War Memorial Hall c1929
![Memorial Hall circa 1929](../media/1914/hero_hall.jpg)
Donald Keith ARMSTRONG
Keith Armstrong was born on 14 October 1896 in Branxholme, Victoria. His parents were William and Jessie Marion (née Munro) Armstrong. He attended Scotch from 1909 to 1913. He was a boarder. Keith was a Prefect in 1912 and in 1913. He was in Senior Cadets for a year.
Keith was a pastoralist when he enlisted on 18 January 1916 in Melbourne. He served in the 8th Field Artillery Brigade with the rank of Corporal. His Regimental Number was 19614.
Keith died on 6 August 1917 at Ploegsteert, Belgium. He was 20 years of age.
Service record
On leaving school, Keith Armstrong had gone on the land with his father. On enlisting in 1916 he was initially allotted to field artillery reinforcements as a Gunner. He was then transferred to the 8th Field Artillery Brigade, with which he embarked from Melbourne in May 1916, arriving in Plymouth, England, on 18 July.
During his training at Salisbury he was promoted to Bombardier on 27 December 1916 and left Southampton for France three days later. He was hospitalised for three weeks with mumps at Strazeele in January 1917. He was there until discharged on 24 January. Keith went to a 3rd Divisional School for a week in February 1917. In May 1917 he was made a Temporary Corporal. On 6 August 1917 the explosion of a nearby enemy shell buried Keith and several others in their gun-pit. He managed to dig himself out, but then busied himself with helping a wounded man. Keith and three others were carrying this casualty to safety when a shell struck their stretcher. Keith, the casualty and another man were killed, while the two at the front of the stretcher were unharmed.
A friend wrote that Keith was a fine and popular NCO. Keith’s epitaph, ordered by his father, was ‘The Lord is thy keeper’, from Psalm 121. In 1925 Keith’s mother gave 1000 pounds to the school to set up a scholarship for boarders called the ‘Keith Armstrong Scholarship’. It was mentioned in the Argus newspaper as the DK Armstrong scholarship in 1939 and 1953.
Keith Armstrong is buried in the Kandahar Farm Cemetery (Plot II, Row F, Grave No. 26), Neuve-Eglise, Belgium.
Photographs and Documents:
From the 1917 Collegian. Like Keith Armstrong, Arthur Deans was a member of 8th Field Artillery Brigade, and would be killed in 1917.
Sources:
- Australian War Memorial – Roll of Honour
- Mishura Scotch Database
- National Archives of Australia – B2455, ARMSTRONG D K
- Scotch Collegian 1917
- The AIF Project - https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=7193
- The Argus, 1 November 1939 and 15 August 1953