Frank Marshall

Born in Sydney in 1884, Frank Marshall trained in dental science at the University of Sydney and then at the University of Pennsylvania in America. He was a 30-year-old dentist when he enlisted in the AIF, as well as a lieutenant in the Australian Medical Corps reserve.

When Frank embarked on the Orsova in mid-July 1915, any notion of an army dental service was embryonic, despite being desperately needed. He was one of six officers, ranked ‘honorary lieutenant’, and six staff sergeants and six orderlies appointed to serve abroad as dentists during the conflict. He was attached to No. 3 Australian General Hospital (3AGH), serving first on Lemnos, where he was one of two dentists attached to the hospital.

Following Gallipoli, Frank initially remained with 3AGH at Abbassia, Cairo. On 25 September 1916, he embarked for England, and soon after he joined the AIF administration headquarters in London. Appointed staff officer of Army Dental Services, he spent most of the war in England (with a period in France in 1918) and achieved the senior rank of lieutenant-colonel.

For his outstanding service, Frank was mentioned in despatches in 1916 and awarded the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George in 1919. He returned to Sydney on the Makura in March 1920. His appointment with the AIF terminated in May 1920.