Michael BowmanPrint Page 
The memorial and park commemorate Michael Bowman, who was killed in a road crash in 1955.
In December 1955, 53 youngsters from Clontarf Boys Town were on their way to an annual Christmas holiday when their bus collided with a truck on the South Western Highway, killing 12-year-old Michael Bowman instantly and injuring 19 other boys in the horrific smash. Michael`s best mate David Crisp, who now lives in Northam, and Michael`s twin brother Richard Bowman had missed the bus. The three boys were orphans and had met when they were babies at an orphanage in Swansea, Wales. They were brought to Clontarf as child migrants in 1952.
David Crisp left Clontarf when he was 15 and became a successful shearer throughout the wheatbelt. He never forgot his best mate Michael or that he had died without a family to mourn him and without his mate and twin brother. David fulfilled a lifelong dream when he unveiled a marble memorial to his best mate and all their friends at the site of the tragedy in Serpentine.
Location
| Address: | South Western Highway, Bowman Park, Serpentine Bridge, Serpentine, 6125 |
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| State: | WA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -32.362537 Long: 115.991639 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
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| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Tragedy |
| Actual Event Start Date: | 15-December-1955 |
| Actual Event End Date: | 15-December-1955 |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Saturday 14th October, 2006 |
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The orphan from Wales
To our friend Mike
Taken from us too early
Always in our hearts
Till we meet again
Clontarf Boys
Erected by his friend David Crisp
