who was killed in action at Ypres (Belgium) on October 29th, 1917 No mother’s care did him attend Nor o’er him did a father bend No sisters by to shed a tear No brothers his last words to hear. He sleeps not in his native land, But ‘neath some foreign skies, And far from those who loved him best, But in a hero’s grave he lies, Inserted by his loving brother, Don

Abridged record/s courtesy of the National Archives of Australia (NAA) Series No: B2455 Item Barcode: 3549102