No.1919  Stanley Thompson Anderson
Stanley Thompson Anderson was born in Yea, Victoria in January 1892.  

War Service
A process engraver, he enlisted in the Army in Melbourne on 21 April 1917.  His father and next of kin entered on his enlistment papers – Mr Robert Anderson – was living at West Footscray.

Barely two weeks after enlisting, Stanley and his new comrades found themselves aboard the HMAT Ascanius heading for Devenport in England.  He had been assigned to the 16th Railway Company.

By all accounts, the soldiers experienced an uncomfortable voyage, first crossing the Australian Bight to Fremantle, then onto Mauritius, Durban, Cape Town and Sierra Leone before reaching England.  During the voyage, the men also were exposed to mumps, meningitis and influenza resulting in all of them entering a special army camp in Hampshire, England where they were quarantined.

In May 1917, Sapper Anderson was graded with the rank of blacksmith entitling him to a pay rate of 8 shillings per day.

His unit was sent to France in early August 1917.  They played a significant role in creating and maintaining the rail infrastructure supplying troops and equipment involved in the Ypres offensive that began on 29 September 1917.  The unit's war diary reports frequent shelling and air attacks from the Germans during this period.

In October 1917, Stanley Anderson was promoted to temporary Lance-Corporal.  In July 1918 he was posted to the 21^st Light Railway Training Company reverting back to his role as a blacksmith.

He returned to Australia in September 1919 and was discharged from service at the end of the following month.

Post War
After the war he lived in Werribee working as a motor mechanic. He died aged just 45 in 1936.

Medals & Entitlements:

• British War Medal
• Victory Medal

Lest we forget