He died of gunshot wounds received whilst on active service in France during World War I.
Family
The son of Pietro Egidio "Peter" Bonelli (1844–1888),[1] and Margaret Bonelli (1850–1928), née Williams,[2] James Henry Bonelli, also known as Bonella, was born at Maldon, Victoria on 17 December 1884.[3]
He married Eliza Puncher (1885–1968) in 1912.[4] They had one son, James Avenel Bonella (1913–2002).
Eliza's brother, Jim's brother-in-law, Private Joseph Samuel Puncher (also known as James Samuel Puncher) was killed in action in France on 21 November 1916.[5][6]
Footballer
Recruited from Pembroke, he played one senior match for the Melbourne Football Club, in the last match of the season, on a very muddy ground, against Fitzroy, at the Brunswick Street Oval on 5 September 1908.
He was severely wounded in his left thigh, whilst in action with the 21st Battalion, A Company, on 20 May 1918 and was evacuated to a military hospital. Although he had been successfully operated upon on 21 May 1918, he died of his wounds[11] on 24 May 1918.[12][13][14]
^His father and mother were variously recorded as Bonelli and Bonella, and James' birth (in 1885), his marriage (in 1912), and his son's birth (in 1913) were officially recorded with the family name Bonelli.
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