Ancestor Details

Ancestor's Name: Thomas Skene

Ancestor's date of birth: 1878

Ancestor's date of death: 29/11/1953

Cause of Death: Age related

Service and Life Before the Boer War: Grazier

Service Number: 5 (3SAB), 736 (2ACH)

Colony or State of enlistment: SA and VIC, Place of Enlistment: Adelaide and Melbourne

Unit: 3^rd South Australian Citizens' Bushmen and 2^nd Battalion Australian Commonwealth Horse

Rank attained in Boer War: TPR, Date Effective: 1900

Highest Rank attained (if served after war): TPR, Date Effective: 17/01/1916.

Murray Page: 355, 316

Contingent: Third South Australian and First Australian

Ship: Maplemore, Date of Sailing: 01/03/1900

Ship: St Andrew, Date of Sailing: 12/02/1902

Memorial details: Buried at Portland Victoria.

Awards/Decorations/Commendations: Queen's South Africa Medal with Rhodesia and Transvaal

Personal Characteristics: Height 174 cm, weight 68 kg. Adventurer, but a quiet family man in later life.

Reasons to go and fight: Adventure. He enlisted for Boer War twice. Then also went to the Ffirst World War.

Details of service in war: April 1900 - April 1901 with 3 SACB in Rhodesia and west Transvaal. Taken prisoner at Buffel's Hoek on 18 August 1900. March - May 1902 with 2 ACH on Natal border and west Transvaal.

Service and life after the Boer War: Married Lucy Hindmarsh in 1912 and had two daughters then enlisted in the AIF 17 January 1916. He was part of the 19^th Reinforcements for the 3^rd Light Horse. Served in Palestine with 3 LH and the ANZAC Provost Corps. Returned to Australia on 15 January 1919. He was sick (shell shock). He and Lucy then had two more daughters. Returned to his former life on the land near Penola then Kongorong South Australia. Retired about 1952 and moved to Portland Victoria with his wife Lucy,

Descendant Details

Name of Descendant: Mrs Toni Skene Unwin, Beachport SA
Relationship to Ancestor: Grand-daughter

Return to Descendant Database