3818 Private William Crossman, 53rd Australian Infantry Battalion
Australian War MemorialWilliam Crossman was born on 20 March 1896 in Cobar, New South Wales. Known as Bill, he was the eldest of three children born to William and Elizabeth Crossman. Bill also had two older half-sisters from his mother’s first marriage, who helped raise Bill and his siblings during their younger years.
The family lived in Tarcoon throughout his childhood. His mother Elizabeth died in 1904, leaving William to raise his three young children alone. Bill began working as a farm hand on his father’s property, alongside completing labouring jobs around the local area.
Bill Crossman enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force alongside three of his closest friends on 16 October 1915. Together, they were assigned to reinforcements of the 18th Battalion, and commenced initial training in camp at Liverpool on the outskirts of Sydney.
After three months of initial training, Private William Crossman departed Sydney in HMAT Runic on 20 January 1916, alongside his mates William and Josiah Colless. They arrived in Egypt in late February 1916, and travelled by train to Zeitoun for further training.
While training at Zeitoun in March, Crossman was briefly admitted to hospital suffering from tonsillitis, but returned to his unit having recovered by the end of the month.
On 20 April, Crossman was transferred to the 53rd Battalion at Tel el Kebir. The 53rd was one a new battalions that had been raised in Egypt as part of the doubling of the AIF in early 1916. Part of the 14th Brigade of the 5th Australian Division, it was made up of Gallipoli veterans from the 1st Battalion and fresh reinforcements, like Crossman.
After another two months training in Egypt, Crossman left Alexandria with the rest of the 53rd Battalion on 19 June 1916, and arrived in France a week later.
Moving north into the sector of the Western Front around Fleurbaix, the battalion entered the front line for the first time on 10 July. Nine days later, the battalion became embroiled in its first major battle on the Western Front: the Battle of Fromelles.
Soldiers from the 5th Australian Division and the British 61st Division were ordered to attack strongly fortified German front line positions near the Aubers Ridge in French Flanders on 19 July. The attack was intended as a feint to stop German reserves from moving south into the Somme, where a larger Allied offensive was already underway.
The feint was a disastrous failure. Allied soldiers attacked over open ground in broad daylight, in full view of the German lines. Subjected to heavy artillery and machine-gun fire, over 5,500 Australians became casualties in only 24 hours.
The men of the 53rd Battalion were part of the initial attack on German positions, and suffered heavily. Within 24 hours, the battalion had suffered 625 casualties, more than three-quarters of its attacking strength.
Among the 236 men reported missing in action was Private William Crossman. In subsequent inquiries by the Red Cross Wounded and Missing Bureau, several eye witnesses reported seeing him wounded during the advance, but disagreed on the nature of his wound and the last time he was seen alive.
A court of inquiry determined that William Crossman had been killed in action during the Battle of Fromelles on 19 September 1916.
He was 20 years old.
Like many of the almost 2,000 Australians killed during the Battle of Fromelles, William’s final resting place was never recovered. He is commemorated today at VC Corner Australian Cemetery and Memorial in Fromelles, France.
- AWM Roll of Honour https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1726733
