Gordon Williamson (1919 - 2000)

Born 21 Jan 1919 in Hill End, New South Wales, Australia

Died 25 Jan 2000 at age 81 in New South Wales, Australia

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Ro Hull [send private message]

Biography

->1919 Birth @ Hill End, New South Wales, Australia

Birth Registration #5071/1919 of Gordon WILLIAMSON, child of Percy G (father) and Florrie (mother), on 21 Jan 1919, registration district: Hill End, New South Wales, Australia.^[1]

->1940? Military Service @ New South Wales, Australia, World War II

Gordon Williamson, born 21 Jan 1919 at Hill End, New South Wales, Australia, enlisted at Paddington, New South Wales, Australia, for military service during World War II, Service Number NX59157. His Next of Kin was listed as Cosmo Williamson. ^[2] Gordon Williamson, served with the 2nd / 18th Battalion of the Australian Imperial Force. His sister, S. Williamson, lived at 67 Macleay St, Potts Point, New South Wales.^[3]

Register of Female Relatives Badge [WWII - New South Wales; badge number 43143]

For active service abroad during the Second World War, a single badge was issued to the nearest female relative of members of the Australian Imperial Force (including members of the Australian Army Nursing Service), Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. Stars displayed on a bar suspended below the badge represented the number of relatives involved in the war effort. Authority for the issue of the badge was given under AIF Order 200,14 February 1941. ^[4] This badge was issued in Gordon's case, as his mother had passed away, to his sister, Stella.

The 2/18th Battalion, as part of the 22nd Brigade of the 8th Division, sailed from Sydney bound for Singapore on 4th February 1941, arriving on 18th February, and moving north to Port Dickson in Malaya. After a hard-fought withdrawal before overwhelming Japanese military the battalion members became prisoners-of-war on 15th February 1942 when Singapore fell. The largest group of 2/18th members were sent to Blakang Mati, off the southern coast of Singapore, with lesser numbers ending up at other camps around Singapore and Malaya, along the Burma-Thailand railway, and in Borneo and Japan. The surviving members were liberated in late-August 1945 and began returning to Australia almost immediately. ^[5] Gordon would have been awarded the 1939-1945 Star, Pacific Star, War Medal 1939-45 and Australian Service Medal 1939-45 for his military service. ^[6]

->2000 Death notice @ New South Wales, Australia

Death notice of Gordon WILLIAMSON aged 81, records the Death on 25Jan2000. Death notice published 05/02/2000 Sydney Morning Herald^[7]

->2000 Memorial @ Glade Walls, Waratah Wall (A), Position 90 Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park, Matraville, New South Wales, Australia

Gordon Williamson (unknown-2000) has a memorial at Glade Walls, Waratah Wall (A), Position 90 in the Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park, Matraville, Randwick City, New South Wales, Australia.^[8]

Sources

1. ↑ 'Births Search Results HILL END', Government of New South Wales, Justice, Registry of Births Deaths & Marriages, online repository https://familyhistory.bdm.nsw.gov.au/lifelink/familyhistory/search Accessed 18Mar2022, Reg.#5071/1919
2. ↑ National Archives of Australia, Military service records, online repository https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/SearchScreens/NameSearch.aspx
3. ↑ Register of Female Relatives Badge [WWII - New South Wales; badge number 43143], Contents range 1942 - 1943, Series number MT1384/2, Control symbol BOOK 14, Item ID 12144151; online repository https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Gallery151/dist/JGalleryViewer.aspx?B=12144151&S=13&N=372&R=0#/SearchNRetrieve/NAAMedia/ShowImage.aspx?B=12144151&T=P&S=13 accessed 18Mar2022
4. ↑ Australian War Memorial: Female Relative Badge; accessed 18 Mar 2022
5. ↑ Australian War Memorial unit record: 2/18th Australian Infantry Battalion; accessed 18 Mar 2022
6. ↑ needs to be checked against actual service records
7. ↑ 'Death Notices and obituaries.' The Ryerson Index. Accessed 18Mar2022. http://ryersonindex.net/search.php
8. ↑ Gordon Williamson (unknown-2000) - Find a Grave Memorial on Find A Grave: Memorial #174264974 retrieved 17 March 2022