Tulloch Yuille and the Flemington Presbyterian Church

Flemington-Kensington Church News, courtesy of the Reverend Phillip Court.

In 1916 the Presbyterian Church in Norwood St, Flemington called Alexander Tulloch Yuille to serve their community.  He found them distressed by the destruction being wrought on the young men of their community, and he picked up a heavy load to minister until the war had ended and the living had returned.  One of the means he used to both comfort his parishioners and reach out to the absent part of his congregation was a tiny newsletter - the Flemington-Kensington Church News.  The tiny bound volume of newsletters pictured above was the only one to survive an arsonist's fire in later decades.   The newsletters were sent to the boys away at the war as well as to those at home, and in this way he supported the community in their sorrow.  You can read more about Tulloch Yuille's time in Flemington on the Empire Called website.

Anzac Remembrance at Flemington Primary School, 2015

The poppy wreath created by the children of Flemington Primary School as the names from the School Roll of Honour were read out.

The school Roll of Honour.

A Gallipoli Oak tree was planted by The Hon Adam Bandt, MHR, The Hon Danny Pearson, MLA, and Dr Charlotte Smith, Director, National Trust.

The children at Flemington Primary School today participated in a solemn but heart-warming ceremony to remember past pupils of the school who had served in the Great War.  The children had researched names from the board or from their family, and also Attaturk Kemal. The research was displayed on posters in the school hall, or as a slide show during the ceremony in the hall.   The school choir, orchestra and string ensemble performed for the pupils and guests. 

Moonee Valley Mayor gave the Welcome to Country.  Captain Keith Wolahan  (retired) of the Australian Army Special Services, gave a simple but moving address about what Anzac Day meant to him.  Danny Pearson, MLA, made a presentation to the school which acknowledged the special relationship which now exists between Australia and Turkey.  A student leader read the poem In Flanders Fields.

Adam Bandt laid a wreath by the Roll of Honour, then as the school Principal, Mrs Leslie McCarthy, read each name from the roll, together with their occupations and the street in which they had lived, the childen and a handful of relatives of some of the servicemen, placed a poppy in the wreath.

Andrew Seymon of the Flemington-Kensington RSL read the Ode, followed by a minute's silence.  Two students played the Last Post.

After the school orchestra played the National Anthem, guests and students filed outside to see the planting of a commemorative Gallipoli Oak Tree.  

You can locate a record of each of the names on the Roll of Honour on the Empire Called and I Answered website.

Flemington-Kensington Presbyterian Church

Courtesy of The Reverend Phillip Court, St Stephens Presbyterian Church, Flemington.

A very lucky find is a photograph of the Honour Boards installed in the Flemington-Kensington Presbyterian Church in 1917.  Follow the link to discover who these young men were.

Flemington-Kensington Presbyterian Church

This is the former Flemington Presbyterian Church in Norwood St, Newmarket, which was burnt to the ground in 1970. The site is currently occupied by St Stephen's Presbyterian Church, which uses the old Sunday School building, just visible in the photo at the back of the church.

The photo was taken in 1943 by Alan Elliott, and located in Trove by the Organ Historical Trust of Australia.  

 I was hoping to get a photograph of the WW1 Honour Roll, but missed it by 43 years. If anyone just happens to have a photo (or transcript) of the Roll of Honour, which was a very large one, I understand, I would love to hear from you. Also if you have relatives who served who were associated with the church before the war. So far I know that Gus Stelling and Roy Easton were members of that congregation.
 

Diary of a native of Flemington

Facsimile of Allen Allsop's diary on the FromThePage website

A transcription project from FromThePage includes the war diary of a young man from Mosman, NSW, Wilfred John Allan Allsop, who served with the 8th Field Ambulance.  Allan, as he was known, was born in Flemington, Victoria and the front pages of his diaries include addresses for friends and relatives in Kensington and Essendon.   If you like this kind of work, you might like to volunteer to transcribe this or other handwritten works.  There are a number of transcription projects being organised in Mosman.