Constable Frederick Hoge

Constable Frederick Hoge was born in 1877 at Stanwell a small farming community west of Rockhampton. He applied to join the Queensland Police Force in January 1899 and was sworn in on 5 April that year where he was allocated reg.no. 821. (In 1905 Commissioner Cahill re-organised the service wide numbering system and Hoge was re-issued 566). Constable Hoge commenced his service at Roma Street Station, then onto Nambour and in September 1900 to Gladstone where he was to spend the next seven years.

This period included some significant time in the search for the Kenniff Brothers following the murder of Constable George Doyle and station manager Albert Dahlke. Additionally, he performed instances of good police work resulting in several payments of one-pound rewards. His service was also interrupted by periods of illness including dengue fever and influenza which was to cause considerable sick leave. He married Zilla Hinchcliffe in April 1902 and later went on to have 2 children.

Following a dispute with a subordinate officer while acting as Officer in Charge, Hoge was transferred to Clermont in July 1907. In June 1908 he and two other officers were returning by train from Rockhampton having performed special duty at a carnival in that city. Hoge had fallen ill during this duty but had recovered well enough to travel back to Clermont. At about 11.30pm on 15th June 1908, as the train passed through the town of Dingo, Hoge left the carriage to get a drink of water from the waterbag hanging on an outside railing. His travelling companions felt a bump and on investigation could not locate Hoge. The train was stopped and following a search Hoge was located having been run over by the train. His body was recovered and returned to Clermont where he was buried in the Clermont Cemetery. Frederick Hoge was 31 years of age at the time of his death.

His widow was pregnant at the time and later gave birth to a third daughter. Tragedy struck the family again in 1909 when their 3-year-old second daughter died from diphtheria. Mrs Hoge remarried in 1912 while living in Brisbane.

Constable Frederick Hoge was later exhumed from the Clermont Cemetery and reburied in a family plot in the Stanwell Cemetery where his parents and a brother are also interred. Recently the FQPM were advised that the condition of the family grave was in a sad state of disrepair. FQPM Committee member Kevin Darch was able to inspect the cemetery recently and an assessment by a stonemason has indicated a significant expense will be required to reinstate the grave to a suitable condition. Inquiries by the QPS Honours & Awards Unit are ongoing in an effort to locate descendants who will advise on how the project will proceed.

The current condition of the family grave in Stanwell Cemetery indicates a significant rebuild will be necessary however the FQPM will honour Constable Frederick Hoge with the best possible reconstruction befitting an officer who died while performing his duty. This project will be a major focus for the management committee in 2026.