The Soldier's Details

at back F Dorrington (survived)
back row: J Gregory (Died illness)  L O’Neil (Died illness) E Teasdale (survived) A Newel (survived) R Hindle (died Rock fall Japan)
front: R Haldane (drowned Sydney) M Hunter (survived) T James (survived) F Hinds (survived) D Parker (survived)

 

Grandfather of Les – (also) David O’Neil moved with his family to Western Australian goldfields before 1900.  He had been working in mining araound Kadina, SA.  David O’Neil (Snr) his son and father to Les, also moved to WA.

 

David (Snr) was husband to Mary (nee Monaghan).  He died Sept 1920 at Kalgoorlie.

 

Below:  Mary O’Neil (nee Monaghan), Grandmother to Les, died following year in 1921 in kalgoorlie.

 

David O’Neil father of Les was born in Port Pirie about 1881 to parents David O’Neil (Snr) and Mary Monagham.  David (Jnr)\ enlisted WW1 serving with 11th Battalion.  Service No. 1811 David O’Neil joined 4th reinforcements 11th Battalion, embarking on 19 April 1915 leaving his wife Edith and three young children in Perth.   He was discharged in 1919.

 

David O’Neil died in November 1941 aged 61 years.   Edith died in 1961 and both parents are buried at Karrakatta Cemetery.

 

 

 

 

Above the tragic death in 1916 of young Eric O’Neil aged 3 years brother to Les.  At this time Edith was alone with her  three children while husband David away fighting in France.  Les had a sister Edith Verna born 1904 and they were residing at Victoria Park, having moved from Kalgoorlie.

The 1931 Electoral Roll has Les residing with his parents at 31 Merriwa Street, Hollywood.  Both Les and his father David working as labourers.

In 1936 Les was at Kurnalpi, Kanowa, Kalgoorlie.  Kurnalpi was discovered as an alluvial mine in 1894.  It is located 95 km north east of Kalgoorlie. Les was continuing the O’Neil family interest in mining.

Kurnalpi is a townsite in the eastern goldfield, about 80 km east north east of Kalgoorlie. Gold was discovered in the area in 1894, the area being known as Kurnalpi because the “Kurnalpi Rockholes” were a feature in the district. The townsite was surveyed in 1894 and gazetted the following year. The meaning of this Aboriginal name is not known.

Les enlisted while he was at Kurnalpi in  AIF 26 July 1940, later joining 2/4th’s ‘B’ Coy 9 Plaoon as a Driver.  It was during Nov 1941 when 2/4th was training SA and NT when his father died.

Prisoners in ‘B’ and ‘E’ Forces included troops from the 2/18th, 2/19th, 2/20th, 2/26th, 2/29th, 2/30th Battalions, 2/4th Machine Gun Battalion, and the 2/10th Field Ambulance. There were four main camps in Borneo : Sandakan , Kuching, Labuan and Jesselton. Of these, Sandakan contained the majority of Australians. Captain Hoshijima Susumi commanded Sandakan Camp. In January 1945 the first forced march to Ranau occurred, and the second in May 1945. Of the 2,500 Australian and British prisoners of war, only six Australians survived these “death marches”.

Les O’Neil became ill at Sandakan No 1 Camp and was admitted to what would have been a very primitive POW hospital in that camp on 12th Dec 1944.  An Australian MO would have assessed him firstly, but then it was up to the Japanese guards in charge to decided how ill he was.

There would have been no medical supplies whatsoever.  O’neil with his comprised immune system due to several years of minimal food and then hard work was unable  fight  acute gastroenteritis and he died four days later on 16 Dec 1944 aged 36 years. Death Certificate was signed by Lieutenant Yamamato Katsuki.  Read further about ‘E’ Force Borneo.

Also please see map Sandakan March and photos of men.

 

Below:  From Kalgoorlie Miner

 

 

O’NEIL, Private, LESLIE, WX5222, A.I.F. 2/4 M.G. Bn., Australian Infantry. 16 December 1944. Age 36. Son of David and Annie Edith O’Neil, of Mundaring, Western Australia. Panel 19.

Labuan Memorial, Malaysia.

 

WA. Paybook photograph, taken on enlistment, of WX5222 Private Leslie O’Neil, 2/​4th Machine Gun Battalion, Australian Infantry. He was one of over 2000 Allied prisoners of war (POW) held in the Sandakan POW camp in north Borneo, having been transferred there from Singapore as a part of E Force. The 500 Australian and 500 British POW’s who made up E Force, left Changi on 28 March 1943, on board the S.S. DeKlerk arriving at Berhala Island (adjacent to Sandakan Harbour) on 15 April 1943. The POW’s were held there until 5 June, when they were taken by barge to Sandakan. The next day they were transferred to the 8 Mile Camp, which was about half a mile from the B Force compound. Private O’Neil, aged 36, died as a prisoner of the Japanese on 16 December 1944. He was the son of David and Annie Edith O’Neil, of Mundaring, WA. He is commemorated on the Labuan Memorial Panel 19. (Photograph copied from AWM232, items 4 and 5. Personal information from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database.)

 After the end of 1944 life at Sandakan took a huge change. In the next months of 1945 until the end of war in August, the POWs of Sandakan would perish under horrific circumstances.  In January, 1945 the Sandakan – Ranau marches began.

 

 

 

Below:  Grandfather David O’Neil moved to Goldfields from SA. Stan’s father was also David O’Neil, named after his father.