The Australian Boer War Memorial
Anzac Parade Canberra

 
 
Gunner William Orson

Ancestor Details

Name of Ancestor: William Henton Orson

Ancestor's date of birth: 19/09/1873

Ancestor's date of death: 1949

Cause of Death: Cancer, Died in Sandringham Aust.

Service and Life Before the Boer War: Full time soldier - West Indies before South Africa.

Service Number: Not known

Colony or State of enlistment: Not Australia, Place of Enlistment: Cape Town

Unit: Cape Garrison Artillery

Rank attained in Boer War: GNR?, Date Effective: Detail not available

Highest Rank attained (if served after war): No record of post Boer War Military service.

Murray Page: Not applicable did not serve in an Australian unit

Contingent: Not applicable

Ship: Detail not available

Memorial details: Detail not provided

Awards/Decorations/Commendations: Queen's South Africa Medal with Transvaal Orange State Cape Colony clasps, King's South Africa Medal with SA 1901 and SA 1902 clasps.

Personal Characteristics: Great singer played a brass instrument.

Reasons to go and fight: Detail not provided

Details of service in war: He would have joined the Cape Garrison Artillery in October 1899. During 1900 his unit was chiefly employed on the western railway and west of the line. A section was for some months operating against the Griqualand rebels. The unit assisted in garrisoning various important posts. Some were in Jacobsdal when that town was attacked on 25 October 1900, and some were in the relieving force. They were at the attack on Kraarpan station where Lord Roberts indicated the Cape Garrison Artillery, behaved with great gallantry. In 1901 detachments garrisoned, along with the Cape Town Highlanders and various locally raised troops, the towns in the extreme west of Cape Colony and sundry posts right up to the border of German South-West Africa, which were successfully held against repeated attacks. A detachment was part of the little garrison of O'Okiep. [angloboerwar.com]

Service and life after the Boer War: Worked for Capetown Railways. Married in Capetown 1900.

Please note scant details were provided with this registration.
Conclusions regarding service may not be accurate.

Descendant Details

Name of Descendant: Marion Elizabeth Orson, Tallangatta VIC
Relationship to Ancestor: Grandfather

 


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