Can you help find Fred?

Fred Johnston was born in 1895 at Dundas, Parramatta, New South Wales, the son of Henry Thomas Johnston (1858 – 1935) and Annie Johnston, née Spurway (1864 – 1936). His parents were both born in Ryde, New South Wales, and married there in 1884. The Johnston family lived at Spurway Street, Dundas. In the 1903 Census, Fred’s father is recorded as an Orchardist.

Henry was very active in the community - “Mr. Johnston was an alderman of Dundas Council for several years, and occupied the mayoral chair on many occasions.” “He was a keen sportsman, and played cricket with the old Brush Farm Cricket Club, and later with Dundas Cricket Club.”

Source - "FATHER AND SON" The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgrowers Advocate (Parramatta, NSW : 1888 - 1950) 13 June 1935: 6. Web. <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article105094076.

Spurway street was named after Fred’s mother’s family, also a prominent family in the district who were involved in local politics.

Fred was one of Henry and Annie’s ten children:

Fred attended Dundas Public School and later worked as a joiner at Langdon & Langdon, Annadale.

He served in the Senior Cadets but was rejected for the New South Wales Militia on account of being “too small.” Fred’s family had a long and interesting history in the area. His maternal grandfather George Spurway was the brother of James Spurway, a former Secretary for Railways, and Fred Spurway a long serving Alderman and Mayor of Dundas (now part of Ryde). James was the son in law of “Granny” Smith (Mary Ann Smith nee Sherwood), one of the pioneers of the Eastwood district, who raised the famous apple which bears her name.

Source - https://strathfieldheritage.com/2019/01/07/orara-burlington-road-homebush/

On 26 October 1915, at the age of 19, Fred Johnston enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at the Holdsworthy recruitment camp. His acceptance into the AIF was a point of pride for both Fred and his family. He was posted to the 19th Battalion, 8th Reinforcement, and began his initial training in New South Wales and on 12 December 1915, Fred embarked from Sydney aboard HMAT Berrima for the month-long trip to Egypt.

With the ‘doubling of the AIF’ as it expanded from two infantry divisions to five, major reorganisations in Egypt were underway at the time Fred arrived. The 54th Battalion was formed in mid-February 1916 at the Tel-el-Kebir camp, about 110 km northeast of Cairo. It contained about 40,000 men - Gallipoli veterans and the thousands of reinforcements arriving regularly from Australia. The 54th was to be made up of Gallipoli veterans from the 2nd Battalion, most of whom were from New South Wales, and new arrivals from New South Wales.

Fred was assigned to B Company on 14 February 1916. By the end of March, much of the basic training in musketry and bayonet use had been completed for all of the new soldiers and they were sent to Ferry Post, on foot, a trip of about 60 km that took three days. It was a significant challenge, walking over the soft sand in the 38°C heat with each man carrying their own possessions and 120 rounds of ammunition. After arriving at the Ferry Post camp they were rewarded with being able to have a swim in the Canal.

During their march, H. R. H. the Prince of Wales visited the troops and they greeted him with “enthusiastic cheers” Source - AWM4 23/71/2, 54th Battalion War Diaries, March 1916, page 13

Fred spent all of May at the front-line trenches in Katoomba Heights, 8 miles from the Suez Canal guarding from any potential threats posed by the Ottoman Army. During this time, they took turns occupying front-line trenches, wiring defences, and carrying out patrols. The men became accustomed to trench life and continued their training in preparation for movement to the Western Front. The call to join with the British Expeditionary Force came on 20 June and the 982 soldiers of the 54th Battalion left Egypt. They sailed on the Caledonian for the 10-day trip to Marseilles via Malta.

After disembarking in France, they immediately entrained for a three-day train trip to Hazebrouck, 30 km west of Fleurbaix in northern France. The long train journey north took them through the lush countryside of France — a stark contrast to the sands of Egypt. By 2 July the Battalion was billeted in barns, stables and private houses in nearby Thiennes for a week. Training now included the use of gas masks and exposure to the effects of the artillery shelling. It was hoped that these tests would “inspire the men with great confidence”

Source - AWM4 23/71/6 54th Bn War Diaries July 1916 page 2

On 10 July they moved to Sailly sur la Lys and on 11 July they were into the trenches in Fleurbaix. The health and spirit of the troops was reported as good. After a few days getting exposed to the to the routines of life in the trenches, they moved back to billets in Bac-St-Maur. This area near Fleurbaix which was known as the “Nursery Sector” – a supposedly relatively quiet area where inexperienced Allied troops could learn the harsh realities of Western Front trench warfare against the Germans. But the quiet times and the training period did not last long.

Major Roy Harrison wrote home on 15 July. With his Gallipoli experience, the tone in this letter was certainly circumspect for the upcoming battle:

The overall plan was to use brigades from the Australian Fifth Division to conduct a diversionary assault on the German trenches at Fromelles. The main objective for the 54th was to take the trenches to the left of a heavily armed, elevated German defensive position, the “Sugar Loaf”’, which dominated the front lines. If the Sugar Loaf could not be taken, the 54th and the other battalions would be subjected to murderous enfilade fire from the machine guns and counterattacks from that direction. As they advanced, they were to link up with the 31st and 53rd Battalions.

The main attack was planned for the 17th, but heavy rain delayed the operation. The weather soon improved and by 2.00 PM on 19 July they were in back in the trenches, ready for their first major action on the Western Front. On 19 July, Zero Hour for advancing from their front-line trenches was to be 5.45 PM, but the Germans knew this attack was coming and were well-prepared. They opened a massive artillery bombardment on the Australians at 5.15 PM, causing chaos and many casualties. At 5.50 PM they began to leave their trenches.

They moved forward in four waves– half of Fred’s B Company and A Company were in each of the first two waves and half of C & D in the third and fourth.

The first waves did not immediately charge the German lines, they went out into No-Man’s-Land and lay down, waiting for the British bombardment to lift. At 6.00 PM, the German lines were rushed. The 54th were under heavy artillery, machine-gun and rifle fire, but were able to advance rapidly. The 14th Brigade War Diary notes that the artillery had been successful and “very few living Germans were found in the first and second line trenches”.

Some of the advanced trenches were little more than water-filled ditches, which had to be hastily fortified if they were to hold against expected counter-attacks. The 54th Battalion pressed forward nearly 600 yards, linking with the 53rd Battalion on the right and the 31st and 32nd on the left, holding a line from Rouges Bancs to near Delangre Farm. But on the right flank, the situation had collapsed. The 60th Battalion had been unable to advance due to devastating machine-gun fire from the Sugar Loaf, leaving the 54th’s flank exposed. Lieutenant-Colonel Cass, commanding the 54th, reported:

Cass immediately sent a party of 54th men forward to support the line:

Despite repeated appeals for artillery support, the position became untenable. At 6.30 a.m. on 20 July, the 54th received orders to withdraw. The retreat was chaotic and exposed to heavy fire, Cass again reported many wounded men were left behind:

With the heavy losses and relentless German counter-attacks, the Australians were forced to retreat — now fighting through German troops who had broken in behind them as a result of the exposed right flank. By 7.30 a.m. on 20 July, the 54th had been pulled all the way back to Bac-St-Maur, some 5 km from the front.

In this very short period of time, of the 982 soldiers of the 54th who had left Egypt, initial roll call counts showed 73 killed, 288 wounded, and 173 missing. Ultimately, 172 men of the 54th were killed in action or died of wounds, including 102 recorded as missing.

To get some perspective of the battle, when Charles Bean, Australia’s official war historian, attended the battlefield two and half years later, he observed a large quantity of bones, torn uniforms and Australian kit still on the battlefield.

Fred was reported as “missing” after the battle. But there were no details until much later. The only details around Fred’s death are from a 25 May 1917 witness statement

It wasn’t until a Court of Enquiry held in the field on 4 August 1917 confirmed Fred’s fate as “Killed in Action, 19/20 July 1916.” The note on his Red Cross file also stated - “No trace Germany. Cert. by Capt. Mills 10-10-19.”

Fred’s mother Annie, received no details of Fred’s fate, even as late as when she wrote the Red Cross in September 1917. The reply to her enquiry was respectful, but with all the deaths, an individual’s details were hard to come by, even with Lance Corporal Blackwell’s statement.

Surprisingly, in April 1921 Annie received official correspondence from Base Records stating that Fred had been buried in Ration Farm New Military Cemetery, Bois Grenier, France. This information was later found to be incorrect. His place of burial remains unknown.

The only closure that was available to the family was that Fred’s personal effects were returned in 1921 - one item, a notebook - was sent to his mother Annie.

Fred’s death at Fromelles was felt deeply in the Dundas community. The local newspaper reported:

Fred’s absence was also noted during the Dundas Town Hall “Welcome Home” function for returned soldiers. Mayor Taylor, speaking on behalf of the Dundas Farewell Association, told the crowd that of the 36 men farewelled by the association, all but one had returned — that one being Private Fred Johnston, who had “made the supreme sacrifice.”

Source: Welcome Home. (1919, August 23). The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgrowers Advocate (Parramatta, NSW: 1888–1950), p. 11. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article86116451

Fred is commemorated at:

Brothers – Fred and Bertie Johnston

• Fred Johnston (3549, 54th Battalion) was killed at Fromelles on the night of 19–20 July 1916. His body was never found and his name is inscribed on the V.C. Corner Memorial alongside 410 Australians with no known grave.
  
• Fred's brother, Bertie Johnston (2627, 4th Battalion), enlisted in June 1915. He fought in Egypt, Gallipoli, and on the Western Front, earning promotion to Lieutenant before returning to Australia in 1919.
  

Cousins – George and Norman Johnston

• George Henry Johnston (3096, 53rd Battalion), was also killed at Fromelles on the night of 19–20 July 1916.
• George's brother, Norman Dalwood Johnston (registered as Norman Johnstone, Reg. No. 1940, 45th Battalion), fought on the Western Front and survived the First World War.
  

The Next Generation

• Bertie’s son, Arthur Henry Johnston (19195, RAAF), served as a Sergeant during the Second World War. He was a navigator in a Beaufighter aircraft and was killed in action over Borneo on 11 June 1945.
  
• Norman’s son, Raymond Dalwood Johnston (445230, RAAF), was killed in February 1945 in a training accident at Tocumwal, NSW.
  

The Johnston family’s service and sacrifice spanned both world wars. From Egypt, Gallipoli, and the Western Front to Tocumwal and Borneo, the price of war echoed through generations.

Fred's remains were not recovered; he has no known grave. After the battle, the Germans recovered 250 Australian soldiers and placed them in a burial pit at Pheasant Wood. This grave was discovered in 2008 and since then efforts have been underway to identify these soldiers by DNA testing from family members.

As of 2024, 180 of the soldiers have been identified, including 28 of the 102 unidentified soldiers from the 54th Battalion. We welcome all branches of Fred’s family to come forward to donate DNA to help with his identification.

If you know anything of family contacts, please contact the Fromelles Association. We hope that one day Fred will be named and honoured with a known grave. Please visit Fromelles.info to follow the ongoing identification project and Fred’s story.