Clarence (Clarrie) Gordon Davidson

Clarence Davidson was 19 years old when he signed up with the 12th Battalion in December 1914. He had been working as a labourer and rabbit trapper after the sudden death of his father in 1912, helping to support his mother and six younger siblings.

Clarence was a slight young man, weighing only 56 kilos but survived his service at Lone Pine in the Gallipoli campaign.

In early 1916 he was diagnosed with bronchial pneumonia. A medical report in March, recommending his ‘discharge as permanently unfit‘, stating that his illness was ‘aggravated by the…hardships, exposure etc of over 6 months of trenches life‘.

A week later Clarence died. He was buried in Old Cairo Cemetery. His effects, some brushes, wallets, letters, keys and a notebook, were collected by his mother in Ross just before Christmas, 1916.

Clarence’s story is part of our exhibition: Our Grateful Thanks and Loving Remembrance, a moving and deeply personal exhibition remembering the soldiers whose names are immortalised on the Ross War Memorial.