Bandsman Vosti's Diaries, 1917-1920

John Vosti is the father of a large family living in Ascot Vale during the Great War.   In 1917 he is working at the Cordite Factory, Maribyrnong, and playing with the Essendon City Council Band.  His eldest son, Les, is in France with the AIF as a bandsman/stretcher-bearer.

John Vosti’s diaries, covering 1917 to 1920, give a detailed account of  the daily life of a working family caught up in the struggle of a nation at war. Anxiously awaiting news from their soldier son, they participate in pro-Conscription rallies and patriotic events.  At the war’s end the struggle continues with industrial disputes affecting their jobs, while the Spanish flu epidemic rages through the district.

These unique diaries offer a special insight into the life of an ordinary working family in a difficult period in Australia’s history.

You can get a copy here  or here.

Pte Simonsen of the 6th Field Ambulance

James Simonsen of Ascot Vale enlisted with the AIF in May 1915, and spent some time on Gallipoli and in Egypt before moving on to France. He embarked with the 6th Field Ambulance, later transferring to the 12th Field Ambulance.  After the war James returned to work at the Cordite Factory, Maribyrnong, where he had been apprenticed before the war.  Grandson Jim Rowley tells James' story here.

The Roll of Honour for the Cordite Factory is now stored at Melbourne's Living Museum of the West.  Many of themen listed on the board lived in Ascot Vale, across the river from the Factory.

The board has some incredibly detailed wood carving.