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HMAT A38 Ulysses Headquarters No. 1 Company No.2 Company No. 3 Company 1st Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board 40 390 380 392 101 1303 Transferred to B1 Ansonia Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Embarked Arrived Departed Arrived Entrain Detrain Sydney, NSW 20 February 1916 Melbourne, VIC 22 February Melbourne, VIC 1 March Fremantle, WA 7 March Fremantle, WA 1 April Suez, Egypt 22 April Suez, Egypt 23 April Port Said, Egypt 24 April Port Said, Egypt 24 April Alexandria, Egypt 25 April Alexandria, Egypt 27 April Valetta, Malta 30 April Valetta, Malta 2 May Marseilles, France 5 May Marseilles, France 5 May Hazebrouck, France 8 May 1916 ‘On the arrival of our troop ship in Alexandria in April 16, a party of some 120 out of our 1200 miners, with the wanderlust strong upon them, broke loose suddenly from our troop ship as she lay at the wharf, rushed the sentries, and went careering like a lot of released school boys up the main street of Alexandria, making for the heart of the city. Some bad sport, perhaps one should rather say, one sound disciplinarian, telephoned to the military police. And in due course the sappers were met by some charabancs driven by genial gentlemen, who offered them a lift. The offer was of course accepted, and presently the vehicle swung into a courtyard, the gates of which were promptly closed, and the sappers then realised that they were prisoners. One hundred and twenty of them were locked up in a building designed for a maximum of 60. The sappers called it the ‘boob”. The night was very hot and the “boob” threatened to become a veritable Black Hole of Calcutta. In the early dawn, an agonized SOS came from the military police to our ship to say that the sappers were tunnelling under the walls of the boob, and that it was tottering to its foundations, and would we send up a strong-armed party at once to hold and remove the prisoners.’ Major T.W. Edgeworth David HMAT A16 Star of Victoria Transferred to City of Edinburgh 2nd Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board 181 181 Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrained Detrained Sydney, NSW Colombo, Ceylon Colombo, Ceylon Suez, Egypt Suez, Egypt Port Said, Egypt Port Said, Egypt Marseilles, France 31 March 1916 20 April 21 April 3 May 4 May 5 May 5 May 17 May Voyage time 33 days Cold, rough weather. 791 Sapper Benjamin Phillips was to embark on the ‘Ulysses’ which sailed on 20 February with the first deployment of the Mining Corps on board. For some reason Benjamin was transferred to Milsons Island and did not embark. He later apparently stowed away on the Star of Victoria which departed on 31 March, and when discovered, re-enlisted in the A.I.F., at sea, and was appointed to the 2nd Reinforcements to the Mining Corps with the new Regimental Number 2330. Lance Corporal Benjamin Phillips was killed in action when shot by a sniper on 26 February 1918. HMAT A14 Euripides Transferred to City of Edinburgh Departed Arrived Embarked Arrived Departed Arrived Melbourne, Vic Alexandria, Egypt Alexandria, Egypt Marseilles, France Marseilles, France Etaples, France Voyage time 3rd Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board 80 80 4 April 1916 17 May 1916 1 June 1916 HMAT A69 Warilda No. 4 Company No. 5 Company No. 6 Company 370 370 371 Total Tunnellers on board 1111 Voyage Time 58 days Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrained Detrain Brisbane, Qld Sydney, NSW Sydney, NSW Melbourne, VIC Melbourne, VIC Fremantle, WA Fremantle, WA Durban, Sth. Africa Durban, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa St Vincent, Portugal St Vincent, Portugal Plymouth, England Plymouth, England Tidworth, England Early May 1916 Early May 22 May 22 May 25 May 1 June 1 June 16 June 18 June 21 June 22 June 7 July 9 July 18 July 19 July 19 July 1916 Voyage was remarkable for pleasant weather. The discipline was fairly good – the most serious being AWL at intermediate ports. HMAT A26 Armadale 2nd Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived 79 79 Melbourne, Vic Durban, Sth. Africa Durban, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa St Vincent, Sth. Africa St Vincent, Sth. Africa Devonport, England 19 July 1916 15 August 16 August 20 August 21 August 8 September 8 September 20 September 1916 Voyage time 64 days Leave granted at Durban from 11am to 11 pm. At Capetown there was a Route March for 3 hours. Arriving back at 1pm when leave was granted until 11pm. Ship was to leave at 2pm but did not leave until 5pm the following day. Liquor in town was considered of bad quality as a result 10 Tunnellers did not embark as scheduled on 21 August. 2/Lt Ashcroft & 2 Tunnellers got measles on board. Footnote: 10 Tunnellers boarded Orsova at Capetown around 25 August. RMS Orontes 4th Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board 81 81 Voyage time 52 days Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Sydney, NSW Melbourne, VIC Melbourne, VIC Adelaide, SA Adelaide, SA Fremantle, WA Fremantle, WA Durban, Sth. Africa Durban, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Capetown, S. Africa St Vincent, Portugal St Vincent, Portugal Plymouth, England 12 August 1916 14 August 16 August 18 August 18 August 22 August 23 August 6 September 8 September 10 September 11 September 23 September 24 September 2 October 1916 7 men deserted at Fremantle; 9 at Capetown. Weather conditions on Australian coast were stormy after leaving Fremantle. HMAT A23 Suffolk September 1916 Reinforcements 166 Total Tunnellers on board Voyage time 64 days 166 Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Melbourne, Vic Fremantle, WA Fremantle, WA Capetown, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Dakar, W. Africa Dakar, W. Africa Plymouth, England 30 September 1916 10 October 10 October 30 October 31 October 15 November 20 November 2 December 1916 HMAT A38 Ulysses October Reinforcements November Reinforcements December Reinforcements Officer Reinforcements 168 168 168 12 Total Tunnellers on board 516 Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrained Detrained Melbourne, Vic Durban, Sth. Africa Durban, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Freetown,Sierra Leone Freetown,Sierra Leone Plymouth, England Plymouth, England Tidworth, England 25 October 1916 13 November 16 November 19 November 19 November 29 November 14 December 28 December 28 December 28 December 1916 Voyage time : 65 days Dec 5. It took 1½ hours to take 1000 men ashore for the afternoon. We have to pay 6d each for the loan of the punts. We were fastened with ropes with one punt to the other coming back, the rope broke and we were drifting out pretty quick but the tug boat soon had us back again. Not too clean of a place. The women stand in a stream and wet their clothes they are washing and place them on a flat stone and then belt into them with a flat piece of wood like a bat. Dec 9. Had to get some coal and fresh water. The officers went ashore to buy some fruit to sell to us they wouldn’t let us buy off the natives so when they came back with the fruit - none of us would buy it off them. Dec13. 29 Big boats in here now. Dec 14. Left for England with four other transport auxiliary cruiser escorting us. Dec 25. On the sea between Gibraltar and England it has been very foggy. We had roast pork for Christmas dinner and some baked scones. They were as hard as rock. Dec 26. Very foggy torpedo boats came to escort us in the rest of the way. Got our kit bags out of the holds. Dec 28. We had nothing to eat from 7.30am to 3.30pm. We had to buy some cakes during the last week on the boat. We held the Dead March on a roast they gave us (250 of us) for our dinner. We marched up to the top deck with it, all the rest of the men were watching us and laughing. We got roared up a bit after it but we didn’t care. Got on the train at 4pm. Got to Perham Downs camp at 11pm. Nothing to eat from the military until 8 or 9 the next morning. Then we had two tablespoons of boiled salmon and spuds and a mug of tea. Mud from 1-6 inches deep. Diary entry of 5798 Sapper George Oxman, 3rd Australian Tunnelling Company HMAT A5 (RMS) Omrah January 1917 Reinforcements 168 Total Tunnellers on board 168 Voyage time 74 days HMAT A9 Shropshire January 1917 Reinforcements 168 Total Tunnellers on board 168 Voyage time 70 days Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrain Detrain Sydney, NSW Melbourne, VIC Melbourne, VIC Adelaide, SA Adelaide, SA Fremantle, WA Fremantle, WA Fremantle, WA Fremantle, WA Durban, Sth. Africa Durban Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Freetown, Sierre Leone Freetown, Sierre Leone Plymouth, England Plymouth, England Tidworth, England 13 January 1917 17 January 17 January 19 January 19 January 21 January 24 January 1 February 2 February 16 February 17 February 20 February 24 February 9 March 12 March 27 March 1917 Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrain Detrain Melbourne, VIC Fremantle, WA Fremantle, WA Durban, Sth. Africa Durban Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Capetown, Sth. Africa Plymouth, England Plymouth, England Tidworth, England 11 May 1917 19 July 1917 HMAT A32 Themistocles March Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board 167 167 Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrain Detrain Melbourne, VIC Colon, Panama Colon, Panama Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax, Nova Scotia Glasgow, Scotland Glasgow, Scotland Tidworth, England 4 August 1917 31 August 8 September 18 September 21 September 2 October 1917 Voyage time 59 days Rough and stormy with plenty of sea-sickness for the early part of the voyage, becoming very hot in the tropics. Heavy rain and muggy near Panama. 9 days at Colon, unavoidably delayed. 7427 Spr William James McPeak died of acute transverse myalitis on 14 August, one of 4 soldiers to die on this voyage, and was buried at sea. Good weather across the Atlantic. HMAT A68 Anchises March Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board Voyage time 55 days 168 168 Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrain Detrain Sydney, NSW Colon, Panama Colon, Panama Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax, Nova Scotia Liverpool, England Liverpool, England Tidworth, England Colds and influenza prevalent when troops embarked. 8 August 1917 2 September 8 September 18 September 21 September 2 October 1917 Arrived Departed Arrived Entrained Detrained Transferred to E620 Abbasiah Embarked Arrived Entrain Detrain Embarked Arrived May Reinforcements 103 November Reinforcements 65 HMAT A71 Nestor Total Tunnellers on board Melbourne, VIC 19 November 1917 Melbourne, VIC 21 November Suez, Egypt 15 December Suez, Egypt 4 January 1918 Alexandria, Egypt 5 January Alexandria, Egypt 8 January Taranto, Italy 12 January Taranto, Italy Cherbourg, France Cherbourg, France Southampton, England 24 January 1918 168 Voyage time 64 days SS Indarra Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Transferred to Kasgar Embarked Arrived Entrain Stopped Detrain Embarked on HMT Monas Queen Embarked Arrived June Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board 130 130 Melbourne, VIC Albany, WA Albany, WA Colombo, Ceylon Colombo, Ceylon Suez, Egypt Suez, Egypt Taranto, Italy Taranto, Italy Bordighira, Italy Cherbourg, France Cherbourg, France Southampton, England 26 November 1917 30 November 1 December 13 December 15 December 27 December 9 January 20 January 24 January 27 January 31 January 31 January 2 February 1918 Voyage time 68 Days On Christmas Day the troops were specially provided for by the ship. Amusements included cricket between various troop decks and the Officers. Religious services held on Christmas Day and occasionally on weekdays. Weather was excellent throughout – warm in the tropics. HMAT A71 Nestor May Reinforcements November Reinforcements Total Tunnellers on board 61 Voyage time 51 days RMS Osterley February 1918 Reinforcements 8 Total Tunnellers on board 8 Voyage time 65 days Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrain Detrain Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Departed Arrived Entrain Detrain Melbourne, VIC Colon, Panama Colon, Panama Newport News, USA Newport News, USA Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax, Nova Scotia Liverpool, England Liverpool, England Tidworth, England Sydney, NSW Wellington, NZ Wellington, NZ Tahiti Tahiti Colon, Panama Colon, Panama Newport News, USA Newport News, USA Norfolk, USA Norfolk, USA New York, USA New York, USA Liverpool, Eng Liverpool, England Tidworth, England 28 February 1918 25 March 28 March 3 April 6 April 9 April 9 April 19 April 20 April 1918 8 May 1918 13 May 14 May 21 May 22 May 6 June 8 June 16 June 22 June 26 June 27 June 28 June 10 July A Route March through Tahiti was the first by Australians bound for the Front. Troops returned to the ship at 5p.m. and then marched to 3 cinema shows. Leave was permitted in the Canal Zone at Colon before the ship moved on to Balboa. Amusement Committee conducted boxing, cricket and other deck sports. Excellent concerts were given. Classes in French and Italian were well attended. In New York the weather was very cold, succession of thick fogs and some rain. Approaching the North Channel the weather became cold and wet, but the sea was smooth.