Mystery soldier and family

Mystery soldier and family
Source: Ancestry Online tree

I came across this photo on Ancestry. It was attached to my 2 x great grandparents, George Reeks and Maria Salisbury in a number of online trees and was labelled "Reeks_George & Maria with Selina & Fredrick".

George Reeks was born in 1858, his wife Maria in 1860, Selina in 1880 and Frederick in 1881. However, I was pretty confident that this photo was from the First World War era and that those in the photo were much younger than George and Maria and their children!

The photo had been uploaded by a known 3rd cousin, also a descendant of George and Maria, so my initial thought was that the soldier may be of one of their sons, however, a quick check of my tree confirmed that only one of their six sons, John, had joined the military but he had died in 1909 when he was 18 years of age, unmarried. 

My search then moved to their daughters. The only son-in-law to enlist was Charles William August Hausknecht, husband of their daughter, Millie. Charles and Millie had two children, Marjory (also known as Madge) born 1909 and Charles born 1912, so they fitted the demographic of those in the photo. 

I was however, keen to find further evidence to support this theory.

Charles William August Hausknecht - is he the mystery soldier?

Charles, a labourer, enlisted on 1 March 1915 at Maryborough, Queensland as a Private, he was aged 30 years and 9 months, was 5'5" tall and weighed 121 pounds. He was of dark complexion with light brown hair and blue eyes.  Details of distinctive marks are also included in his service records.

Service Records - Description
NAA: B2455, HAUSKNECHT C W A 

When he enlisted, Charles stated that he had been a member of the Wide Bay Infantry Regiment Services for 2 years. He was appointed to the 5th Reinforcement 9th Infantry Battalion 3rd Brigade at Enoggera, Brisbane on 14 April 1915. 

The 9th Battalion was among the first infantry units raised for the AIF during the First World War. It was the first battalion recruited in Queensland, and with the 10th, 11th and 12th Battalions it formed the 3rd Brigade.

Charles travelled with his unit to Gallipoli on the HMAT Kyarra and arrived on 27 June 1915. Five months later he was transferred to the hospital ship Syria with dysentery on 18 November. The ship made it’s way to Egypt via Mudros on the island of Lemnos, Greece and he was admitted to No. 1 Auxiliary Hospital at Heliopolis on 21 November. A week later on 27 November he was transferred to No. 3 Auxiliary Hospital at Abbassia in Cairo, Egypt and finally to Ras el-Tin in Alexandria on 12 December 1915. 

Casualty Form - Active Service - Charles Hausknecht
NAA: B2455, HAUSKNECHT C W A 

He was discharged on 2 January 1916, but was admitted again on 5 January at Gherzirah and finally discharged and re-joined his unit on 26 January 1916.  During his recovery, the Allied forces had withdrawn from Anzac and Suvla between 15 - 20 December 1915. 

Cairo, Egypt, 1915. Nursing staff and patients from 2nd Australian General Hospital
in the garden at the former Ghezirah Palace, occupied at the time by the hospital.
Australian War Memorial, Public Domain 

After the withdrawal from Gallipoli, the battalion returned to Egypt. It was split to help form the 49th Battalion and bought up to strength with reinforcements. In March 1916 the battalion sailed for France and the Western Front. 

Six months later, on 14 June 1916 Charles received a gun shot wound to the thigh. He was admitted to the 3rd Australian General Hospital  at Abbassia and was transferred to the SS Seang Choon on 17 July for his return to Australia via the Suez Canal. He disembarked in Sydney on 18 August and was medically discharged from Victoria Barracks on 26 September 1916.

Charles was awarded the 1914/15 Star, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. 

NAA: B2455, HAUSKNECHT C W A - Discharge Section

Examination of soldiers uniform

I have shared the photo with the Facebook group Genealogy CLUES- Dating Old Photographs and the feedback there indicated that based on the chevrons on the arm of his tunic, that the man in the photo was a Sergeant - and in the Cavalry as opposed to Infantry, based on his breeches.  

However, examination of photos of other members of the 9th Infantry Battalion do appear to be wearing similar breeches and further research on the Australian War Memorial website revealed the following:

The tunic was worn with khaki cord breeches of the riding pattern. There was little difference between the breeches worn by infantry and those worn by mounted troops. Breeches were laced below the knees and worn with either woollen puttees or leather leggings.

I also took the opportunity to share the photo with one of Ancestry's military specialists at a recent Ancestry Tips session offered by the Society of Australian Genealogists. He also commented on the colour patch on the arm of his tunic, which supported that he was with the 9th Infantry Battalion 3rd Brigade - the chart below confirming these are the colours worn by Queensland brigades. 

Colour patches in the Australian forces
Source: Western Front Association

Simon's other observation was that he is only wearing two medals. We know Charles was issued with three medals - but could the photo have been taken before the last medal was received?  While there are dates of issue on two of the medals, the year is not included. 

The 1914–15 Star was instituted in December 1918, the British War Medal in July 1919 and the Victory Medal in September 1919. The Victory Medal was issued to all those who received the 1914–15 Star, and to most of those who were awarded the British War Medal. It was not awarded singly.

What this does tell us, is that Charles did not receive his medals until late 1919 after the war had ended. Did he still have his uniform or has he borrowed it for the photo to be taken? Could the photo have been taken on the anniversary of the Armistice on 11 November 1919?

Comparisons with other photos

As I was searching for more details on Charles and his military career I came across The Hausknecht Family History which had been published on the Queensland Family History Societies website and noticed that it included a lovely wedding photo of Charles and Millie - is this the same couple in the above photo? A noticeable feature is Charles's handlebar moustache, which were often worn by soldiers during the 19th century until roughly the era of World War I.

Charles and Millie on their wedding day - 23 June 1911 at Woonona, NSW
Photo courtesy: Pauline Heiniger collection

After studying the photo many times, I realised that I could see a very strong resemblance to the young girl in the photo with another photo I have which includes Charles and Millie's daughter, Madge, seated on the right, with her cousins, Olive and Ivy Hails, who were my grandfather's sisters. 

Olive and Ivy Hails with their cousin, Madge Hausknecht

The back of this photo is inscribed To Grandmother and Grandfather with love from Olive, Ivy and Madge and was taken at W. E. Johnson's Rembrandt Studios 133 Liverpool St, Sydney, January 1928.

Conclusion

What do you think? Is the mystery soldier, Charles Hausknecht with his wife, Millie Reeks and their children, Marjory and Charles? I would love to know what you think!

Comparison collage 

References

• NSW BDM records
• Queensland BDM records
• World War II Military Service Records, 1939-1945 - National Archives of Australia
• 9th Australian Infantry Battalion - Australian War Memorial Collections
• The Australian Imperial Force (AIF) Other ranks uniform 1914-1918
• Colour Patches in the Australian Forces - The Western Front Association
• The Hausknecht Family History by Pauline Heiniger