| Accession Number | P02704.024 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white |
| Physical description | Black & white |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Port Moresby, New Guinea. "Padre, Padre, quite tool-hardy, How did your garden grow? We pinched ...
Description
Port Moresby, New Guinea. "Padre, Padre, quite tool-hardy, How did your garden grow? We pinched some shrubs and bought some And cursed and dug ubiquitous weeds! With pick and shovel, rake and hoe We finally made the dam' thing grow! Even our sternest critics allowed Our garden really did us proud!" A view of the Rec[reation] Hut obtained and furnished by Padre P. Sands, the first RAAF chaplain in war-time New Guinea. Once the hut was finished, Padre Sands and Billy Challoner formed a concert group called the Moresby Microbes. This group performed 50 weekly concerts between 8 May 1942 and 28 April 1943, including a "Jubilee Concert" which was the last. Padre Sands wrote the verse which accompanies each photograph in an album given to LAC Frank Lansdowne, a member of the Moresby Microbes, now held in the Private Records collection at the Australian War Memorial. (Donor J. Treseder)