The AIF Project

Thomas James HELLER

Date of birth12 November 1879
Place of birthPort Pirie, South Australia
SchoolState School, Fowey, England
ReligionChurch of England
OccupationManager
AddressSelby Street, Northern, Western Australia
Marital statusMarried
Age at embarkation35
Height5' 10.5"
Weight154 lbs
Next of kinWife, Mrs Laura Louisa Heller, Selby Street, Northam, Western Australia
Previous military serviceServed for 2 years in the senior cadets; served for 5 years, 9 months in the 18th Australian Light Horse; served for 1 year in the 25th Light Horse (2nd Lieutenant)
Enlistment date28 October 1914
Rank on enlistment2nd Lieutenant
Unit name10th Light Horse Regiment, A Squadron
AWM Embarkation Roll number10/15/1
Embarkation detailsUnit embarked from Fremantle, Western Australia, on board HMAT A47 Mashobra on 8 February 1915
Rank from Nominal RollLieutenant
Unit from Nominal Roll10th Light Horse Regiment
FateKilled in Action 7 August 1915
Place of death or woundingGallipoli, Turkey
Age at death26
Age at death from cemetery records36
Place of burialNo known grave
Commemoration detailsThe Lone Pine Memorial (Panel 9), Gallipoli, Turkey

The Lone Pine Memorial, situated in the Lone Pine Cemetery at Anzac, is the main Australian Memorial on Gallipoli, and one of four memorials to men of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Designed by Sir John Burnet, the principal architect of the Gallipoli cemeteries, it is a thick tapering pylon 14.3 metres high on a square base 12.98 metres wide. It is constructed from limestone mined at Ilgardere in Turkey.

The Memorial commemorates the 3268 Australians and 456 New Zealanders who have no known grave and the 960 Australians and 252 New Zealanders who were buried at sea after evacuation through wounds or disease. The names of New Zealanders commemorated are inscribed on stone panels mounted on the south and north sides of the pylon, while those of the Australians are listed on a long wall of panels in front of the pylon and to either side. Names are arranged by unit and rank.

The Memorial stands over the centre of the Turkish trenches and tunnels which were the scene of heavy fighting during the August offensive. Most cemeteries on Gallipoli contain relatively few marked graves, and the majority of Australians killed on Gallipoli are commemorated here.

Panel number, Roll of Honour,
  Australian War Memorial
8
Miscellaneous information from
  cemetery records
Parents: Jack and Lizzie HELLER; husband of Laura HELLER, Selby Street, Northam, Western Australia. Native of Port Pirie, South Australia
Family/military connectionsHugo Throssell, V.C.
Other details

War service: Egypt, Gallipoli

Promoted lieutenant, 16 January 1915.

Embarked Fremantle, 8 February 1915.

Embarked Alexandria to join the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, Gallipoli, 21 July 1915.

Killed in action, Gallipoli, 7 August 1915.

Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal
Miscellaneous detailsFather to one son, Leslie John Heller
SourcesNAA: B2455, HELLER Thomas James

Print format    


© The AIF Project 2024, UNSW Canberra. Not to be reproduced without permission.