Billy: A Boy from Queenstown Tasmania – under-aged boys signing up in the Great War (2026) – Sandra Stubbings

A newly researched true account of Billy Gadd, a young lad from Tasmania's West Coast mining town of Queenstown who managed to enlist in the AIF during World War I while under the legal age.

This local history traces Billy's short life, from growing up on the rugged West Coast to his service with the 12th Battalion on the Western Front, where he was tragically killed in action near Lagnicourt, France, at just 17 years of age.

The book also explores the Gadd family's deep ties to Queenstown's mining heritage; his father, Albert Gadd, was a recognised rescue hero of the catastrophic 1912 North Mount Lyell mining disaster.

Publication Details:

• Format: Softcover / Paperback.
• Publisher: Forty South Publishing, Hobart, 2026. First Edition.
• Condition: Brand new

Dispatched directly from Just Tassie Books / The Book Cellar, operating out of the historic, convict-hewn cellars of Foxhunters Return in the heart of Tasmania. From local history and rare treasures to everyday favourite reads, our team’s Tasmanian roots run generations deep. All books are securely packed in protective wrap and shipped with tracking for peace of mind.