14 October 2009 by Di Rutherford. Collection, From the collection, 16 Battalion, Casualties, Collecting, Heraldry.
In January 1919 tattered pieces of uniform were found lying among the bones of the men of the 16th Battalion, who were killed trying to advance at the Bloody Angle on 2 May 1915. These items were recovered by Lieutenant William Hopkins James, who headed a small party to Gallipoli for the Australian War Records Section (the precursor to the Australian War Memorial). They arrived at Gallipoli in mid December 1918, and remained there until late March 1919. With the assistance of members of the 7th Light Horse Regiment, who were stationed in the area at the time, they collected items, and photographed the area. In February 1919 they were joined by the Australian Historical Mission, lead by Official Historian C E W Bean.
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30 June 2009 by Craig Blanch. Collection, Collection Highlights, From the collection, News, Personal Stories, First World War, Heraldry, military medal, People, Western Front, women in war.
Phoebe Chapple was always going to be someone special. She grew up in a family of high achievers. Apart from her father, Frederic Chapple, who was headmaster at Prince Alfred College Adelaide, five of her seven siblings held university degrees: Alfred a lecturer in engineering at St John’s University Cambridge; Ernest, another Cambridge graduate at Jesus University and president of the Fresher Debating Society before taking up a position in Rangoon, Burma; Harold a surgeon at Guy’s Hospital in London; Marian an arts graduate from the University of Adelaide; and Fred, another doctor. However, Phoebe stood apart even in such accomplished company.
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14 April 2009 by Di Rutherford. Collection, From the collection, Heraldry.
Among the items held at the Memorial that were issued to air crew serving in Europe, are two pairs of very interesting 1943 Pattern escape boots. The boots were designed so that an airman downed in Europe could remove a small concealed knife and cut off the top section of the boot to reveal a civilian looking shoe.
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05 March 2009 by Di Rutherford. From the collection, Personal Stories, Heraldry, Nurses.
Florence MacDowell was born in the mid 1870s, the daughter of Swanston Hay MacDowell and Kathleen Champ. She trained as a nurse at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, Victoria and the Queens Hospital in Adelaide, South Australia. She opened her own hospital called ‘Windarra’ at Toorak in Victoria, but later moved abroad, living mostly in Italy. She was staying on the Island of Elba in Tuscany when war broke out in 1914.
She made her way to England where she joined the British Red Cross. She worked as a Sister in their hospital at Vranatzka Banya in Serbia. In late 1915 and early 1916 the Serbian forces were overrun and retreated to Albania and Montenegro. Sister MacDowell evacuated from Serbia and eventually made her way back to England.
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30 December 2008 by Di Rutherford. Collection, From the collection, Personal Stories, Heraldry.
Recently I have been researching collection items relating to an interesting woman who helped feed and entertain soldiers on leave in London during the First World War. Her name was Minnie Augusta Rattigan.
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30 October 2008 by Di Rutherford. Collection, From the collection, Personal Stories, Heraldry.
A recent inquiry from a member of the public brought to my attention an interesting collection item held by the Memorial. It relates to Captain William Roy ‘Bill’ Reynolds from Victoria, who had served with the Merchant Navy, as well as working for a number of companies through Southeast Asia in the lead up to the Second World War.
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20 August 2008 by Di Rutherford. Collection, From the collection, Heraldry.
Most people like to bring home a souvenir from their travels and soldiers in the First World War were no exceptions. The First World War led to great movements of people across the world, but especially through Europe. Many of these people ended up in Great Britain at one time or another. Despite difficulties in wartime, British companies still managed to produce a myriad of souvenirs for the visitors as reminders of their time in Britain, or as a gift for a loved one.
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17 March 2008 by Amanda Rebbeck. Aircraft 1914 - 1918, Collection, Personal Stories, First World War, Heraldry, Private Records, Training.
Crashes and fires were everyday hazards for the First World War flier. Second Lieutenant Frederick Gulley suffered both when trying to land his aircraft in England on 17 October 1918. Gulley was on a cross country flight and struck a post whilst attempting to land in a field close to Tidworth Barracks, Wiltshire. In the resulting fire Gulley’s clothes, harness, face and hands were burnt. He was taken to Tidworth Hospital with superficial burns to his face, neck and both hands, including all fingers.
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11 February 2008 by Amanda Rebbeck. Aircraft 1914 - 1918, Collection, From the collection, Heraldry.
It is not unusual for servicemen and women to carry with them good luck charms while on overseas service. However one particularly superstitious serviceman was Aircraft Mechanic 2nd Class Henry James Marston, of No. 3 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps (AFC). Marston wore a wrist chain with an identity tag and three lucky charms – a boomerang, a black cat and a doll.
The boomerang entitled ‘I Go To Return’ is an obvious choice, and may have been bought by or given to Marston before leaving Australia. The choice of the “lucky” black cat is similarly obvious. The silver FUMSUP charm (a play on “thumb’s up”), was a popular motif in Britain during the First World War and also appeared on souvenir china and postcards. The head appears to be made of wood “touch wood” and has a four leaf clover impressed into it. The tiny glass eyes often seen in other examples are missing. Marston’s mother’s details and address are engraved on the reverse of the identity disc.
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