Alfred Williamson (6 October 1893 – 11 April 1917) was an

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er who played for the

Carlton Football Club The Carlton Football Club, nicknamed the Blues, is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's top professional competition. Founded in 1864 in Carlton, an inner suburb of Mel ...

and

Melbourne Football Club The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. It is based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, ...

in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

(VFL).

Family

He was born in

Toongabbie Toongabbie is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. One of the oldest suburbs in Sydney, Toongabbie is located approximately 30 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Greater W ...

, to Reuben and Annie Williamson. He studied at Sale Agricultural High School; and was transferred to

Melbourne High School Melbourne High School is a government-funded single-sex academically selective secondary day school for boys, located in the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1905, the school caters for boys from Year 9 t ...

in 1914, where he was a popular and successful Manual arts teacher. At the time of his enlistment (19 June 1915) he was still working there as a school teacher. He is the great uncle of Gary Ablett Sr., and the great, great uncle of

Gary Ablett Jr. Gary Ablett Jr. (born 14 May 1984) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club and Gold Coast Suns in the Australian Football League (AFL). The eldest son of Australian Football Hall of Fam ...

Footballer

Recruited from the Melbourne Teachers Training College, he played his first senior VFL match for Carlton on 18 May 1912, on the half-forward flank, against Collingwood, at Princes Park. He played two senior games for Carlton in his first year (1912), eight in his second (1913), and one in his third (1914). He transferred to Melbourne, playing his first senior match on 6 June 1914 against University (he scored three goals). He was suspended for three weeks, when playing for Carlton, in June 1913 for elbowing Allan Belcher in a spiteful match against Essendon on 21 June 1913 (Belcher was suspended for four weeks for elbowing Williamson). On his transfer to Melbourne, he was suspended for three weeks for "rough conduct" during the 11 July 1914 match against St Kilda, and for 15 weeks for "elbowing and general roughness" during the match against Richmond on 22 August 1914 (his first match on return from the earlier suspension). In May 1919, an unidentified former Melbourne footballer, wrote to the football correspondent of ''The Argus'' as follows: ::"In 1914 the Melbourne football team, after its junction with the University, was a fine team, and succeeded in reaching the semi-finals.
Out of this combination the following players enlisted and served at the front:—
C. Lilley (seriously wounded), J. Hassett, H. Tomkins (severely wounded), J. Evans (seriously wounded), W. Hendrie, R. L. Park, J. Doubleday (died), A. Best, C. Burge (killed), C. (viz., A.) Williamson (killed), J. Brake, R. Lowell, E. Parsons (seriously wounded), A. M. Pearce (killed), F. Lugton (killed), A. George, C. Armstrong, P. Rodriguez (killed), J. Cannole (viz., Connole), A. Fraser (seriously wounded), T. Collins.
These are all players of note, and in themselves would have formed a very fine side, but there is only one of them playing at the present time, viz., C. Lilley, who, as a matter of fact, takes the field under some disability owing to severe wounds which he received on service." — ''The Argus'', 16 May 1919.

Soldier

He enlisted on 19 June 1915; and, according to his service record, he held the rank of sergeant whilst training, was promoted to second lieutenant on 1 February 1916, to lieutenant on 10 March 1916, and to captain on 4 July 1916. He served with distinction at Gallipoli, Egypt, and in France. Considered a natural leader, he was regarded as one of Australia's best officers. Williamson received the Commander in Chief's Congratulatory Card for showing "bravery and initiative". He was reported wounded and missing in action in France on 11 April 1917; it was later determined (in late November 1917) that he had died in action, on 11 April 1917, at Bullecourt in France fighting with the 14th Battalion.

Footnotes

References

Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour: Alfred Williamson

Australian World War I Service Record: Alfred Williamson

Australian War Memorial: Red Cross Wounded and Missing Records: Alfred Williamson

Australian Casualties: List No. 374: Killed in Action: WILLIAMSON, Capt. A., Toongabbie, 11/4/17, ''The Argus'', (Monday, 24 December 1917), p.5.
* Holmesby, Russell & Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. 7th ed. Melbourne: Bas Publishing.

External links

*
Blueseum profileDemon Wiki profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williamson, Alf 1893 births 1917 deaths Australian rules footballers from Victoria (Australia) Carlton Football Club players Melbourne Football Club players Australian military personnel killed in World War I People educated at Melbourne High School Missing in action of World War I