The Soldier's Details
- Surname:
- Byrne
- First Name:
- Leo Patrick
- Nick Name:
- Paddy
- Rank:
- Private
- Regimental #:
- WX6155
- Company:
- C' Company, No 10 Platoon
- Enlisted:
- 13.07.1940
- Discharged:
- 29.06.1942
- DOB:
- 12.01.1906
- Place of Birth:
- York, Western Australia
- Father's Name:
- Frederick Burgess Byrne
- Mothers's Name:
- Mary Ann (Mollie) Byrne (nee Gurney)
- Religion:
- Roman Catholic
- Pre-war Occupation:
- Miner
- Java:
- ‘Blackforce’, attached to 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion
- Force:
- Admitted to hospital from 18.2.1942 to 25.2.1942.
- Camps Thailand:
- Embarked on H.M. Hospital Ship Wuseh on 25.2.1942.
- Camps Burma:
- Admitted to 2/12th Australian General Hospital at Columbo (Ceylon) on 4.3.1942.
- POW#:
- 8753
- Cause of Death:
- Mining accident Lake View & Star Mine
- Place of Death:
- Coolgardie, WA
- Date of Death:
- 22.02.1954
- Buried:
- Coolgardie, WA
- Return Details 1945:
- Returned by ship to Melbourne and by train to Perth, The Hospital Ship Wuseh departed Singapore on 9.2.1942. This ship then departed Tanjong Priok, Batavia, crowded with patients.
General Description
Rear L-R Kev Moir, Clarrie Henderson, Fred Webb
Front Taffy Jones, Cyril Anderson, Jock Leith, Chris Mc Lennan, Les Marriot, Ern Ricketts, Paddy Byrne, S Morris, Bert Fidge.
Kneeling Harry Norris
Paddy placed a death notice in West Australian on learning his mate Jack McCarthy had died on the Burma-Thai Railway in 1943.
Also his mate Bill McKay who also died illness on Railway 1943
Paddy Byrne was AWOL from ‘Aquitania’ when it anchored at Gauge Roads off Fremantle sailing to Singapore. He arrived in Batavia instead of Singapore having embarked on ‘Marella’ from Fremantle on 39 January 1942.
Read story about AWOL men from 2/4th.
He was diagnosed medically sick about 17 February 1942 and evacuated from Batavia on the hospital ship ‘Wu Sui’ which had sailed out of Singapore on 9 February 1942 and left Batavia about 20 February 1942 crowded with patients and headed for Columbo. A stroke of luck!
He was admitted sick to Hospital in Batavia. He boarded ‘Wu Sui’ 22 Feb 42 at Java and arrived Colombo 4 March 1942 and admitted 12 AGH Columbo.
He returned to Melbourne 28 March 1942 and was hospitalised for several weeks before returning to WA. He was discharged medically unfit 26 June 1942 having returned by train from Melbourne to WA.
Read further about ‘Wui-Suii’ and Ceylon
Prior to enlisting Paddy Byrne was a miner living in Kalgoorlie, where it appears other Byrne family members were also residing.
He was third born in a large family of nine sons and 3 daughters. Several of his brothers enlisted with the military services. Sadly younger brother Mervyn Joseph (Joe) aged 27 years, died in Northam Military Hospital in 1944.
Returning to civilian life, Paddy was living with his wife Ann Edith (Peg) Emery whom he had married Boulder in 1923 before the war whilst working in Kalgoorlie as a miner. As you will read below, he was to tragically lose his life in a mining accident at the age of 50 years on 22 February 1954. He was buried at Boulder Cemetery.
Please read about accidents & deaths of 2/4th men
Below: Paddy’s headstone, Coolgardie Cemetery
Above: Paddy’s brother Mervyn Joseph, known as ‘Joe’ died of illness August 1944.
