 Born in Tasmania , Statton was married and working as a farmer when he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force during 1916 . Posted to the 40th Battalion , he was shipped to England where he spent three months training . Arriving on the Western Front in 1917 , Statton was awarded the Military Medal during the Battle of Messines while leading carrying parties to the frontline under heavy artillery and machine gun fire . Wounded twice during the war , Statton returned to Australia in 1919 and was discharged the following year . In 1934 , he took part in rescue work aiding families isolated by severe bushfires in the Derwent Valley . Following a period of service during the Second World War , Statton died of stomach cancer in 1959 . 
