THE AUSTRALIAN PEACE HONOUR ROLL

Family Name:

Dawson

Given Names:

Leonard

Gender:

Male

Birth-date:

1902

Death-date:

Unknown

Marital Status

Unknown

Age/ Age Range:

40

Location:

NSW, Punchbowl

Occupation:

Departmental Manager

Primary Motivation:

Conscientious Objector- Religious Pacifism

Reason for Court Appearance:

[1] Application for exemption from military or civil work as a conscientious objector
[2] Appeal of court decisions

Court Name and Location:

[1] Unknown
[2] Magistrate’s Court, Campsie, NSW.

Court Hearing Date:

[1] Unknown
[2] 21 April 1942.

Court Outcome:

[1] Ordered to enlist in the Civil Construction Corps
[2] Appeal rejected.

Military Event:          

World War II 1939-1945

Further Information:

Leonard Dawson was a member of the Christadelphian Ecclesia at Petersham, NSW. He believed that if he enlisted in military service he would be barred from the kingdom of God. When his application for total exemption failed, his Ecclesia asked for his enlistment in the Civil Construction Corps (CCC) to be deferred pending the outcome of his appeal.  The appeal was rejected by Hawkins SM. Whether Dawson joined the CCC is unknown.

Confirmatory Sources:

Attorney-General’s Department, NAA (ACT), A1608, AA45/1/12, Item ID 206504. Title: War Records – Conscientious Objectors –  General Representations,  Part 3; J.G. Somerville Papers, National Library of Australia, Canberra, Series 7049.