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Edgar Bootes Johnson - Information

When the war began, Edgar Bootes Johnson was working as a bank clerk and living in Gundagai with his family. He had previously resided in the Campbelltown area. On the 11th of February 1916, Edgar enlisted in the AIF in Goulburn, aged 19. He trained at Goulburn Camp where he was assigned to the 3rd Reinforcements, 55th Battalion in April. On the 23rd of June 1916, he left Sydney on the HMAT Barambah for service overseas.

Edgar’s unit arrived in Plymouth in August, and by November was transported to France. Edgar joined the 55th Battalion at the front, hunkering down for the worst winter of the war. In February 1917, the Germans began their withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line, a series of new defence systems. The Allies were ordered to chase them. Edgar’s unit then fought bravely during the Third Battle of Ypres. While attacking the Germans at Polygon Wood, he was killed in action on the 28th of September. Sadly, there was far too many wounded and fatalities for stretcher bearers to handle. Focus was placed on saving those who could be saved. Consequently, the whereabouts of his final resting place remains a mystery to this day. Edgar’s name is recorded on the Menin Gate Memorial in Ieper (Ypres) in Belgium.