Owen Joseph DONLEN
Year of Birth: 1892
Place of Birth: Ireland
Date of Enlistment: 14 October 1916
Date and Place of Embarkation: 24 January 1917 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Ship: HMAT Ayrshire A33
Rank: Private
Unit(s): 52nd Battalion
Regimental Number: 3377
Died: 22 December 1918
Owen Joseph Donlen (Donlon) was born in Ferbane, Co. Offaly, Ireland in 1891 to Owen Donlon and Mary Egan. His father emigrated to Queensland, arriving in Cooktown in December 1889 on the Jumna. His wife, Mary age 26, and their 6 children – Bridget 12, Michael 10, Mary 7, Margaret 5, Edward 3 and infant Owen arrived at Port Douglas on the Tara in March 1892. Two more sons were born – Thomas in 1893 and William in 1895.
The family lived at Muldiva, a mining town west of Chillagoe, where Owen Snr was a miner. He died on 17 January 1915.
Owen Jnr was a labourer aged 24 years 6 months who was 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighed 140 pounds when he enlisted at Cairns on 14 October 1916. His religion was Roman Catholic and named his mother his next of kin.
His younger brother Thomas had enlisted earlier but was injured playing football at the Enoggera Camp in Brisbane, which delayed his embarkation. He eventually returned to Australia in February 1919.
Owen Donlen embarked from Sydney on 24 January 1917 on HMAT Ayrshire.
He marched into 13th Training Battalion at Codford, Wiltshire, England where large training and transfer camps were established for the tens of thousands of troops waiting to move to France.
On 24 August 1917 Owen Donlen was taken on strength with the 52nd Battalion. He was wounded in action on 18 October and admitted to East Leeds War Hospital, Leeds, England with a gunshot wound to his right leg. He remained in England until returning to France on 4 June 1918.
He transferred to 49th Battalion and with the war almost over was waiting to be shipped home to Australia when he was accidentally drowned in the River Meuse at Bouvignes returning to barracks. His body was recovered the next day and he was buried at Dinant Communal Cemetery, Namur, Belgium.
An enquiry was held with a verdict of accidental drowning.
Online Resources
NAA: B24455 (DONLEN E J) National Archives of Australia
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
National Library of Australia: Trove Digitised Newspapers
Queensland Registrar of Births Deaths & Marriages
Ancestry UK Outward Passenger Lists 1890-1960
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