The AIF Project

Joseph William COSTIN

Date of birth1 September 1891
Place of birthGraceville, Brisbane, Queensland
SchoolBrisbane Grammar School, Queensland
ReligionChurch of England
OccupationElectrical engineer
Address'Inchbrakie', Fernberg Road, Paddington, Brisbane, Queendland
Marital statusSingle
Age at embarkation23
Height5' 10"
Weight142 lbs
Next of kinFather, Charles William Costin, 'Inchbrakie', Fernberg Road, Paddington, Brisbane, Queendland
Previous military serviceServed in Senior Cadets for 3.5 years; 3.5 years in the Moreton Regiment, Citizen Military Forces.
Enlistment date21 August 1914
Rank on enlistmentLieutenant
Unit name9th Battalion, Machine Gun Section
Embarkation detailsUnit embarked from Brisbane, Queensland, on board A5, S.S. Omrah on 24 September 1914
Rank from Nominal RollLieutenant
Unit from Nominal Roll9th Battalion
Other details from Roll of Honour CircularHe invented an apparatus for cooling the machine gun whilst in action. His was the first Australian machine gun to be set up in Gallipoli. (details from mother)
FateKilled in Action 25-28 April 1915
Place of death or woundingGallipoli, Turkey
Place of burialNo known grave
Commemoration detailsThe Lone Pine Memorial, Gallipoli, Turkey

The Lone Pine Memorial, situated in the Lone Pine Cemetery at Anzac, is the main Australian Memorial on Gallipoli, and one of four memorials to men of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Designed by Sir John Burnet, the principal architect of the Gallipoli cemeteries, it is a thick tapering pylon 14.3 metres high on a square base 12.98 metres wide. It is constructed from limestone mined at Ilgardere in Turkey.

The Memorial commemorates the 3268 Australians and 456 New Zealanders who have no known grave and the 960 Australians and 252 New Zealanders who were buried at sea after evacuation through wounds or disease. The names of New Zealanders commemorated are inscribed on stone panels mounted on the south and north sides of the pylon, while those of the Australians are listed on a long wall of panels in front of the pylon and to either side. Names are arranged by unit and rank.

The Memorial stands over the centre of the Turkish trenches and tunnels which were the scene of heavy fighting during the August offensive. Most cemeteries on Gallipoli contain relatively few marked graves, and the majority of Australians killed on Gallipoli are commemorated here.

Panel number, Roll of Honour,
  Australian War Memorial
55
Miscellaneous information from
  cemetery records
Parents: Charles William and Ellen O'Donnell COSTIN, Fernberg Road, Paddington, Brisbane, Queensland
Other details

War service: Egypt, Gallipoli

Medals: 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal
SourcesNAA: B2455, COSTIN Joseph William

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