BARNSLEY William Norwood Croft

About William Barnsley

William Barnsley was born in Norwood, South Australia on the 25/09/1892 to William & Alice Barnsley. His mother died when he was ten years old, and his father, a dairyman, relocated to Western Australia.

Broome Connection

Barnsley first appeared in Broome on the 1914 & 1915 electoral roll as an assistant. He worked for A.G. Russell, who had pearling interests and a store in Broome.

War Service

Bill enlisted for the AIF in Broome in April 1915, his attestation paper was signed by the Mayor of Broome, W. Clarke-Hall. He was assigned to the 28th Battalion, A Company, a regiment that included nine other men from Broome. The battalion left Australia in June, aboard the Acanius and, after two months spent training in Egypt, landed at Gallipoli in September. Only eight days after landing, Bill was hit by shrapnel and died. He is memorialised at the Lone Pine Cemetery and Memorial in Gallipoli.

Enlistment Details

Date of Enlistment: 12/04/1915
Place of Enlistment: Broome, Western Australia
Occupation: Storeman
Age at Enlistment: 22
Service Number: 1016
Unit: 28th Battalion, A Company
Rank: Private
Fate: Killed in Action
Place of Death: Lower Cheshire, Gallipoli Peninsula
Date of Death: 3/10/1915
Cemetery or Memorial Details: Memorialised at Lone Pine Cemetery and Memorial Gallipoli, Canakkale, Turkey

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An impressive in memoriam service was conducted at Wattle Grove on Sunday for Private W. Barnsley, of the 28th reinforcements, who was killed at the Dardanelles. The fallen soldier, who was the son of Mr. W. Barnsley, dairyman, of Wattle Grove, was killed by shrapnel eight days after reaching the trenches. He was formerly engaged in pearling operations in the Nor’-West, and was well known at Broome and Derby. The service was conducted by the Rev. W. Seddon, pastor of the Congregational Church, and was of a simple but impressive character.The West Australian, Thursday 9 December 1915, p.8