Portrait of 1142 Private (Pte) John William Coe, 43rd Battalion. A labourer from Adelaide, South ...

Portrait of 1142 Private (Pte) John William Coe, 43rd Battalion. A labourer from Adelaide, South Australia, prior to enlistment, he embarked from Adelaide on 9 June 1916 aboard HMAT Afric (A19) for Marseilles and then to England for training. Whilst in England he was transferred to the 52nd Battalion but, due to illness he did not join his unit on the Western Front until late April 1917. Six weeks later he returned to England again due to illness and did not rejoin his battalion until late December 1917. Pte Coe was appointed Lance Corporal in mid-February 1918 and ten weeks later was promoted Corporal (Cpl). In mid May 1918 Cpl Coe was transferred to the 50th Battalion which was then located near Amiens, France. Cpl Coe was killed in action near Villers-Bretonneux, France, on 30 June 1918 and is buried in the Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery. He was aged 24 years. His older brother, 440 Pte Albert Edward Coe, 52nd Battalion, was killed in action near Messines, Belgium, on 7 June 1917 and his oldest brother, 2584 Driver William Henry Coe, 5th Battalion, was killed in action near Villers-Bretonneux, France, on 29 August 1917.