Sydney (Sidney) James Adams enlisted in October 1914 along with his brother Albert. Both joined the 15th Battalion and were sent to Gallipoli, where Sidney would die in August 1915. Adams was only 19 when he enlisted, working as a storeman in Toowoomba, and like his brother played soccer. The pair’s names were added to the Toowoomba British Football Association honour board in 1918.
After the war, in 1921, a Memorial Scroll was sent to Adam’s father John. His mother, Minnie, signed the receipt for the Scroll and requested whether any outstanding medals owed to her son could be sent to her. The Base Records Officer at the Victoria Barracks questioned the fact that Minnie had signed for the Scroll, and asked whether her husband was still alive. This in turn prompted John to write to the base stating Minnie could act on his behalf. The cause of this issue was the military acted in accordance with a strict order of relationship in terms of which next-of-kin could receive money or medals owed to deceased soldiers. The father outranked the mother thus they would only deal with him. Had Sydney been married, the wife would have trumped his parents. This was despite Minnie having authorised Sydney to volunteer and being listed as the next-of-kin on his enrolment form and as well as being the main contact regarding his fate in the months after his death. Further letters after his death, from his uncle A.E. Adams, also revealed Adams first name was Sidney, not Sydney, per the enrolment forms. The uncle claimed the enrolment office would not take true spelling. Both spellings are used in his records, and in letters from his family.