Hunt on for mystery Great War soldiers
Geraldton’s Birdwood Military Museum finds itself in the middle of a proverbial haystack, looking for 149 “needles”.
The museum is trying to track down information on 149 Geraldton soldiers who died during the Great War (1914-19).
The diggers are listed on the club’s honour roll, but there is little information about their service, or faces to the names.
“All we know is their names, ” museum curator Barry Stinson said. “When we cross-checked, in some cases there is different spelling, so we can’t be 100 per cent sure.
“We’re planning myriad activities in the lead-up to this year’s 100th commemoration of the Gallipoli landing and we’d like to know more about the city’s soldiers who served in World War I.
“We are currently researching service and war graves records in relation to the individuals to add to our database and are desperately seeking photographs of the diggers in uniform.”
The museum hopes readers will have more information. Some of the soldiers may not be from Geraldton but all enlisted here.
“We’d like to know things like their family background, what area they lived, what they did for a job, who they served with and where, ” Mr Stinson said. “Of course, we’d also like any pictures, documents or memorabilia.
“We don’t want to keep the material, but we’d like to digitise it, with a view to perhaps using it in future displays.”
Contact Mr Stinson on 0408 222 653 if you can help.
HONOUR ROLL: GREAT WAR OF 1914-19
Abrahams, Wm. S.; Alexander, M.; Allen, John A.; Allen, W. Vincent.; Assan, W.; Archer, C.; Balaam, W.; Baldwin, Wm; Bartram, Lewis R.; Beaver, Joseph G; Blake, Alex.; Boneham, Robert.; Bourdman, T.T.; Box, Harold.; Boyd, A. S.; Bradford, G.; Bradley, Jack.; Bunter, J. J.; Caincross, George.; Cameron, Hugh.; Carter, E. G.; Challener, C. J.; Chapman, Joseph.; Chapman. W.; Chisholm, L. A.; Clarke, George.; Clarke, M.; Clarke, Reginald.; Collins, Frederick; Compton, George.; Cooper, John; Crabbe, L. C.; Crawford, S.; Craine, E. E.; Creeper, P.; Crothers, Albert.; Crump, Jack.; Curlewis, Arthur.; Curlewis, C.; Curlewis, Gordon.; Curlewis, Selwyn.; Cutler, J.; Davies, David.; Davis, Fred. G.; *Davey or (Davy), John. C.; Desmond, Frank.; Dhu, C, (or possibly Due); Denyer, H. D.; Dick, J.; Dickerson, S. C.; Dineen, Leo C.; Disher, R. E.; Doran, Dave.; *Downs (or Downes), Kevin.; Dunlop, Walter H.; Drummond, J.; Dwyer. Frank; Easther, Arnold.; *Eddington (or Edington), Thomas.; Edwards, H. L.; Fairbeard, C.; Faragher, A.; Fox, J.; Gibbings, Cecil T.; Godfrey, A. J.; Green, Leonard A.; Greenwood, Percy J.; Groessler, William.; Guest, F. V; Hallett, S. G.; Hammond, F. W.; Hanson, Ernest John.; Heal, J.; Hennessey, Chas.; Hollings, Wm. C.; Holmes, Harold; Humphries, Wm.; Hughes, C.C.; James, C. Harry; Jenson, J.J.; Jones, C.H.; Jones, W.J.; Keating, Thomas.; Keating, W.; Kelly, Michael H.; Kendrick, E. F.; Kent, Edward Sam.; Kent, George.; Kent, W. H.; Kerr, J.; Keys, Charles.; Kretchmar, Ed. H.; La Nauze, Chas A.; Larkin, G. W.; Lumbardie, J.; McArthur, Colin.; McKillop, Don.; McLean, Dinnie.; Mofflin, P. S.; Moore, Fred M.; Morgan, C. H.; Mountain, A. H. T.; Neumann, W; Oxlade, Edward.; Parker, Sammy.; Pass, William.; Powell, Ernest K.; Punshion, Harry; Prunster, C. T.; Ramshaw, Joseph.; Riley, D.; Riley, F. W.; Rose, Chris.; Rowland, G. F.; Ruddock, H. E.; Schiff, W.; Scubatovich, D, V.; Selby, S. V.; Smith, H. A.; Smith, F. W.; Stone, L. J.; Stone, V. S.; Swan, K.; Sweeting, A. L.; Taafe, J. E.; Taylor, S.; Teahan, Michael.; Thomas, Fred.; Thompson, Roy.; Townsend, Jack.; Wallace, Charles.; Walshe, W.; Walton, Robt.; Ward, W. F.; Ward, W. R.; Warwicker, Henry.; Watson, Frank W.; Weeks, L. A.; Whittle, Arthur G.; Wight, N.R.; Wright, Norman. R.; Williams, Edgar.; Williams, Lewis.; Williams, S.; Wilton. A. J.; Woodthorpe, Edgar.; Woolhouse, V. V. C.; Worthington, A. G.; Worthington, Percy.
NOTE: There are some discrepancies (*) with regard to spelling, as the names were cross-checked form two sources:–the club’s Honour Roll and an ANZAC Day program from 1920.
