Frederick Rennie Odessa Dixon (1896 - 1916)

Born 7 May 1896 in Williamstown, Victoria, Australia

Ancestors

Died 28 Jul 1916 at age 20 in The Battle of Pozieres, France

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Biography

Frederick Rennie Odessa Dixon
Name on Board FR Dixon
Name on Service Records Frederick Rennie Odessa Dixon
Enlistment Age 18
Occupation Labourer, Newport Workshops
Place of Birth Williamstown, Vic
Next of Kin Henry O and Ann Jane Dixon
Address 24 Rennie St, North Williamstown, Vic
Marital Status S
Enlistment Date 23/02/1915
Service No. 325
Enlistment Place Melbourne, Vic
Embarkation Place Melbourne
Embarkation Date 10/05/1915
Embarkation Ship HMAT Euripides A14
Unit on Embarkation 23rd Australian Infantry Battalion
Date of Death 28/07/1916
Unit on Death 23rd Australian Infantry Battalion
Rank on Death Private
Cause of Death KIA
Place of Wounding/Death France (no known grave)
Cemetery or Memorial Villers-Bretonneux Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux, Picardie, France
Additional Information

Attended North State School. Prior to enlistment he was a driller at the Newport Workshops.
Frederick Dixon enlisted in the 23rd Battalion, which was raised in Victoria in March 1915 as the third battalion of the 6th Brigade.

On his way from Egypt to Gallipoli, Frederick was aboard the SS Southland when it was torpedoed on 2 September 1915. At least 9 men were killed, however all but 40 of 1400 men on board took to the lifeboats and were picked up by other ships in the area. The ship did not sink and was eventually sailed to safety.

After landing at ANZAC Cove, the 23rd Battalion was soon manning one of the most trying parts of the Anzac front line – Lone Pine. The fighting here was so dangerous and exhausting that battalions were relieved every day. The 23rd manned Lone Pine, alternating with the 24th Battalion, until they left Gallipoli in December 1915.

After the battalion arrived in France it occupied forward trenches of the Armentieres sector in northern France. In July 1916 it fought in the horrific battles of Pozieres and Mouquet Farm, after which it was estimated that the Battalion lost almost 90 per cent of its original members.

It was during these battles that Frederick Rennie Odessa Dixon was killed in action.

His brother, Alfred Odessa Dixon (2587), enlisted 19 June 1915, died of wounds 26 August 1918.
Additional References

Williamstown Chronicle, Saturday 9 September 1916, p2

23rd Australian Infantry Battalion, Australian War Memorial

Sinking of the Southland

Occupation

Occupation: Soldier

Sources