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Yasmin McDonald
09 July 20
Peter Rothery OSC1964
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Attribution-NonCommercial CC BY-NC
Scanned Photo
Two photographic albums created by William 'Bill' Crookston Hobson. The albums span from 1914 when William departed Albany to take part in World War One, spanning to 1917, post war period where he was living in London, waiting to come home.
The two photographic albums have been meticulously recorded over three years, carefully documenting his travel to World War One, from training at Black Boy Hill, departure of ANZAC's through Albany, Cape Town - South Africa, The Suez Canal and Alexandria - Egypt, Fromelle's - France and London - United Kingdom.
WILLIAM 'BILL' CROOKSTON HOBSON
William Crookston Hobson, known as Bill or Willie to his family and friends, was born in Melbourne on the 17th of November 1891. His parents were Ernest and Lillian Hobson, who had emigrated from Britain in 1890 and married in Melbourne. His father was English and his mother a Scot. In 1896 the family moved to Western Australia and sometime later built a family home in Stuart Street, Cottesloe. William had two sisters, ‘Nesta’ born in 1898 and ‘Lillian’ born in 1900.
William attended Scotch College in 1907 for his finishing year of Senior School education, departing at the end of 1907, aged 16 years.
His first employment was in 1907 as a junior clerk in the State Audit Department where he stayed until 1910. During this time he studied accounting part time and it is believed that after leaving the State Audit Department in February 1910, he worked in the Western Australian Bank owned by the State Government.
In February 1911 he joined the Medical and Health Department as a clerk. It is not known how long he stayed here, however, we do know that in 1911 and 1912 he farmed at Arthur River, which is an upper tributary of the Blackwood River. This was not a success and in December 1912, he rejoined the public service as an account clerk in the Water Supply Department on a salary of one hundred and thirty two pounds per annum. It is believed he worked there until enlisting in the First World War.
SCOTCH COLLEGE
William 'Bill' Hobson attended Scotch College for one year, 1907. It was common for students at the time to complete a senior school finishing year at the College. His family have a book, he won as a prize for commercial subjects in Form Five, dated December 1907, signed by Headmaster Peter Corsar Anderson.
Not much is known about his time at Scotch or who his friends were while he attended school. He did recount that the students had to help build the oval in front of the school, using wheelbarrows and shovels. Where the sand came from is not known.
GROWING UP IN PERTH
William 'Bill' Hobson remembered when Stirling Highway, between Perth and Fremantle, was a bush track.
He had a couple of near death experiences growing up. When he was a schoolboy he was taking a shortcut near his home across a paddock, which held a formerly docile milking cow. For some reason it charged him from behind. Luckily for him the horns went either side of his body. The cow proceeded to grind him face first into the ground. He was knocked out and knew nothing of what happend. Someone was able to get a gun and shot the cow. When he regained consciousness, he said his mouth and nose were full of sand.
As a young man he jumped into the Swan River at Guildford to save someone who was drowning. The man, in his panic, climbed on Bill’s shoulders and he was nearly drowned himself. His mother was upset because he had ruined a new green suit.
He also remembered seeing the first car in Perth, at the time he attended school.
ARTHUR RIVER, WESTERN AUSTRALIA
William 'Bill' Hobson farmed on the banks of the Arthur River from 1911 to 1912. Life was tough for William, trying to carve a farm out of the bush. He told how that he used to pay for his monthly supplies with possum skins. Once mice ate a whole sack of flour, leaving only the ‘shell’ of the sack. After that he had to hang everything from the rafters. At night his small dog kept his feet warm in bed.
When celebrating his grandson Peter’s 21st birthday he was asked what he did on his 21st birthday. He replied that he was lost in the bush and was firing off his gun every half hour for search parties to locate him!
He was very proud of having saved the life of his small black dog, which was mesmerised and about to be bitten by a large snake. He shot the snake through the head from 50 yards with a 22 inch Winchester rifle.
When he finally abandoned the farm, to return to Perth by horse he had to leave his larger dog ‘Floss’ in the bush, because the pads on its paws had worn so much. Amazingly the dog managed to survive and after its paws healed, made its own way back to Cottesloe and was found in the street behind his parents’ house.
FIRST WORLD WAR
William 'Bill' Hobson enlisted in the First AIF on the 18th of September 1915. The Australian War Memorial gives his date of joining as the 27th of September 1915. He was aged twenty three years and nine months old, giving his occupation on the enrolment form as a clerk. His service number was 3025.
After training at Blackboy Bill, he embarked for service overseas as part of the 28th Battalion reinforcements. Prior to embarkation he became engaged to Vickie Hamel. He sailed on the HMAS Medic on 18 January 1916. By that time he was a Corporal.
On arrival in Egypt, he was transferred to the newly created 53rd Battalion, 14th Brigade, 5th Division, which was made up of Gallipoli veterans from the 1st Battalion and the new reinforcements.
In March 1916 they were sent to guard the Suez Canal from Turkish attack. Instead of marching by road or being sent by train, they were marched across the desert carrying sixty to seventy pounds of equipment. The intention was to 'toughen them up'. It is rumoured that men died during the desert crossing, given the heat and lack of water. Certainly the Battalion were in bad shape when they arrived at the Suez Canal. After arrival, they were reviewed by the Prince of Wales. Bill said that after the Prince was given three cheers someone shouted ‘And three boos for General X’, whom made them cross the desert. William 'Bill' said they probably heard the booing in Australia! The General responsible for the failed desert crossing was sent home to Australia.
They left Ferry’s Post on the Suez Canal in June 1916, embarking at Alexandria for France on the ‘Royal George’ ship on the 22nd of June. Less than one month later, William 'Bill' Hobson was in action.
EGYPT 1916
Bill Hobson OSC1907 recounted to his grandson, Peter Rothery OSC1964, that when he arrived in Egypt they were a day early and no provision had been made to feed them. The order was passed down the line from the officers, to the sergeant to the corporal, who was Bill Hobson “Find some food for your men”.
Bill hid his section in the sand hills above where some New Zealand cooks were preparing food for their men. Just before it was ready, they swept down from their position and carried off pots of food, which they ate.
Later they found an unoccupied hut which they commandeered. The reason it was unoccupied was it was lousy with lice. They had lice for the rest of the war.
BATTLE OF FROMELLES
Bill was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM) for conspicuous gallantry at the Battle of Fromelles on the 19th and 20th of July 1916. This action was the first involvement of the Australians in France. It was our darkest day, with more men lost in one day than in any other action during World War One. The Fifth Division of around seven thousand attackers lost five thousand three hundred and thirty three men, with almost two thousand killed. The battle was a complete failure.
Bill was a stretcher bearer and although wounded by shrapnel in his right buttock, he continued to bring in wounded under intense fire for over twenty seven hours. He recounted how he was bending over picking up a wounded man, when a shell exploded behind him. Most of the shrapnel and the blast went over his back. If he had been standing up he would have been dead. He picked up the piece of shrapnel and it burnt his fingers. He was evacuated from France to England due to injury.
Bill Hobson recounted that after the 'Battle of Fromelles' he was totally exhausted from his wound and carrying other wounded men to the first aid post. He and the other wounded were loaded onto a train to evacuate them to Hospitals in England. Nearly everyone on the train went to sleep from pure exhaustion. The train was stationary in a cutting, when an ammunition dump at the side of the cutting exploded with a huge roar. Luckily they were protected by the cutting otherwise they would have been wiped out. The injured were so exhausted, they woke up and rolled over and went back to sleep. Bill said he slept all the way to England, where he spent a number on months in hospital.
AWARDS
Citation for awarding of the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM)
3rd of August 1916
William Crookston Hobson
Service No 3025
53 Battalion, 5th Division AIF
At Petillon, France on the 19th and 20th July 1916, Private Hobson worked throughout the fight under the direction of the RMO, who specifically singled him out for recognition from amongst the rest of the bearers, all of whom were good and worked unceasingly for over twenty seven hours. Private Hobson was slightly wounded on the morning of the 19th, but continued to carry wounded through the communication trenches and along the front line trenches both of which were under a very heavy fire throughout the whole time and were choked with dead and wounded men, and debris of all kind. It was not until the afternoon that he permitted the RMO to dress his wound, when it appeared that he had suffered a large shrapnel wound which necessitated his immediate evacuation.
Recommended by Brigadier General commanding from the 14th Infantry Brigade.
Reference: The Australian War Memorial Records
LONDON 1916-1919
Bill was attached to the Pay Corps in London on the 30th of November 1916 and served there for the rest of the war. He returned to Australia on the ‘Anchises’ on the 28th of February 1919 and was discharged from the Army on the 12th of June 1919.
Bill’s wound was more than a 'slight wound’ and he was not discharged from hospital, until October 1916 three months after being wounded. This no doubt saved his life because his chances of survival back in the trenches would have been very slim.
During his time in London, he formed life long friendships with Charlie Rowsell and Bert Hill, both groomsmen at his wedding in 1919.
Bill recounted to his grandson Peter, that when the Armistice was declared on the 11th of November 1918, London went mad with joy. The streets were packed with people celebrating peace at last. Through the revellers, a carriage drew up and a very aristocratic lady invited him and some of his friends to get into the carriage and go to lunch. They had a fantastic time at some very posh establishment in London. At one point in the proceedings, he was playing the piano with the band. It was certainly a historic moment in time, to be in London.
RETURN TO AUSTRALIA
Bill was promoted to ER Sergeant on the 23rd of November 1918. He was then ‘detached’ from the Pay Corps on the 27th February 1919. On the 28th of February 1919, he left England for Australia on the transport ship ‘Anchises’. The ship went via Cape Town and arrived in Albany on the 7th of April 1919.
On arrival they had to spend time in the Quarantine Station in Albany. In 1919 the worldwide Spanish influenza pandemic was raging.
Bill told his grandson Peter, that in he attending the wedding of a friend in London and a few weeks later had to help dig a grave for his friend’s wife who had died from influenza. He mentioned there were so many dying in London, there were not enough grave diggers.
WEDDING OF BILL HOBSON AND VICKIE HAMEL
After three years separation, Bill Hobson and Vickie Hamel were married in St George’s Cathedral, Perth, on the 17th of June 1919. The Minister whom wedded the couple was Reverend Joseph Williams. The church was a place of worship for the Hamel family, who lived in East Perth.
On his marriage certificate, Bill gave his occupation as Civil Servant and Vickie gave her occupation as a Milliner. Ex-servicemen Charlie Rowsell and Bert Hill were groomsmen. Bert signed as a witness to the wedding and was best man. Dorothy Butt signed as a witness for Vickie, and it is assumed she was the chief bridesmaid.
The married couple spent their honeymoon at Caves House, Yallingup.
LATER LIFE
Following their marriage, Bill and Vickie Hobson moved into their first house in Longroyd Street, Mount Lawley. At that time Mount Lawley was mainly bush land.
Bill rejoined working in the Public Service, where he spent the rest of his working life. He further qualified as an accountant and company secretary in the 1920’s.
Bill and Vickie had two children. A son, John Ernest, born on the 12the of June 1921 and a daughter, Valerie Margaret, born on 30th of July 1922.
In 1936 Bill and Vickie went on a world trip for six months and attended the Berlin Olympic Games.
Bill retired in 1956, at which time he was Managing Secretary of the State Gardens Board of Western Australia.
Bill absolutely adored “his Vickie” and was devastated when she died of a heart attack in her sleep on the 13th of February 1965.
From that point, Bill lived with his daughter, Valerie Rothery and grandson Peter Rothery OSC1964. He died in Hollywood Repatriation Hospital on the 8th of October 1970.
The extract is written by Bill's grandson and Old Scotch Collegian Peter Rothery OSC1964.
Peter Rothery OSC1964 digital donated Bill's photographic album to the College on the 9th of July 2019 and holds full copyright of the photographic records and stories relating to William 'Bill' Crookston Hobson's life.