| Places | |
|---|---|
| Accession Number | RCDIG0001395 |
| Collection number | PR05050 |
| Collection type | Digitised Collection |
| Record type | File |
| Item count | 1 |
| Object type | Diary |
| Physical description | 196 Image/s captured |
| Maker |
Pocock, Mary Anne 'Bessie' |
| Place made | At sea, Egypt, France, Western Front |
| Date made | 1915-1916 |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
Diary of Mary Anne 'Bessie' Pocock, December 1915 - January 1917
Pocock, Mary Anne "Bessie" (Matron, b.1863 - d.1946)
- Series 2: Original diaries and notebooks
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Description
Diary relating to the First World War service of Mary Ann ‘Bessie’ Pocock, Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS). This handwritten diary contains entries for the period 16 December 1915 to 5 January 1917, primarily detailing her service with the 2nd Australian General Hospital (2AGH) at Mena, and her subsequent service with the 2AGH and the 2nd Australian Casualty Clearing Station (2ACCS) in France. After her service on the Hospital Ship Assaye in 1915, Pocock returns to Egypt and is appointed head matron of the 2AGH at Mena in Cairo. Her diary entries record her experiences there, including her sightseeing trips. After travelling to France, and from April to July 1916, Pocock’s entries describe her time serving with the 2AGH at Moussot (outside of Marseilles) and at Wimereux. She remarks on major events, such as the death of Field Marshal Lord Kitchener in June, and also the lack of adequate rations and the difficulty in acquiring extra food and personal items, such as toiletries. Pocock is subsequently records her transfer to the 2ACCS at Trois Arbres near the French town of Steenwerck in Flanders to act as head matron and her experiences with the unit.