A river far from home

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The dedication panel on the Memorial obelisk

Henry C Moulds

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Like most wars our nation has been involved in, the Second Anglo-Boer War, now more commonly known simply as the Boer War, was a long way from Australian shores.

The war was likely to have little impact on Australia, however, in the spirit of ‘Empire’, it was a conflict for which democratically elected colonial, then national, governments called for volunteers. The call was answered resoundingly, with over 16,000 people enlisting. 

The names of 589 are listed on the Roll of Honour at the Australian War Memorial, including that of Sister Frances Emma Hines, the only Australian nurse to die during service in the Boer War. Also on the Roll of Honour is the name of Sergeant Herbert John Goodman.

Goodman was a member of the 3rd Victorian Bushmen contingent (as was Sister Hines) that left Melbourne for South Africa on the 10th of March 1900.

The contingent arrived in Capetown on the 12th of April and were redirected north to Beira to help secure Rhodesia and relieve besieged Mafeking, in Cape Colony. The Victorians, with other Colonial Bushmen, formed part of the force known as the Rhodesian Field Force, under the control of British Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Carrington.

Victorians, such as Sergeant Goodman, and Western Australians, helped to form the 3rd Regiment. The force, under Lieutenant General Carrington, crossed Rhodesia (modern-day Zimbabwe) and eventually assisted in the relief of Mafeking. A party of Victorian nursing sisters landed with the troops and accompanied them on the long journey to Mafeking.

Later, under Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Plumer, the Victorians moved on to join the British garrison at Rustenburg in Transvaal.

When a Boer commando cut the supply route from Rustenburg to Mafeking in July 1900, a detachment of 270 Australian Bushmen (from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia), was sent to try to re-open the route. On the 22nd of July, the Bushmen were ambushed by the Boers at Koster River, on the road between Rustenburg and Elands River in western Transvaal.

Under the leadership of Colonel Airey of NSW, the Bushmen took heavy losses, with six dead and 22 wounded. Two later died of their wounds. Several men escaped to Elands River Post some 24km away, where they were to be caught in a 12-day siege in early August.

The six men killed at Koster River were:

Herbert John Goodman, Victorian [Citizen] Bushmen, KIA

Samuel Joseph Oliver, Victorian [Citizen] Bushmen, KIA

Henry Oliver Walford, Victorian [Citizen] Bushmen, KIA

David Hamilton Pruden, Victorian [Citizen] Bushmen, KIA

Caude William Robertson, New South Wales Citizen Bushmen, KIA

Robert Cameron, New South Wales Citizen Bushmen, KIA

Two others later died of their wounds:

John Irwin McCartney, DOW 31 July 1900

James McClure DOW 26 July 1900

It is interesting to note that the memorial to Sergeant Goodman states that he was killed in action at “Kosteo River”. It should be Koster River, as stated in the official records.

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