Sergeant Martin O`Meara V.C.Print Page 
Between 9 and 12 August 1916 at Mouquet Farm, Pozières, during four days of very heavy fighting, Private O'Meara repeatedly went out and brought in wounded officers and men from "no man's land" under intense artillery and machine-gun fire. He also volunteered and carried up ammunition and bombs through a heavy barrage to a portion of the trenches which was being heavily shelled at the time.
O'Meara was wounded three times during the war: near Mouquet farm in August 1916, near Bullecourt in April 1917 and near Messines in August 1917.
He was presented with his Victoria Cross medal by King George V at Buckingham Palace on 21 July 1917.
The service and sacrifice of Western Australia's Victoria Cross and George Cross recipients will be remembered in perpetuity with each recipient being commemorated at highway rest stops south of Perth. Veterans Minister Joe Francis said the project, similar to Remembrance Driveway on the Federal and Hume highways between Sydney and Canberra, would see plaques honouring WA's 17 Victoria Cross and two George Cross recipients placed at rest areas on highways leading to Albany."The rest stops will be on Albany Highway between Perth and Albany and along South Western Highway between Pinjarra and Kirup," Mr Francis said. The plaques will be installed at rest stops in chronological order, starting with the South Western Highway (Frederick Bell VC). Each will contain a short biography of the recipient and part of their citation as gazetted. "While the Victoria Cross is awarded for extreme gallantry in the face of the enemy, the George Cross - open to service personnel and civilians - was instituted to recognise extreme bravery that did not involve contact with the enemy. The series of plaques will be called Commemoration Way, and will be rolled out between Anzac Day and Remembrance Day, 2016."
Media Statement, 20th April 2016.
Location
| Address: | South Western Highway , Yarloop Rest Area, Yarloop, 6218 |
|---|---|
| State: | WA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -32.952045 Long: 115.911888 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Plaque |
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| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Military |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 09-August-1916 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 12-August-1916 |
| Link: | http://adb.anu.edu.au/ |
Dedication
| Approx. Monument Dedication Date: | 2016 |
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Commemoration Way
In honour of Victoria Cross recipient Sergeant Martin O`Meara VC
Martin O`Meara was born in Ireland on 31 December 1885. O`Meara probably sailed for Australia in 1912, working his passage as a stoker. When war was declared O`Meara was working near Collie and enlisted on 19 August 1915 in the 16th Battalion. Wounded three times during the war he was invalided to Perth due to the `mania` that would see him hospitalised for the remainder of his life. O`Meara died in Perth on 20 December 1935.
16th Battalion, 9 - 12 August 1916 at Pozieres, France
"For most conspicuous bravery. During four days of heavy fighting he repeatedly went out and brought in the wounded officers and men from `No Man`s Land` under intense artillery and machine gun fire. He also volunteered and carried up ammunition and bombs through a heavy barrage to a portion of the trenches, which was being heavily shelled at the time. He showed throughout an utter contempt of danger, and undoubtedly saved many lives."
