ROSS, James Forbes (1887-1915).JPG)
J F Ross (War Service).
James Forbes Ross was born at Skipton on 24 February 1887, the son of Rev Charles Stuart Ross and Jane nee Cooper, of Aparima, Hampton Street, Brighton.
He was educated at Geelong College, where he was a Lieutenant in the Cadets. He showed skill with the rifle, and was a member of the team that won the Sargood Shield in 1904. He was working as a schoolmaster at Trinity Grammar School, Kew, having previously taught at Camperdown Grammar School and St Thomas’s School, Essendon, when he enlisted (389) in the AIF on 17 August 1914. He first embarked for Egypt, and then to the Landing on Gallipoli when he met his death on 25 April 1915. He was a sergeant with 6 Battalion.
Varying reports were received by the Red Cross Information Bureau, one stated he was killed by a shell about 27 April at Lone Pine and that he died about an hour afterwards, and was buried in an unmarked grave. A second report, from Cpl S H Beck, declared Ross was missing, that he was a popular man and much enquiry (was) made for him at the time, if dead he should have been found for it happened before the armistice when both sides went out to bring in the dead, also it was in the day time that Ross was missed, for these reasons informant believed he was a prisoner. A third report stated that informant was with Ross on April 25th when he was hit in Shrapnel Gully, informant was told by Lt Ryan that he had been sent to hospital in Malta, informant was in battalion until 1 August, and Ross was no longer there. A fourth report stated that
‘when last seen he was leading a group of men over the rough ridges at Gaba Tepe, for a long time he was reported as missing, but has now been listed as killed on April 25th 1915’ .
Sergeant James Ross has no known grave - his name is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial, Gallipoli. His battalion lost 113 men on the day of the Landing, including six officers, seven sergeants, and one hundred other ranks.
Sources: Based on an edited extract from Geelong Collegians at the Great War compiled by James Affleck. pp101-103 (citing National Archives; Australian War Memorial; Photo Pegasus August, 1916.)