Darge Photographic Company collection of negatives

Studio portrait of Captain J Lambden, believed to be Captain James Arthur Lambden, 54th Battalion, Militia from Ascot Vale, Victoria. He was a 34 year old Science Master when he was appointed a Captain in the 37th Battalion, AIF on 23 February 1916 and he embarked for overseas with A Company from Melbourne on 3 June 1916 aboard HMAT Persic (A34). After a short period in England, he proceeded to France in November 1916 and was awarded a Military Cross (MC) for conspicuous gallantry in leading a successful raid against the enemy’s trenches at Armentieres on the night of 28/29 January 1917. After being wounded in action on 29 March 1918, he was evacuated to England for medical treatment and then returned to Australia, arriving on 3 October 1918. This is one of a series of photographs taken by the Darge Photographic Company which had a permit 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.