Australians in the Boer War
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Hint: This site is intended as a search aid - not a definitive source. It is essentially an index to documents that seem to relate to this person plus a very brief precis of relevant elements. Sources often conflict and I also flag things with a ? when I am unsure. So if the information below is important to you, then please check the original sources to see what else they contain (and in case I have inadvertantly introduced transcription and/or precising errors). There can be additional information that was not included in the database for both space and copyright reasons.


 

Surname TOLL
Given Name(s) or Initial(s) Frederick William
Regimental Number
RankCaptain
Unit Name 5th Queensland Imperial Bushmen
StateQld
Extracts and Comments
(from Sources as shown)

Murray: formerly Special Service Officer, Major 17.4.1901, OC 5QIB 1.8.1901, Mentioned in Despatches London Gazette 25.4.1902, Distinguished Service Order, Queen's South Africa medal and 5 clasps King's South Africa medal and 2 clasps.
Wallace1: Major
Fogg: diaries, captured at Onverwacht 4.1.1902, WW1 New Guinea.
B5172: next of kin in Charters Towers Qld.
URL1: died 1955.
URL3: Major FW TOLL, of Charters Towers Qld., has arrived at Brisbane [c8.1903] after spending about 12 months in South Africa. He takes a gloomy view of the industrial position of the country. He advises men to 'hang off' there unless they are prepared to pay their way for two or three months, and probably more. Everything has gone down, Mr. TOLL says; cost of living there is very high. All laborers without trades are advised to stay away, as wages are coming down. (more).
URL5: Major F TOLL, who has been the guest of Captain DODDS, at Union Street, Nundah, during the past four weeks [c7.1902], left last week for Sydney and Melbourne. He will thence proceed to South Africa by the Australasian.
URL6: Several dreary weeks of trekking on the Amersfont road followed before the column reached Onverwacht, where a big fight was made with 900 Boers. The casualties in PLUMER's column in this engagement were nineteen killed, and thirty-seven wounded. Major VALENTINE, commanding the corps, was among the slain, and Captain JOHNSON of the Scottish Imperial Yeomanry, while several Queenslanders also fell, including Sergeants BERRY and POWER (the latter being mentioned in despatches for coolness and daring in action) and SHANNON, privates CHARDON, SALT, MACFARLANE and LILLEY, while Captain CARTER and Lieutenant HIGGINSON were severely wounded. It was in this engagement that Major TOLL displayed that special bravery that caused his name to be mentioned in the London "Gazette" for bravery and coolness in leadership. Company-Sergeant KNYVETT and Reg.-Sergeant Major PRICE being also mentioned for coolness. Major TOLL was himself too modest to tell our representative much of his own doings, but the other officers speak in the highest terms of his leadership. "Don't forget," said one of them, "to say that we all call TOLL 'The Fighting Major.'"
URL7: London, April 26 [1902]. The following colonial officers have been brought under the favourable notice of Lord KITCHENER for conspicuous good service rendered towards the end of 1901 and the early portion of the present year. Second New South Wales Contingent - Captain F LYDIARD and Lieut. C DICEY. Third New South Wales Contingent - Lieut. H FORTESCUE. West Australian Fifth Contingent - Captain AJ BROWN. West Australian Sixth Contingent - Lieut. SR CLIFTON and Lieut. PJ DALY. Fifth Queensland Contingent - Major F OLD, Sergt.-Major F KNYVETT and Sergt. J POWER. The last-named officer was killed. Sixth Queensland Contingent - Lieut. CR VAUGHAN. ... Lord KITCHENER mentions in recent despatches the resolute and capable way in which Major TOLL led his South Australian Bushmen on four occasions; Sergeant-Major WASSON of the Second New South Wales Contingent for his dash in holding a kopje with four men in order to cover the retirement of the wounded ...
URL8: Major Fred TOLL, who has been serving with the Australian forces in South Africa for the second time since the outbreak of war, has wired his father, Mr. Ben TOLL, that he is returning to Australia by the transport which left Capetown on Wednesday last [26.3.1902] in charge of the returning members of the fifth Queensland Contingent.
Source References
Murray: Official Records of the Australian Contingents etc. page(s) 488 489 490 491 492 521
Wallace1: The Australians at the Boer War page(s) 356-7
Fogg: 5th Contingent Qld. Imperial Bushmen in South Africa 1901-02 page(s) various
B5172: National Archives of Australia series B5172
BraidwoodDMJ: Braidwood Dispatch & Mining Journal date(s) 26.8.1903
Bne. Courier: Brisbane Courier newspaper date(s) 22.8.1903
Queenslander: The Queenslander newspaper date(s) 10.5 & 12.7.1902
Perth WM: 3.5.1902
Evg. Tel.: Evening Telegraph (Charters Towers Qld.) date(s) 29.3.1902
External Link URL1www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A120267b.htm
External Link URL2www.archives.qld.gov.au/Researchers/CollectionsDownloads/Documents/boer_war_index_id18351.pdf
External Link URL3nla.gov.au/nla.news-article100207903
External Link URL4nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19210487
External Link URL5nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21625931
External Link URL6nla.gov.au/nla.news-article21623630
External Link URL7nla.gov.au/nla.news-article33210265
External Link URL8nla.gov.au/nla.news-article214175019


Please email me if you can contribute any other relevant information about this person (eg any other military service, where in Australia they came from or when/where they died). Also, if you find an external link broken.


Apology: For some time now it has been difficult to keep up with the newly available sources (especially the Trove newspaper site) plus the flow of contributions and queries. So I have been forced to prioritise maintenance and data entry over replying to correspondence. Nevertheless, your contributions are being added to the database and acknowledged on the contributions page and, although my replies are many months behind, I will attempt to get to them more often.
 
Colin Roe
Canberra

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