McDONNELL, Edward James

McDONNELL, Edward James – A Southern Downs Veteran

CONFLICT : WWI
SERVICE NO : 1896
RANK : Gunner
UNIT : 11th Field Artillery Brigade
ENLISTMENT DATE : 18/11/1915
AGE : 23
PLACE OF ENLISTMENT : Enoggera, Queensland
PLACE OF BIRTH : Charleville, Queensland
RELIGION : Roman Catholic
OCCUPATION : Trainer
DATE OF DEATH : 28/11/1981
PLACE OF BURIAL : Brisbane, Queensland

MEMORIALS : Yelarbon War Memorial, Yelarbon Roll of Honour, Toowoomba Queensland Railways Toowoomba Employees Roll of Honour

View Veteran’s Service File : McDONNELL, Edward James

NOTES :  Edward James McDonnell was born in Charleville in 1896. Little is known of his early life; however, it is noted he was christened in the Roman Catholic Church. Edward was employed by the Toowoomba region of the Queensland Railway Department. Edward originally enlisted on 7 September 1915 and re-attested at Enoggera on 18 November 1915. The address on his Attestation paper showed he lived with his father John McDonnell at Yelarbon.

On 22 January 1916 he embarked from Sydney aboard the HMAT Boonah A36 with the 13th Reinforcements to the 2nd Light Horse Regiment bound for Heliopolis. On 16 April 1916 he was transferred to the 4th Division Artillery Serapeum before being taken on strength with the 41st Battery, 11th Field Artillery Brigade.

He moved around from Heliopolis to Alexandria, Marseilles and Belgium. In August 1918 while serving in France he was admitted to the 10th General Hospital with an accidental injury to the right foot. At the time the Battery were moving their wagons and Edward was found on the side of the road with his leg injured. He had been run over by one of the wagons.

Edward returned to Australia from active service at the Western Front aboard the Armagh on 5 April 1919.

The Officer-In Charge of Base Records in Canberra, received a letter from Edward dated October 30th 1939, requesting another Returned Soldiers badge and a copy of his Statement of Service as these items had been stolen from him. The letter shows Edward was living at Clayfield, Brisbane at the time the letter was written.

Unfortunately, his name was misspelt on the Yelarbon War Memorial where it has been recorded as McDonald and not McDonnell.

Copyright 2026 Deborah C Wheeler and Duncan McLean, Southern Downs Military History

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