Darge Photographic Company collection of negatives

Studio portrait of R J Roberts, possibly 2767 Private (Pte) James Robert Roberts, 24th Battalion from Hopetoun, Victoria. A 30 year old labourer prior to enlisting on 14 July 1915, he embarked for overseas service with the 6th Reinforcements from Melbourne aboard HMAT Ulysses (A38) on 27 October 1915. Following further training in Egypt, he proceeded to France in March 1916 and shortly afterwards was promoted to Corporal and then to Sergeant. He was wounded in action on 6 October 1917 and received medical treatment in France before returning to the 24th Battalion six weeks later. After spending seven months in England with the Overseas Training Brigade, he returned to France and was wounded in action for a second time on 5 October 1918. He was evacuated to England for medical treatment and then returned to Australia where he was medically discharged on 24 April 1919. 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.