Darge Photographic Company collection of negatives

Studio portrait of 1501 Private (Pte) Thomas Aldridge, 6th Battalion from Croxton, Victoria. A 19 year old factory hand prior to enlisting on 16 December 1914, he embarked for overseas with the 3rd Reinforcements from Melbourne on 19 February 1915 aboard HMAT Runic (A54). While serving at Gallipoli, he was taken ill and returned to Australia. After recovering, he embarked again with the 19th Reinforcements from Melbourne on 28 July 1916 aboard HMAT Themistocles (A32). Following further training in England, he proceeded to France where he joined the 60th Battalion in October 1916. After falling ill, he was evacuated to England in December 1916 and did not return to the front until September 1917 when he joined the 6th Battalion in Belgium. He was wounded in action at Westhock Ridge on 4 October 1917 and evacuated to England where he had his right leg amputated below the knee. Pte Aldridge returned to Australia on 4 September 1918. This is one of a series of photographs taken by the Darge Photographic Company which had the concession to take photographs at the Broadmeadows and Seymour army camps during the First World War. In the 1930s, the Australian War Memorial purchased the original glass negatives from Algernon Darge, along with the photographers' notebooks. The notebooks contain brief details, usually a surname or unit name, for each negative.