Carl was killed in action at Tobruk, Libya, on 17th May 1941. He had been commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Second Australian Imperial Force on 6th August 1940[2] and been posted to the 2/23rd Australian Infantry Battalion, which had been raised at the Albury Showgrounds, New South Wales in August 1940, as part of the 26th Brigade. Initially, the brigade belonged to 7th Division but in early 1941 was transferred to 9th Division in northern Africa. Shortly afterward, between 6th and 10th April against German-led counter-attacks, the entire division fell back to Tobruk – colloquially referred to as the 'Benghazi handicap'. The battalion helped defend Tobruk on the 'Red Line', a semicircle around the town; initially on the western side of the line cutting Derna Road and from the beginning of May on the eastern side of Tobruk, where the line cut Bardia Road. It was here that Carl was killed.[3] Carl McGibbon Jess' name is located at panel 50 in the Commemorative Area at the Australian War Memorial, Canberra.[4]
This week's featured connections are Twins: Carl is 30 degrees from Robin Gibb, 29 degrees from Wilfred Baddeley, 24 degrees from Betty Cuthbert, 26 degrees from Yvonne Dionne, 21 degrees from Joseph Fiennes, 28 degrees from Linda Hamilton, 25 degrees from Randolph Hearst, 31 degrees from Jill Hennessy, 36 degrees from Millie McCoy, 26 degrees from Alanis Morissette, 23 degrees from Freelan Stanley and 24 degrees from Kiefer Sutherland on our single family tree. Login to see how you relate to 33 million family members.