The Australian War Memorial in Canberra will commemorate the service and sacrifice of West Wyalong resident Private Reginald Baden Crowley at the Last Post Ceremony on Tuesday 14 January 2025.
"Reginald Crowley was born on 26 March 1900 in West Wyalong, NSW," Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "Known as Reggie, he was one of eight children born to John Crowley, a journalist, and his wife Elizabeth.
"Reggie attended West Wyalong Public School, where he was an active member of the cadets program."
On 22 May 1916, despite being underage, Reggie enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force. His two older brothers were already serving, and their father, John, enlisted while Reggie was in training.
Private Crowley arrived in England on 21 November 1916. In April 1917, he was transferred to his father's unit, the 34th Battalion. In September 1917, while Reggie was in hospital with trench fever, his father was killed during the Battle of Passchendaele in Belgium.
On 4 April 1918, Reggie was killed in action at Villers-Bretonneux in France. He was just 18 years old.
The Last Post ceremony is held at 4.30 pm every day except Christmas Day in the Commemorative area of the Australian War Memorial.
Each ceremony shares the story behind one of 103,000 names on the Roll of Honour. To date, the Memorial has delivered more than 3,800 ceremonies, each featuring an individual story of service from colonial to recent conflicts. It would take more than 280 years to read the story behind each of the 103,000 names listed on the Roll of Honour.
"The Last Post Ceremony is our commitment to remembering and honouring the legacy of Australian service," Mr Anderson said.
"Through our daily Last Post Ceremony, we not only acknowledge where and how these men and women died. We also tell the stories of who they were when they were alive, and of the families who loved and, in so many cases, still mourn for them.
"The Last Post is now associated with remembrance but originally it was a bugle call to sound the end of the day's activities in the military. It is a fitting way to end each day at the Memorial."
The Last Post Ceremony honouring the service of Private Reginald Baden Crowley will be live streamed to the Australian War Memorial's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/c/awmlastpost.
The stories told at the Last Post Ceremony are researched and written by the Memorial's military historians, who begin the process by looking at nominal rolls, attestation papers and enlistment records before building profiles that include personal milestones and military experiences.
