Strength blackboard : Northam Camp

Blackboard in a glazed Jarrah frame that has eyelets and hanging wire attached to the back. The blackboard is divided into five sections by lines of white paint and in each section is written, again in white paint, the following headings, 'STRENGTH'; 'INSTRUCTORS,TRAINEES'; 'PARADE STATE 0830, SCHOOLS, M.T.T.D., Greylands, Others, DUTIES, Camp, Unit, LEAVE, SICK, Hospital, Sick Parade, A.W.L., OTHERS, PRESENT, Total; OTHERS'. There is a space after each heading to allow the appropriate entry to be made in chalk.

Blackboard on which was recorded 'Strength' details of Northam Camp during the Second World War. It was retrieved from Northam Camp by the donor's father who was a PMG (Post Master General) telecommunications technician and who had worked at the camp durng the Second World War. Northam, 98 kilometres north of Perth, was the location of a large military camp during the Second World War. Militia units trained in the area in the early 1930s, and in 1935 a site there was chosen for a permanent camp at which Western Australian militia units could train, and be mobilised in time of war. The site was chosen because it was close to both roads and railways, and the nearby Kalgoorlie pipeline offered a reliable supply of water. During 1939 and 1940, Northam was the birthplace of the three Western Australian AIF battalions, and later housed a variety of AIF and militia units. Between January and October 1946, Northam was used as a holding camp for Italian prisoners of war who had been employed as rural labourers throughout southern Western Australia, prior to their repatriation to Western Australia. From 1949 until 1963 parts of Northam Camp were used as a reception facility for non-British migrants from Europe. Since the 1960s Northam Camp has been used by CMF, Army Reserve, and cadet units for training; it remains in use today.