Military Monday - Treasures from Aunty Glad's Suitcase - Postcards from WWI

Aunty Glad's Suitcase

Among the many treasures found in Aunty Glad's Suitcase is a wonderful collection of old postcards sent back to Australia by Angus and Malcolm Shepherd.

Each card has a unique story, as does the one I am sharing with you today.  Often the card's uniqueness comes from the message on the back, however, today's card's story comes from the verse and credit written at the bottom of the card.

The Song "It's a long way to Tipperary"  was a popular song sung by the soldiers during WWI. It seems that "A long way to Tipperary"  quickly became a favorite with the "Tommies",  It is interesting that at the bottom of the card there is a reference that the words to the song were printed with the permission of B. Feldman and Co, 2 and 3 Arthur Street London.  The words of the song are credited to Jack Jude and Harry Williams, with the Copyright belong to B. Feldman and Co.

Postcard from WWI

Sentimental Sunday - Pic from Aunty Glad's Suitcase - Alexander McDonald

Time to share another treasure from Aunty Glad's Suitcase.  This time it is a picture of  my gg uncle Alexander McDonald's gravestone at Gallipoli.

Corporal Alexander McDonald died on the 25th April, 1915, while helping his troops embarking.

Recently, another descendant of another member of 11th Battalion who died on the same day brought to my attention, that Corporal McDonald was mentioned in Roy Denning's published Diary "Anzac Digger, an Engineer in Gallipoli and France",  He is mentioned a number of time in the early section of this book, up until his death.

Roy Denning describes the moment Alexander was shot. "Only a few seconds elapsed before the hillsides were alive with spiteful flashes the steel decks of the destroyer alive with hissing hot lead splashing fire and fragments in every direction.

The decks were soon running blood and slippery, Corporal McDonald was standing up calmly shouting orders when his voice trailed off in a gurgle and he crumpled to the deck. The Turks must have had machine guns trained onto the destroyer".* 

I was excited to find among the treasures in Aunty Glad's suitcase a picture of Alexander headstone, taken by one of my cousins when she visited Anzac Cove in 2000.

Corporal Alexander McDonald - 25 April 1915

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* Denning, Roy and Lorna, 2004, Anzac Digger, an Engineer in Gallipoli and France, Australian Military History Publications, Loftus Australia, p.15.

Also may be of interest:
2013 Trans-Tasman ANZAC Day Blog Challenge - Alexander Joseph McDonald http://familystoriesphotographsandmemories.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/military-monday-2013-trans-tasman-anzac.html

Letter from Major McCall, http://familystoriesphotographsandmemories.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/amanuensis-monday-letter-from-major.html

Treasure Chest Thursday - from Aunty Glad's Suitcase - WW1 Field Card

It is time to dig into Aunty Glad's suitcase for some more WWI history.

Among the collection of WWI post cards from Angus Shepherd and Malcolm Michael Shepherd I found one that intrigued me.  This was what you would call a "fill in the gaps" post card.  i.e. the card had a number of messages on the back which the sender could cross out and keep the appropriate message.  Handy I thought, something today's post card printers should consider for the traveler who wants to send a message home with the minimum of effort.

However, with this post card this was not the case.  The card, from Angus, was sent to his mother Mrs Lynn Shepherd from somewhere in Europe on the 4th October 1817.  You will note that instructions on the front of the card state that the only thing to be written on the front of the card is the address and "If anything else is added the post card will be destroyed"! 

Field post cards were an early form of censorship that were designed for troops to send home.  The message from the soldier was compiled by crossing out the irrelevant lines, they were not permitted to write any additional information other than their signature and the date.

Soldiers were not allowed to disclose their whereabouts, and I am sure many soldiers were glad to be able to send their family a simple greeting, without having to disclose the reality of their life in the battle field. 

These post cards served a number of purposes.  Not only did they provide their loved ones at home with the knowledge that they were still alive but also gave the soldiers something to do.  Boredom was an issue for the soldiers in the field and writing was one of the few activities that they were able to do and provided them with some distraction from the horrors of war. 

Playing a part in the War propaganda, the Field Cards not only delivering those at home with news of their loved ones in the forces but also helped to sustain the popularity of the war effort on the home front and protecting families from the reality of the Australian War effort in Europe and North Africa.

Military Monday - Treasures from Aunty Glad's Suitcase - Gibraltar to arrival at Lark Hill Salisbury Plains

The 30th and 34th Battalion's stay at Gibraltar was short lived, and their ship soon made its way to England.  The rest of their trip was quite uneventful until finally after nearly eight weeks at sea the troops arrived in Plymouth Harbour.  England at last!

My grandfather Malcolm Michael Shepherd and his fellow troops were quickly loaded onto a trains and taken to their camp at Lark Hill near the village of Salisbury.  Aunty Glad's suitcase holds a number of post cards depicting the countryside near Lark Hill.  I will let Corporal Crossingham, complete the story of their arrival and settling into camp with the last part of his letter.

The final section of Corporal Crossingham's letter continues: 

"We stayed at Gibraltar about two and a half hours, then we weighed anchor and off again around the Bay of Biscay.  For some reason or other we did not go straight through. From now until the 21^st of June nothing happened of interest.

Postcard of Gilbraltar from Aunty Glad's Suitcase

June 21

Passed Eddystone Lighthouse and were very interested watching drifters (fishing boats) at work, and scanning the distant shores of England.  At 11.a.m. the sound of the anchor dropping brought all hands on deck at the double to find themselves in Plymouth Harbour.  One can imagine the excitement that reigned when we were ordered to get ready to land at once.  We were anchored out in midstream, and were disembarked on the Sir Walter Raleigh, from which we were transferred to land. It was great to get to shore after being couped up on board for nearly eight weeks.

We were all lined up with our kit bags on our shoulders and marched to the train.  There was nothing to growl at as regards the travelling accommodation.  We were put into third class carriages, which to my mind are equal if not better than Australian second-class and were allowed a fair amount of room, only eight men being put into each compartment.  Leaving the station we passed some very pretty scenery.  The country was looking at its best.  One has only to get into his mind’s eye an old fashioned farmhouse, with a thatched roof and white washed walls, surrounded by trees and shrubs, with nice green fields, dotted with poppies and buttercups, and each little farm was surrounded with dark green hedges. There are no fences, with a well-kept road or drive running up to the door.  This will give some idea of what we saw.

Postcard of Church in Salisbury

At nearly every village we passed the people were gathered in groups, waving and cheering as if they were welcoming us back from some victorious battle, while in reality we were only coming in to be trained.

The friendly manner in which the home people treated us went a long way towards making us forget what we had left behind, and made us feel at home, and I can safely say that all our boys appreciated their kind thoughts and actions.  They think a lot of the Australians. 

Our first stop was Exeter, about 50 miles from Plymouth, where another welcome surprise waited us.  As soon as the train stopped every man jack made a bold bid for the refreshment room, but were stopped by our officers, who told us to get what we wanted from the stalls that were distributed along the platform.  Then there was a rush back to our carriages to get our water bottles, which were then filled with nice hot tea.  Each man was then handed a paper-bag with buns and cakes in it.  Also a card from the Mayoress of Exeter and committee, wishing us all good luck.

That was about the most pleasant surprise up till now that we had have had.  Leaving Exeter we continued our journey arriving at Amesbury at 10 minutes past twilight.  On detraining we were formed up and marched to No. 1 Camp, Lark Hill, Salisbury Plain, arriving there at 12.15 p.m.   After being told off to our respective huts we were issued with bully beef and biscuits.  It was a rough and ready feed, but we all enjoyed it, after which we settled down for a few hours rest.  We were up about 7.a.m. next morning, and out taking bearings of our new surroundings, which we soon picked up.

 

Postcard - Lark Hill Training Camp

The first place we found was the Y.M.C.A. refreshment hut, and we quite surprised the attendants with the orders that we give for breakfast.  They were quite amused to watch us having an ordinary meal, which they thought was quite enough for four of five Tommies. Coming back from the Y.M.C.A. we turned to and made our sleeping quarters as comfortable as possible.  Next day being Sunday most of the boys went for a tour of inspection round the villages, where we found many item to interest us.  We hope to have another look round later on, but for the present we have to go to hard graft, and get ourselves fit for the job that we came over to do.  We recognise since speaking to thousands that have come back from the frond what a task it is, but complete victory we want and complete victory we are sure to get, cost what it may.”*

Card sent back from Malcolm Shepherd  to his family from Salisbury, the village near Lark Hill where he was stationed.

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*1916 'BOYS OF THE 34th.', The Maitland Weekly Mercury(NSW : 1894 - 1931), 30 December, p. 10, viewed 16 November, 2014,http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article128039051

  

Military Monday - More Treasures from Aunty Glad's Suitcase

Aunty Glad's Suitcase

This blog continues on with the story of Malcolm Micheal Shepherd's journey with the 30th and 34th Battalion on the ship Hororata, from Sydney to England, told through they eyes of Corporal Crossingham and illustrated with pictures and postcards from Aunty Glad's Suitcase.

Corporal Crossingham continues with his dry humour, describing visiting the different ports, the joys of being able to buy fresh fruit, along with tales of some very dubious meals on board the ship. As his story continues, you begin to feel a little of their sense of uneasiness of what lies in the future for them, their relief at not being based in the dessert and the impact of their first sight of Gilbralta.

Continuing Corporal Crossingham's Story:

"May 24 –Arrived at Colombo and here we were allowed to go ashore.  Had a route march, and were taken out to the Garrison Barracks where we could purchase any amount of fruit at reasonable prices.  Pineapples only cost 3d a piece, coconuts 3 for 6d, bananas, 1 /- per bunch of anything from 50 t up to 100.  The Y.M.C.A. had a refreshment stall there where one could get cakes 1d each, soft drinks 2d, tea, coffee or cocoa 1d per pot, cold boiled eggs 1d each, and sandwiches 2d. 

 We were allowed to have one beer there, and to make sure we go no more we were issued with tickets which cost 3d without which we were not supposed to get a drink at all, but the boys soon found out that “where there’s a will there’s a way”, with the result that we all had a merry time.  It was very interesting to watch the coolies at work.  They will do almost anything for money.  They are very good workers, and especially when there is a rope end handy.  It was very laughable to watch them having their meals, which consisted of boiled rice with liquid curry poured over it, served out to them on palm leaves, cut into small squares about 12 inches by 12 inches.  Once a day they get a banana as an extra.

Malcolm Shepherd (LHS) and fellow soldiers

May 26 – Left Colombo, when the coolies became very excited, and shouted “good-bye” till they were quite hoarse.

June 1 – Great excitement caused by the announcement that there was a plum duff for dinner  But the shock when it came, I am quite satisfied all our boys do not suffer with a weak heart.  A man dare not show his head above the edge of the table for fear he would draw the fire on himself and when the pieces began to fly they rattled on the ship’s side like bottles breaking on a brick wall.  Someone suggested praying for it, but he was ruled out of order, as we decided it was past redemption

June 3 – Sunday morning. Attended church parade.  Sighted land at noon.  Passed the Bay of Aden on the Arabian Coast on the starboard side and the African Coast on the port. Great interest was shown by the boys watching thousands of porpoises playing about Aden.

June 4 – Sighted a small town called Monkka, which, I was told, was famous for coffee making.

June 5 – passed the Twelve Apostles which is a group of 12 rocks rising up out of the sea.

June 8 – Caught our first glimpse of the much talked of Egypt at 8 a.m.

June 9 – Anchored in Port Suez. At 2 p.m. weighed anchor and entered Suez Canal.  I am told that all troops that came over before us were allowed ashore to strength their legs, but for some reason or other we were not allowed to do so.  It was very interesting going through the Canal.  It is well guarded day and night.  Here and there in isolated spots one can see a small patch of grass struggling for life, or else a few reeds growing on the edge of the canal.  With that exception all one could see was one long strength of sand, white and glistening with camps of troops dotted here and there over the desert.  No one was more pleased that I when we were told that we had to proceed to Alexandria.  The sight of that vast stretch of sand and the temperature was quite sufficient for me.  All the boys who had the bad luck to be stationed there have the sympathy of every one on board our boat.  The Canal is reckoned to be 34 miles long and takes 16 hours to do a trip through, as boats are not allowed to travel any faster than 5 miles per hour on account of the was doing damage to the banks.  Leaving the Canal we came along to Port Said, arriving there about 7.30 am. Port Said presents a very busy scene by what one can see from the boat.  It is a hurry and scurry, small pleasure boats rowing about everywhere.

June 11 – Leaving Port Said we went on to Alexandria.  As soon as we left Port we were ordered to don life belts and were never without them till we arrived at Plymouth.  They were worn all day, and even slept in them.  It was a very queer sensation to wake up the first morning and find a life belt hanging to one’s neck by a piece of tape.  It made one feel as if one had been having a night out, and did not remember what had taken place before retiring.

June 12 – Arrived in Alexandria, which looks similar to Port Said, the only difference being that the buildings do not seem to be so close together, and it is cleaner in appearances.  We were now formed up and marched off the Hororata and around to the Aragon, which had been waiting for us for some days.  There were already about 700 troops on board from Egypt.  When on board the Hororata we were praying for a change of boats.  But what a change it was when we did get it.  We simply wished we were back on board the old home once more.  For we were out of the frying pan into the fire.  We were packed like sardines in a tine and no room for all at that.  It was a good job for us that we did not have a very long time to put in before getting to our journey’s end.  It was very seldom that we got bread that was not sour, and not too much of it either.  The Aragon is a fine boat in appearance, but for tucker and accommodation it has a lot to pull up.  We left Alexandria on the 13^th.

June 14 – Passed the Island of Crete at 2 a.m when we were picked up by a new escort.

June 15 – Passed along the coast of Greece following in the wake of our escort.

June 17 – Arrived at the great fortified rock, Gibraltar.  One has only to glance at with its guns bristling from every nook and crevice, and it will be realized what an impregnable barrier it really forms.  Coming in from the sea all one can see is a great bare rock rising up out of the sea with a few guns mounted here and there.  But when the boat comes around the Rock to the entrance and one gets a rear view it downs on one that there is danger behind that great rugged rock." *

Post Card from Aunty Glad's suitcase - Gibraltar

This must have been a formidable sight to the young Malcolm Michael Shepherd, the young "carrier" from the small country town of Braidwood.  You can only imagine the feeling of the unknown and foreboding these young soldiers were experiencing.  

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 *1916 'BOYS OF THE 34th.', The Maitland Weekly Mercury(NSW : 1894 - 1931), 30 December, p. 10, viewed 16 November, 2014,http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article128039051

Trans Tasman ANZAC Day Blog Challenge - 2014 - Malcolm Michael (Mack) Shepherd

Malcolm Michael Shepherd 

ANZAC day is almost here, and this blog is my contribution to the Trans Tasman ANZAC Blog Challenge that is run each year by Kintalk.  This challenge provides an opportunity to relate family stories that are linked with the ANZAC's and Australian and New Zealand military history. This year I would like to write about by grandfather Malcolm Michael Shepherd.

Mack's Dog Tags

Mack Shepherd (as he fondly was known) the second son of Lynn Shepherd (III) and Annie McDonald was born on 29 September 1892, in Braidwood, NSW Australia.  Mack grew up on the family property on Araluen Road, in the Braidwood District.  Prior to enlisting in the army he worked with his older brother Angus in his father's carrying business transporting goods from Braidwood to Nelligen and Braidwood to Goulburn.

Mack enlisted in the 30th Infantry Battalion on the 31  January 1916.  His enlistment number 3315. His Military record describes a tall young man of 6ft 2 inches, with fair hair, fresh complexion and grey eyes. 

Lark Hill Military Base

He was part of the 7th Reinforcement of the 30th Infantry Battalion and on the 2 May 1916 his division left Australia on the HMAT Hororata bound for the Europe via Suez and then on to Lark Hill Military Base, Salisbury, England.  From here he was transferred to North Africa to join the 30th Battalion before finally being shipped to the Front in France.

For the next two years Mack served as a stretcher bearer on the battle line in France, until 8 August 1918 when he was wounded while serving on the front line.  He received a gunshot wound in his forearm. He was transferred from the front line to the Military Hospital at Camiers. From here he was transferred to Wymouth Military Hospital to recover. The war was close to an end and Mack was shipped back to Australia on the 27 November 1918.

Annie and Lynn Shepherd were relieved to have their son return from Europe, their first son Angus John Shepherd, who had enlisted in the 3rd Division of the 33rd Battalion stayed on in France after the war for another year, enlisting with the War Graves Division.

As the local paper reported, the community paid its respect to Private Shepherd and welcomed him home with considerable pomp and ceremony.

Malcolm Shepherd settled back into the carrier business, assisting his father and then establishing his own business with a bullock team of his home.  He worked mainly carting logs after they were felled to the sawmills around the south coast.

On the 29th September 1923, at St Andrew's Church, Goulburn, he married Christina Lee, the daughter George  Lee and Catherine McGregor.   Their start of married life was overshadowed by the loss of their first child Muriel in 1924, however, their family soon expanded with the birth of Malcolm in 1926, Colin in 1928 and Nancy in 1930. It seemed that Mack had been able to move on from the trauma of the Western Front and settle into family life with his own thriving business.  However, this was not to be.

Braidwood Dispatch, 13th March 1931,

Serious Accident
A telegram was received by Mrs. Lynn Shepherd of Braidwood on Wednesday announcing that her son Mac Shepherd had met with a serious accident that day as a result of which he was lying in a serious condition in Moruya Hospital. Mac and his brother Angus were carting timber at the time. There were no particulars as to how the accident happened.  Mrs Shepherd went by car down to Moruya that same afternoon.

Mack Shepherd had been injured seriously when a tree fell on his head while he was working in the bush.  He spent considerable time in hospital and then convalesced at home, however his health did not improve and early in the following year (6 January 1932) he passed away leaving his young wife, Tina and three children. Family letters describe Mack as a quiet kind and hard working family man.  A man who experienced much in his short life.

I recently visited the small town of Braidwood and took the opportunity to visit the local war memorial, to pay my respects to the grandfather that I never knew.

War Memorial - Braidwood

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Resources:
National Archives, Army - World War I - 1914-1918,  http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/explore/defence/service-records/army-wwi.aspx
Trove:
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article99020452
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article119236706
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article119272300
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16761687

Friday's Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge" - D is for "Dog Tags"

Well it is the end of the week and as promised here my next post in Friday's Family History through the Alphabet Challenge which is my attempt to complete the Gouldgenealogy Challenge,  Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge.

With the first three letters,"A","B", and "C" ticked off, it is time to tackle "D".  Again I wracked my brain for something that I had used to assist in the research of my family tree that started with D.  Then it came to me "Dog Tag" or as it was originally called in Australia "Identification Tag".

"Dog Tags" is the informal name for identification tags that are worn by armed service personnel.  The primary use for the tag through history has been for the identification of the dead and wounded, and advice of essential basic medical information such as blood type and inoculation history and relevant religion.  The term "Dog Tag" is an American term and wasn't used in Australia until around the time of the Vietnam War.*

The first conflict that records the use of "dog tags" or identification tags was the Boer War of (1899-1902).  The Australian and British forces were issued with a strip of tape that was to be carried in the pocket of their tunic to assist with identification if they were wounded or killed during battle. It was found that this tag was not always carried and from 1906 the troops were issued with tin disks that had their details stamped into them.  This practice was continued for the troops in WWI, with soldiers issued with two fibreboard discs, one to remain with the body, the other to go with the soldiers belongings when they were sent home.*

Identification Tags - Malcolm Michael Shepherd WWI

 It was found that the fibre board discs tended to rot in wet conditions so by the time of WWII the discs were made of metal and the cotton tape which hung around the neck was replaced by leather thong, or metal chain that wouldn't disintegrate in the extreme weather conditions of jungle warfare.*

Now, you may ask how do these tags assist you with your family research?  If like me you are lucky enough to inherit or have access to your father, grandfather, uncle, or great uncle's identification tags you can use the information on them to trace all the details of their involvement in the relevant military conflict.

 The tags of my grandfather Malcolm Michael Shepherd, provide me with the following details: his fathers name, religion, the town he came from and his service number and battalion.  From this information I am able to access the complete digital copy of his military record.   This information can be found on the Search Page of the Australian War Memorial Web Page.

Inserting your ancestors service number and name into the search boxes will enable to access to a digital copy of their complete military record which can be downloaded or if you prefer you can for a fee order a copy to be sent to you.

These records hold a mine of information, which can include: height, hair colour, next of kin, your ancestors signature when he signed up, the name of the ship they embarked on, a complete record of where he was stationed during the war, if he was wounded, if they went AWOL, the medals they received, the name of the ship they returned to Australia on and any correspondence that was written to family or from family after the war.

 I have accessed a number of  our family's members military records and have to say, besides being extremely interesting, they have helped me solve a number of family history puzzles.  One of my husbands family members had met and married a lady he met in England at the end of the war.  In his ditigal record I found: was record of the marriage, and a letter from his commander giving him permission to marry. Another record that amused me was for one of my great uncles who was a bit of a larrikin. His report showed he was up on charges for stealing a crate of beer and that he received the penalty of being confined to barracks for a month for this crime.

So if you are lucky enough to have or can access your ancestors identity tags or "dog tags" make use of them and they will allow you to uncover the story of their military involvement and give you a better understanding of some of the hardships they endured.

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*  Australian War Memorial Encyclopedia,  http://www.awm.gov.au/encyclopedia/dog_tags.asp, viewed 12/1/13.

Follow Friday - An accumulation of my weekly research - 3

Only Robinson Crusoe had everything done by Friday - Author Unknown

Oh yes Friday is here again!!! and as usual, there are a lot of things on my to do list that have not been ticked off!! (Hence my opening quote), I am definitely not Robinson Crusoe!!!

I did manage to finish my story on my grandmother Eliza Hazel Palin and have to reflect that writing these short histories of my female ancestors is taking longer that I thought. I have found that I am getting caught up in the stories of their times and the events they lived through.  What is becoming even more obvious to me is the huge holes in their stories, all that information that has been lost along the way.  It makes me wish I had taken more time years ago to gather the stories while there were people around to tell them.  All very well in hindsight you might say.

My biggest project this week has been reading and learning about the online application called Evernote.  So far I am quite impressed with its different applications and plan to write next week on how it can be a useful tool for the genealogy research.  If you are interested in checking this application it can be downloaded from http://evernote.com/.

Earlier this week I did get sidetracked researching one of my husbands great uncles that fought in WWI, so this week I will share with you a few useful sights if you are planning to research a member of your family that fought in the Great War.

The Australian War Memorial; http://www.awm.gov.au/

Role of Honour: Search site http://www.awm.gov.au/research/people/roll_of_honour/

ANZAC's Diaries: http://www.anzacwebsites.com/gallipoli/diaries.htm

The ANZACS: http://www.lighthorse.org.au/

Gallipoli and the Anzacs: http://www.anzacsite.gov.au/

Indigenous Australians at War: http://www.aiatsis.gov.au/collections/exhibitions/iaaw/home.html

The Australian Light Horse Association:  http://www.lighthorse.org.au/

Australian at War: http://www.australiansatwar.gov.au/default.html

National Archives: Army WWI: http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/explore/defence/service-records/army-wwi.aspx

Australian WWI Nurses:
http://www.travel-nurse-information-australia.com/World-War-1-Nurses.html