Pte
Walace Richard Meller
Information about birth
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Year of birth: 1899 |
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Place of birth: Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia |
General information
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Profession: Warehouseman |
Army information
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Country: Australia |
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Force: Australian Imperial Force |
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Rank: Private |
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Service number: 5449 |
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Enlistment date: 28/02/1916 |
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Enlistment place: Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia |
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Units: — Australian Infantry, 17th Bn. (New South Wales) (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 20/09/1917 |
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Place of death: Anzac, Zonnebeke, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 18 |
Memorial
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Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial Panel: 17 |
Distinctions and medals 2
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British War Medal Medal |
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Victory Medal Medal |
Points of interest 3
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Enlistment place | ||
| #3 | Place of death (approximate) |
My story
Private Walace Richard Meller was part of the 17th Battalion Australian Infantry, 5th Australian Brigade, 2nd Australian Division. His battalion took part in the Battle of the Menin Road on 20 September 1917 and was responsible for taking the third objective near Garter Point left of Polygon Wood. The two first objectives were taking successfully and the 17th Battalion moved up to the third objective, which was also taken successfully. Private Meller was first reported missing and later reported killed in action. The 17th Battalion A.I.F. suffered a few casualties going up to the second objective but it is most likely that Private Meller was killed taking the third objective. In his Red Cross Wounded and Missing File that 21 men of the 17th Battalion were buried during the night of the 20/21 September, from which only 5 were known by name. The others were buried as unknown Australian soldiers. They were buried in the vicinity of Anzac House. It could be possible that Walace was one of them.
Sources 8
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AIF Project https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=206217 Sources used |
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Chris McCarthy, Passchendaele : The Day-by-Day account, 2018, 80-83. Sources used |
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CWGC https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1599687/meller,-wallace-richard/ Sources used |
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MacKenzie K.W., The story of the seventeenth battalion A .I .F. : in the Great War 1914-1918, 1946, pp. 192-193 Sources used |
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Red Cross Wounded and Missing File and Embarkation Roll https://www.awm.gov.au/advanced-search?query=meller+5449 Sources used |
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Service Record https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/DetailsReports/ItemDetail.aspx?Barcode=8006998&isAv=N Sources used |
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TheLongLongTrail https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/ Sources used |
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War Diary 17th Bn. Australian Infantry https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1339175 Sources used |