The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (4614) Private Owen Cooney O’Mara, 45th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

The Last Post Ceremony is presented in the Commemorative area of the Australian War Memorial each day. The ceremony commemorates more than 102,000 Australians who have given their lives in war and other operations and whose names are recorded on the Roll of Honour. At each ceremony the story behind one of the names on the Roll of Honour is told. Hosted by Craig Berelle, the story for this day was on (4614) Private Owen Cooney O’Mara, 45th Battalion, AIF, First World War.

4614 Private Owen Cooney O’Mara, 45th Battalion, AIF
KIA 7 August 1916
No photograph in collection

Story delivered 30 November 2016

Today we remember and pay tribute to Private Owen O’Mara.

Owen O’Mara, who went by his middle name, “Cooney”, was born in 1892. He was the second son of Michael and Ellen O’Mara. His mother was the daughter of Owen Cooney. His father was born in Jugiong in 1852 and had spent his life in the district, known as “a fine type of Australian, a cheery friend and [a] sterling neighbour”. Cooney and his five brothers grew up on the family property in Berremangra. He attended the local public school and went on to study at Hereford House in Sydney before returning to work as a farmer.

Cooney O’Mara enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force on the 7th of August 1915. He was eventually posted to the 1st Battalion and underwent a brief period of training in Australia before being sent for active service overseas. He was sent to Egypt, where he was transferred to the 45th Battalion in early 1916.

In June the 45th Battalion was sent to France to fight on the Western Front. The first major action of the 1st Anzac Corps, of which the 45th Battalion was a part, came near the French village of Pozières, which was captured by the 1st Division in July. The 45th Battalion entered the front line some days later on the 5th of August, encountering heavy German shelling and a few weak counter-attacks.

At some time between the night of 6 August and the morning of the 7th O’Mara was hit by an artillery shell and killed instantly. It was believed that he had been buried in the back of the trench, close to where he was hit. His body was never recovered, and today he is commemorated on the memorial to the missing at Villers-Bretonneux in France. He was 23 years old.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my right, among more than 60,000 Australians who died during the First World War.

This is but one of the many stories of service and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Private Owen Cooney O’Mara, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better world.

Dr Meleah Hampton
Historian, Military History Section