Sister Blodwyn Elizabeth Williams
Address : Brunswick
Next of Kin : Father, Tudor Williams, Dowling Street, Ballarat (mother Mrs Elizabeth Williams, nee Jones)
Blodwyn Wlliams’ background was almost entirely from Ballarat, although her place of residence when she embarked with Reinforcements for the 2 Australian General Hospital on HMAT Orsava, 17 July, 1915 was shown simply as “Brunswick”. The reference does not appear within her National Archive file, but given the time between nurses being accepted for overseas service and actually embarking was usually not more than a week, the omission is not unusual).
Her Nursing Certificate was obtained at Ballarat Hospital, but her early military history is a little unusual in that despite being attached to 2 AGH Reinforcements, she did not serve with the unit for any period of time in Egypt.
Instead, after arriving in Egypt on 4 August, 1915, she embarked for England on 21 September where she was assigned to 3 London General Hospital where she appears to have served until November, 1916 when she was transferred to No. 1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital at Harefield.
She remained there until January, 1918 when she proceeded to France and No. 5 Stationary Hospital at Rouen and later 1 AGH – she was promoted Sister while still in France in December, 1918 while with 1 AGH and returned to England with the unit at the end of the month.
She subsequently returned to Melbourne, disembarking 6 November, 1919, classified as invalided with pleurisy and died at 11 Australian General Hospital on 24 May, 1920.
The official cause of death was shown as a carcinoma on the right lung with secondary cause debility and heart failure., but it is also noted that in May, 1919 was operated on at 1 AGH (still in London) for an abdominal growth and at one stage classified as seriously ill.
As Sister Williams’ death occurred post-discharge, she is not included on the AWM Roll of Honour; she is one of around ten post-war deaths detected that make the “official” figure of 23 nurses dying “in service”, something of a mockery.
She was interred in a family grave at the Ballarat (New) Cemetery. Her archive is somewhat unusual as it appears the Memorial Scroll was inadvertently issued with the words “He and “his” in the first and last lines, Base records subsequently recognising the error and requesting return of the Scroll for replacement with the version used for members of the Army Nursing Service.
OBITUARY : Williams.— The funeral of the late Sister Blodwyn Williams, of the A.I.F., whose death occurred at the Caulfield Military Hospital, took place on Wednesday, and was largely attended by sympathising friends, and the esteem and respect, in which the deceased and her family were held were clearly evinced by the floral tributes which, were numerous. Sister Williams had served her King, country and Empire for nearly five years, during which she made many friends by her untiring efforts and devotion to duty to our soldier boys under the most trying circumstances and unpleasant conditions. Her remains were removed from her late home, “Llanberris House,” the casket being draped with the Union Jack out of respect of her military service, and interred in the family grave at the Ballarat New Cemetery …” (Ballarat Star, Friday, 28 May, 1920) ;
