The AIF Project

Edward James COOMBS

Regimental number180
Place of birthKimberley, South Africa
ReligionChurch of England
OccupationBushman
Marital statusSingle
Age at embarkation20
Next of kinFather, E C Coombs, 172 Wittenoom Street, Perth, Western Australia
Enlistment date18 September 1914
Date of enlistment from Nominal Roll9 September 1914
Rank on enlistmentPrivate
Unit name16th Battalion, A Company
AWM Embarkation Roll number23/33/1
Embarkation detailsUnit embarked from Melbourne, Victoria, on board HMAT A40 Ceramic on 22 December 1914
Rank from Nominal RollPrivate
Unit from Nominal Roll16th Battalion
Other details from Roll of Honour CircularEnlisted 9 September 1914; taken on strength 16th Bn 13 October 1914.
FateKilled in Action 26 April 1915
Place of death or woundingGallipoli, Turkey
Date of death26 April 1915
Age at death21
Place of burialNo known grave
Commemoration detailsThe Lone Pine Memorial (Panel 52), 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
79
Other details

War service: Egypt, Gallipoli

Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal

Print format    


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