ANZAC Search

Walter Sydney McGlynn - Information

Walter was a son of Thomas Michael and Mary Roberta McGlynn. The McGlynns were part of a large family that came to Campbelltown in the 1800s. They were related to Joseph McGlynn Snr, who was the Editor and Proprietor of The Campbelltown Herald Newspaper. Walter was born in Queanbeyan in 1896 and grew up in the Campbelltown area with his siblings, Dorothy and Stuart. Walter eventually began working as a railway porter, and later moved with his family to Raglan in NSW. When Walter was old enough, he joined the AIF in Bathurst on the 12th of April 1916, aged 19. He commenced his training with C Company Depot at Bathurst, before being allocated to the 5th Reinforcements, 45th Battalion in Kiama.

Walter’s unit departed Sydney on the HMAT Anchises on the 24th of August 1916 for war service. He arrived in England in October, and was marched out to the 12th Training Battalion. After learning how to fight on the Western Front, Walter was shipped to France just four days before Christmas. Shortly after he reached France he reported to hospital sick with nephritis, an inflammation of the kidneys. On the 11th of January 1917, he was evacuated back to England to a military hospital for treatment. Walter’s condition was to prevent him from completing his military service. By April, he was stationed at No. 2 Command Depot at Weymouth to be invalided back to Australia. He departed England on the 23rd of May 1917.

When he arrived in Australia, he was discharged in September and returned to his family who were now living in Manilla. He then married Pearl Tierney and had three children. Walter passed away on the 21st of May 1962 in Newcastle, at 66 years of age.