John Edward Weavell (SN 1199) born at Ballarat was a 30 year old miner, married with six children, when he enlisted at St. Arnaud on September 10th 1914. On December 22nd he embarked aboard the Themistocles, assigned to the 5th Infantry Battalion. Upon arrival in Egypt he was assessed as medically unfit and was returned to Australia aboard the Ulysses and was discharged on April 29th 1915.
Edward Weavell (SN 2202), variously recorded as Weavel and Weaver on his service record, re-enlisted on July 15th 1915 and embarked on February 18th 1916 aboard the Ballaarat. Initially assigned to the Mining Corps he was transferred to the 29th Battalion and reached France in June 1916. The following month he was disciplined for disobeying an order given by an NCO and for using obscene language. In September he was diagnosed as suffering from epilepsy and was withdrawn to England. While there, in January 1917, he was sentenced to 14 days detention for being absent without leave and for falsifying his leave pass. He left England on February 13th aboard the Ulysses, reached Melbourne on April 12th and was discharged as ‘medically unfit, epilepsy’ on May 22nd 1917.

Lucas’s Staffs Appreciation of Brave Men, the original Avenue register, records his name as Edward Weavel.