| Accession Number | DAOD1736 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Glass original half plate negative |
| Maker |
Darge Photographic Company |
| Place made | Australia: Victoria, Melbourne, Broadmeadows |
| Date made | c 9 June 1916 |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Darge Photographic Company collection of negatives
Description
Outdoor group portrait of Cheeswright Group, 16th Depot Battalion, Bendigo Boys. 2645 Private (Pte) Frederick Cheeswright from Tooborac, Victoria is believed to be in the front row on the far right. [See image P06825.001.] A 28 year old wood carter prior to enlisting on 15 May 1916, he embarked for overseas with the 6th Reinforcements of the 60th Battalion from Melbourne on 2 October 1916 aboard HMAT Nestor (A71). Following further training in England, he proceeded to France where he joined the 60th Battalion on 8 February 1917. Pte Cheeswright was killed in action in Polygon Wood, Belgium on 26 September 1917 and is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Belgium with others who have no known grave.
Also identified, standing on the left in the back row, is probably 2303 Pte Thomas Henry Dickinson from Heathcote, Victoria. [See image DA15823.] A 26 year old farmer prior to enlisting on 17 April 1916, he embarked for overseas with the 4th Reinforcements of the 38th Battalion from Melbourne on 20 October 1916 aboard HMAT Port Lincoln (A17). Whilst serving on the Western Front, he was wounded in action on two separate occasions and returned to Australia arriving on 29 June 1919.
On the far left in the front row is possibly 2330 Pte Henry Harnell also from Tooborac. [See image DA15823.] A 40 year old labourer prior to enlisting on 12 May 1916, he embarked for overseas with the 4th Reinforcements of the 38th Battalion with Pte Dickinson. He was killed in action on 7 June 1917 at Messines, Belgium and is also commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres.
This is one of a series of photographs taken by the Darge Photographic Company which had the concession 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.