151 Sergeant (Sgt) Ernest Murray, MM and Bar, MID
151, Ernest Murray was born on the 1st December 1880 in Surry Hills, Sydney, the son of John William Murray, a carpenter and Trypherna ( nee Fursman) Unfortunately, his mother died when he was 6 years old.
Ernest Murray was an engineering mechanic prior to enlisting on 27th August 1914. At 33 years old, he was one of the oldest to enlist in the 1st FCE and married Sarah ‘Ruby’ Elizabeth Monaghan a month before he left for active service.
After two months of training in Sydney, on Sunday, 18th October 1914, Ernest and the men of the 1st Field Company Engineers were finally ready to embark on a seven-week voyage at sea. The drumbeat sounded, Reveille (wakeup call) at 5.00 am, and the 1st FCE broke camp at Moore Park, Sydney. They marched to the trams to take them to the pier at Woolloomooloo Bay. They were then transported by ferry to board the troopship A19 – ‘Afric’. The ‘Afric’ left Sydney at around 5.00 pm.
It was raining heavily, and they were experiencing gusty winds and rough seas. Many men at sea for the first time were sick as soon as they left Sydney Heads. The ferry whistles, launch sirens and all the farewell cheering and music had faded in the distance.
On the 5th of December 1914, the majority of the original contingent of the 1st FCE on board the A19 ‘Afric’ arrived at Alexandria, Egypt. On the same day, Fourteen more engineers, and the 1st FCE’s Commanding Officer Major John McCall, together with fifty-six horses, also arrived on the A6 ‘Clan Macquordale’. Within days, the small company of men entrained from Alexandria and arrived on the 9th of December at Mena Camp, ten miles from the centre of Cairo and only a short distance from the great pyramids of Gizeh. They would spend nearly three months mastering camp life in the desert, fine-tuning their bridge-building skills, constructing pontoons, digging wells, laying water pipes and maintaining all the regular military drills.
Ernest had some of his letters to his father published in the Queanbeyan Age. Ernest’s first letter whilst in Egypt tells of early Anzac life as a tourist in Cairo, a carefree and exciting time, and like many of the engineers, a time that he enjoyed and found fascinating.
‘There isn’t much news. Things are going along just the same. We are very busy now, training and improving ourselves generally, so that we will be able to give a good account of ourselves when we do go to the front. Yesterday I had a day off. Three of us went for a trip on bikes and had a great day. We visited the zoo and the Great Mosque, and then went to Heliopolis.
There are a few animals in there different to the Sydney Zoo, but the grounds are much larger, more park-like, and are very fine. The ancient grotto is well worth seeing. It is a work of native art. The Mosque is one of the most interesting sights to be seen here, and the most wonderful. It consists of two large buildings one of them is 1,100 years old.
Inside there are floors of marble and wonderful great high arches inlaid with ivory, ebony, mother-of pearl, turquoise and gold. Tombs of splendid marble of the most beautiful workmanship, one of which is said to have cost £22,000. Beautiful. windows of agates, walls inlaid with masses of turquoise, malachite, mother of pearl, and ivory. Solid silver rests for the Koran and heaps of other wonderful work are to be seen. It is stated that the men who worked on the arches had their hands cut off so that they could not build any more like them, and the architect who designed them was killed and buried in one of the walls so that the design could not be repeated.
On one of the walls is to be seen the marks of some forty odd cannon balls fired by Napoleon, and one of the balls can still be seen in the hole it made in the wall. Heliopolis is about six miles of Cairo, almost a suburb. It is mostly a European quarter and a very nice place. Beautiful buildings of French design are here, and the population is mainly French. The New Zealanders, some of our Light-Horse, and some Territorials are camped there.’
Ernest was attached to No 1 Section and section officer Lieut Leslie Mather on board the pride of the English naval fleet, the battleship ‘Queen’ leaving from the Greek Island of Lemnos on the eve of the Gallipoli landing. The Engineers would be attached to the first wave or covering force landing on the shores of Gallipoli on at 4.30 am on the 25th April 1915.
Ernest Murray always remained upbeat, and his description of life at Gallipoli was positive. Interestingly he describes the rations while in a stationary camp as bacon, cheese, biscuits and jam and a bit of fresh beef and bread were thrown in occasionally, and comments on how relatively free from disease they were. Ernest was reluctant to tell of the realities of war so as not to worry his loved ones back home, and like many of the letters from soldiers, they used self-censorship and left out much of what they really went through. But as time dragged on at Gallipoli, the relatively wholesome conditions described by Ernest changed dramatically.
OUR BOYS IN KHAKI. LETTERS FROM THE FRONT. (Passed by Censor, Sydney.)
‘Those who receive letters containing news of general interest from relatives or friends at the front are invited to forward same for publication in these columns. Extracts from letter sent from Gallipoli by Sapper Ernest Murray, 1st N.S.W. Field Engineers:
‘We have been having very hot weather here lately, hot and sweaty like the coastal weather in New South Wales. There are millions of flies; they get into our dug-outs and drive us almost crazy. I think we are doing well for troops on active service— biscuits, cheese, bacon and jam are our usual rations while in stationary camp, with a little bread and fresh beef thrown in occasionally. We have had lots of hard work since landing here, no eight hours in ANZAC LETTERS 154 active service. When I look back now and see the work we did in the first few days after landing it seems almost incredible that we could have done it at all. It must have been the danger and excitement that kept us going. I have been supervising work in the saps and tunnels for the past five or six weeks. There are many of us now who have been in the firing line for fourteen weeks and we are beginning to feel the need of a spell. I was with a party of engineers who were in the first landing party from ” The Queen.” We were instructed to demolish some guns or make the attempt to do so. I have seen most of what has been done. I have been hit a couple of times with spent shrapnel, and once had a fall of earth on me, and that has been the extent of my casualties. Of course, it is inevitable that there should be a good deal of sickness in a large military camp like this, but it is really remarkable how free from disease the whole place is. Vaccination and inoculation have proved a wonderful success in this war. We have been charged with germs against typhoid and smallpox, and now we are to have a few millions more pumped into us to prevent cholera. By the time we get back we should be immune from every disease under the sun, that is if we can successfully dodge bullets and shrapnel. I have seen several of the Duntroon cadets here. They have had their full share of casualties. Mr. Clarke is a lieutenant now, and so is Sergeant-major Steele, the latter also a D.C.M. for bravery in handling a machine gun while the enemy were advancing on him in large numbers, thus enabling our boys to get away to safety, otherwise many of them would have been killed. I hear Steele is now at Heliopolis wounded a second time.’
At one stage, Ernest was reported missing in the war casualty notices in Australia, usually an indication that he may have been killed in action. But this was far from accurate and he was in fact, among the last remaining members of the 1st FCE to leave Gallipoli on the 14th December 1915.
Ernest arrived at the Greek Island of Lemnos and rejoined the originals of the 1st FCE who had been resting up. Unfortunately, within days of his arrival, the 1st FCE was preparing to leave Lemnos.
On the 23rd December, what remained of the 1st Field Company, left the island refuge the engineers helped build before landing at Gallipoli. They boarded the ‘Caledonia’, 151 Ernest Murray describing it as a ‘fine boat’ with good sleeping berths but noted that they still had no idea where they were going. The following morning, they left the harbour at 10 am and steered a straight course for Alexandria, Egypt.
On the 25th, it was their second Christmas away from home; it was an uneventful day for all on board, and with more than thirty enemy submarines in the Mediterranean waters, all hands were on deck with life belts, as the men had their sights firmly set on arriving safely in Alexandria, Egypt.
In late January 1916, the AIF was expanded into five Infantry Divisions. By March, many of the surviving original members of the 1st FCE were transferred to the expanding number of different Field Companies, numbered from one to fifteen, which supported the additional Infantry Divisions.
Many of the original engineers were promoted to non-commissioned ranks and spent much of their time sharing their skills and experience, and supervising training of the reinforcements and the newly formed field companies.
A few engineers were transferred to the newly formed Pioneer Battalions, while some of the originals went on to NCO ‘School of Instruction’ at Zeitoun. Many would continue ‘Army School’ and ‘Cadet Training’ throughout the war in France and England and later take up posts on the Western Front as Commissioned Officers.
Those who were still recovering in Hospitals and later considered fit for service were ‘taken on strength’ and re-joined their units in Alexandria in time to embark for the Western front.
On the 9th March, thirty-two original members were transferred to the 14th Field Company and moved to a new campsite at Serapeum, waiting for reinforcements. Among the company were originals 151 Ernest Murray, 103 Archie Ogilvy, and 121 Talbot ‘Sprigger’ Griggs, all of whom were promoted.
Ernest’s story continues as a member of the 14th Field Company Engineers, their campaign well documented in his own diary as well as the Unit diaries.
A sapper when he enlisted, his maturity, combined with his mechanical and military skills, saw him rise through the ranks to become Sergeant and one of the most distinguished and decorated original members of the 1st FCE and the 14th FCE. He was Mentioned In Despatches (MID) on 1 June 1917, and awarded the Military Medal (MM) for his bravery and determination during operations between 25 September 1917 and 28 September 1917 at Polygon Wood. He was awarded the bar to the Military Medal for his actions at Westhoek just a month later on 30 October 1917 and returned to Australia aboard HMAT ‘Boorah’ on 21 July 1918.
As well as his letters being published, Ernest Murray maintained several diaries throughout his war years, which have proved to be a great resource to the history of the 1st FCE and the 14th FCE, of which he was later a member. See the links below to both his diaries and the 14th FCE diaries.
COMPLETE Diaries of 151 Ernest Murray 1st FCE and 14th FCE
AWM – Digitised Unit Diaries 14th FCE https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1338960
On the 31st January 1918, Ernest was severely gassed while on active service, an event that would have lasting effects on his health. He returned to Australia in August 1918 and was discharged as medically unfit on the 19th April 1919.
The following biographical notes are from Duncan Sutherland’s Ancestry Biography of Ernest Murray.
Despite having virtually no farming experience, Murray successfully applied for Soldier Settlement blocks in 1920. He was allocated Woden Blocks 8C (248 acres – 100 hectares) and 110B (273 acres – 110 hectares), taking possession of them on the 6th September 1920. Murray was fortunate that his wife, Ruby, came from a farming family and had extensive knowledge in running a property. They named the farm Kurrumbene. The blocks were located on Uriarra Road in the Jerrabomberra Subdivision of Woden District, an area now covered by Narrabundah. There was an existing farm house on Woden Block 8C described as:
“an old cottage of two rooms, a cow bail with a yard and small holding paddock and a shed near the house. The cottage was weatherboard, the corner timber being red box posts and an iron roof. The shed was very dilapidated. The cow shed no better.”
In April 1926, Murray requested more land from the Federal Capital Commission (FCC). Lands Officer, James Brackenreg, noted that Murray was a returned soldier “and one of the best lessees in the Territory”, recommending that he be offered Woden Block 15 (796 acre – 322 hectare) for five years. Murray accepted the offer in November 1926. Although the lease of was not signed until the 12th January 1928, he occupied the block officially from the 1st March 1927, at an annual rental of £179/2.
Woden Block 15 was created in 1926 and had a complex past. The block was a redesign of several earlier blocks including the amalgamation of Woden Blocks 4 and 15 and part of Belconnen Block 52A. The block included a part of Murrays Paddock, named after an unrelated early settler Terence Aubrey Murray, Giffords Paddock and Blundells Paddock. There were also two 18th century homesteads known as Hillside and Riverview.
Isaac Blundell had owned Riverview, then his widow Emily after his death in 1910. It was acquired from her by the Commonwealth before WW1 and described as being constructed from pisé with the kitchen, fireplace and living area in a separate building from the bedrooms to mitigate the danger from fires. Michael Horan leased Riverview before it was transferred to Sidney Blewitt in April 1918. However in June 1920, notice was given to terminate the lease. The block was to be added to Belconnen Block 52A as part of the Soldier Settlement Scheme which was leased by David Tully in October 1920.
Murray ran sheep on the block and had them shorn and dipped at Yarralumla. He did not live on the block. Instead, he employed his brother Harry Murray to look after the land at a wage of £2 per week. Harry lived in Riverview house. Harry had some farming experience after successfully applying for Soldier Settlement blocks in 1920. He leased Gungahlin Blocks 98E and 98F from the 1st of January 1920 until he transferred the blocks to his neighbour, Leo Cameron, on the 27th October 1922.
One of Harry’s biggest jobs was to control the noxious weed known as Sweet Briar (Rosa rubiginosa). After regular complaints from land inspectors about the briars, Ernest Murray wrote that he again had the weeds mattocked:
“But as I have found in the past that it is almost impossible to irradicate them by this means in the stony parts. I wish to apply for a suspension of the work until the seedpod has formed when I will endeavour to poison them out.”
As economic conditions worsened during the Depression, Murray found that he was having trouble paying the rent on all his leases so he decided to sell Woden Block 15. In October 1931, Murray and Donald Tully, younger brother of his neighbour David Tully, agreed on the sale of the block for £500 which more than cleared his debts. Such was the relief that, according to his son James, when Murray gave the cheque to his wife Ruby “she looked at it and tears streamed down her face.”
Ernest Murray died of Leukaemia at the Randwick Military Hospital, Sydney on the 28th July 1935 aged 54 years old.
After Ernest Murray’s death, the Murray family continued to lease Woden Blocks 8C and 110B, now known as Murray’s Dairy. In 1936, both blocks were incorporated into the expanding Canberra City District with Block 8C renamed Block 27A. Being so close to the developing city, both blocks were gradually resumed over time for suburban development. The “new” Canberra City Block 27A that was 248 acres (100 hectares) in 1936, was gradually reduced in size to only 33 acres (13 hectares) by 1950.
Ruby remained on Kurrumbene until her death on the 21st May 1978 aged 90. Her obituary printed in the Canberra Times highlighted what a special lady she was.
Mrs Ruby Murray, 90, who was known for her public-mindedness and desire to help people in need, died in Canberra on Sunday. Mrs Murray owned a property at Fyshwick, ‘Kurrumbene’, which became known as Murrays Dairy. She had lived there since 1920, and was a member of the Queanbeyan CWA. She was also a cookery judge for some years at the Queanbeyan Show.
In 1959 she gave a house she owned near Falls Creek, Nowra, to the Salvation Army for use as a home for destitute children. Mrs Murray is survived by six children. – Obituary, Mrs Ruby Murray – The Canberra Times, 23 May 1978, p.7:
SOURCES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
AWM, NAA, NLA, ANCESTRY.COM
Biographical notes are from Duncan Sutherland’s Ancestry Biography of Ernest Murray.
ACT Memorial – Murray, Ernest: http://www.memorial.act.gov.au/person.php?id=3044
MITCHELL LIBRARY, STATE OF LIBRARY OF NSW.
LETTERS PUBLISHED IN – ‘ANZAC LETTERS’ – The Men of The 1st Field Company Australian Engineers.
1st Field Company Engineers - Australian Imperial Forces 