George Hearn, The Queenslander Pictorial, 1916
Indigenous Australian, George HEARN, 26th Infantry Battalion
George James HEARN was born in Eulo, Queensland in December 1895 to Joseph James Hearn (1863-1945) and Mary Ann (Polly) Dunn (1876-1940). George's grandparents were Henry and Emily Dunn who resided at Beechal Station, in the Warrego District.
George was working as a station hand when he volunteered for the first AIF in Toowoomba, in March 1916. He travelled to camp at Enoggera, where he trained for the Infantry and was assigned to the 14th Reinforcements for the 26th Infantry Battalion.
George left Brisbane on board HMAT 'Ionus" in August 1916 and arrived in Plymouth, England 10 weeks later. They were shipped to France in December but George was hospitalised with mumps at Etaples, when they landed.
George Hearn joined his unit in the field in January 1917 and survived the major operations at Warlencourt and Lagincourt, the Hindenburg Line defences around Bullecourt and the Battle of Menin Road in September.
It was during their involvement at the former German line at Bois de l'Abbe, near Villers-Bretonneux in August 1918 that George Hearn was seriously wounded. He was evacuated from the front line with gun shot wounds to his left leg, and hospitalised in England for several months, before being invalided home in December 1918.
George Hearn married Phyllis May Johns in Cunnamulla in December 1922, they had five children, Robert, George, Norman, Allan and Jill; he died in 1965.
Read more ...
- Service record: HEARN, George James
- Embarkation roll, 14th Reinf. 26 Battalion
- Unit diary: 26th Infantry Battalion
- Image: Queenslander Pictorial, 30 September 1916
- One of the soldiers featured in SLQ’s HistoryPin Collection
- Queensland’s Indigenous Servicemen [oral history]
The information in this blog post has been researched by State Library staff and volunteers, it is based on available information at this time. If you have more information that you would like to share or further research uncovers new findings, this post will be updated.
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