| Place | Europe: France, Nord Pas de Calais, Nord, Lille, Fromelles, Pheasant Wood Military Cemetery |
|---|---|
| Accession Number | P03796.029 |
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Print silver gelatin |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Date made | c 1915 |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Studio portrait of 1682 Private (Pte) Harold John Bourke, 30th Battalion from West Maitland, NSW. ...
Description
Studio portrait of 1682 Private (Pte) Harold John Bourke, 30th Battalion from West Maitland, NSW. A 21 year old labourer prior to enlisting in the AIF on 12 August 1915, he embarked for overseas with the 2nd Reinforcements from Sydney on 17 December 1915 aboard HMAT Berrima. While serving on the Western Front, he was killed in action at Fromelles, France on 20 July 1916, aged 22 years. After the war he had no known grave and was commemorated on the VC Corner Cemetery Memorial at Fromelles. In 2008 a burial ground was located at nearby Pheasant Wood containing the bodies of 250 British and Australian soldiers including Pte Bourke. All of the remains were reburied in the newly created Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery. At the time of the official dedication of the new cemetery on 19 July 2010, ninety-six of the Australians, including Pte Bourke, had been identified through a combination of anthropological, archaeological, historical and DNA information. Work is continuing on identifying the other remains relocated from the burial ground and buried in the new cemetery as unknown soldiers.