Outdoor portrait of Herbert Crowther Foxton, his wife Ruth and their 12 grandchildren at a family ...

Outdoor portrait of Herbert Crowther Foxton, his wife Ruth and their 12 grandchildren at a family Christmas gathering. Herbert is holding James Morrison, while Ruth is holding Philip Rayson. Standing, left to right are: Robert Drummond; Kathy Drummond; Vivian Foxton; Leonie Foxton; Linda Morrison; Denis Rayson; Stephen Rayson; Mark Foxton; Richard Morrison and Christopher Rayson. Born in Ireland in 1890, Foxton was a watchmaker in Queensland prior to enlisting in January 1915. With the service number 863, Foxton embarked as a Sergeant (Sgt) with D Company, 25th Battalion, from Brisbane aboard HMAT Aeneas (A60) on 29 June 1915. Sgt Foxton served on Gallipoli then the Western Front where he reached the rank of Captain. In October 1917 he was wounded (gassed) and following treatment in England returned to his unit in France. On 17 July 1918 a shell explosion rendered him blind, unable to speak and with major wounds to his face; initially he was not expected to survive. He was transferred to the 3rd London General Hospital, Wandsworth, where he underwent 25 facio-maxillary operations by Doctor Warwick James. His face was rebuilt to a natural shape. His sight could not be restored and in March 1920 he was transferred to the St Dunstan's Hospital (a hostel for blind servicemen) where he learnt to read braille and use a typewriter and woodwork tools. Capt Foxton eventually returned to Australia late in 1921. Unable to gain employment he returned to England in 1923 and underwent operations by Sir Richard Cruise, ophthalmic consultant to King George V. The sight in one eye was partially restored allowing him enough vision to assist with mobility and providing some capacity to read. He returned to Australia in early in 1925 and in the same year married Ruth Love in Sydney. He had met Ruth in Dublin while undertaking an apprenticeship in watchmaking, then again in 1921 in Belfast whilst recuperating from his wounds. Herbert and Ruth had four children. During the Second World War Herbert worked for a time in an engineering factory in Homebush, NSW; this was his only paid employment after the First World War. In the 1950s his eyesight failed and he returned to using braille to read. Herbert Foxton died in 1984, aged 94. For photographs related to his facial reconstruction see P06131.001 - P06131.013. For other First World War images of Herbert Foxton see P10550.039 and P10550.614.