A get-together with the boys

The Morgan brothers, from left Cecil, Leslie, Weldon and Ernest.

This family portrait shows Mr and Mrs W J Morgan of 11 Robb Street, Essendon, with their four sons who enlisted in the AIF.  The AWM catalogue dates the photo at circa June 1915, but there is a problem with that date.  Two of the brothers enlisted and departed in 1914, another in 1915, and the fourth in 1916.  In June 1915 at least one of the brothers was not yet in uniform.  It can't have been taken after the war, because one of the brothers, Weldon, did not return.  So when did the opportunity arise for this gathering?

Reports in Melbourne newspapers reveal that the Morgan parents had made a trip to England, returning in December 1917.

"Mr. W. J. Morgan, of Cadbury Bros. Limited, who is shortly leaving for London, was the guest of the Victorian Confectionary Importers' Association at a special meeting yesterday. On behalf of the members, Mr. A. D. Price presented Mr. Morgan with a letter, signed by all the members, expressing their appreciation of his services and their goodwill, also a smoker's outfit. Mr. Morgan has four sons fighting at the front, and he and Mrs. Morgan are leaving for London to be near them".  
The Argus 31 March 1917 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1607569


"Mr. and Mrs. W J. Morgan, of 11 Robb street, Essendon, have recently returned from England, where they met their four sons, who are on active service. Since arriving in Australia they received advice that their youngest son, Ernest of the 7th Battalion, had been wounded on October 4th. He is improving. They have just learned that Private Leslie Morgan, of the 8th Battalion, is being returned, and will probably arrive by the end of the year. The other two brothers are with the forces in France".
The Essendon Gazette, 20 Dec 1917 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article74604664

Looking at the brothers' service records, there seems to have been a very brief window of opportunity for this reunion to have taken place, when all of the brothers were in England - between 30 June 1917 and 4 July 1917.  All of them were in the vicinity of London.  On 5 July  Weldon Morgan proceeded overseas to France, and was killed in action on 4 October 1917.  It was not until the end of December that the authorities advised his next of kin of his death, so that when the news item appeared, his parents had not yet been told that Weldon was killed on the same date as his brother Ernest was wounded.


While it seems incredible that civilians were making their way to the UK to pay visits to relatives in the face of hostile events at sea, it appears that they did.  They departed on passenger vessels whose departure dates were listed in the daily metropolitan newspapers.

Corporal George Nelson of Kensington

George Nelson, courtesy of Gayle Murray.

One of three brothers who enlisted, George was the only one to return to his home in Kensington. In this portrait he is seen wearing his Military Medal, Corporal's stripe and Mortar Battery badge.  Read Rod Martin's account of George Nelson and the 6th Light Trench Mortar Battery in action, and George's Military Medal won at Bullecourt in 1917.

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.

Ivers of 1 Divisional Ammunition Column

Australian War Memorial Collection.  EOO733

Driver Sydney John Ivers of Ascot Vale worked in a mule train like this one, carrying ammunition to the guns on the front lines.  He received a wound from an exploding shell in Belgium in October 1917 and was evacuated to England.  The injury to his hand resulted in some fingers being amputated, but his problems did not end there.   See Rod Martin's story of his service here.

Invitation to a booklaunch

John Vosti is the father of a large family living in the western suburbs of Melbourne 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.

Moonee Valley Brass, the former Essendon City Brass Band, will very kindly launch this book at a concert to be held at the Gannawarra Centre, 132 Keilor Rd, Essendon North, on Saturday 5 May at 2.30 pm.  Cost $10 per adult, $6 concession.

All welcome.

With gleaming teeth, Private Smith boards the Aeneas, 1916

Troops board HMAT Aeneas at Port Melbourne on 3 October 1916.

Fresh from the dentist's chair, Private Walter George Smith was amongst the troops boarding HMAT Aeneas at Port Melbourne on 3 October 1916.  Rod Martin tells the story of Walter's service in the 106, and later the 118 Howitzer Battery, and the role of the batteries in the last battles of the war.  Walter was wounded by shell fragments in the shoulder and head not long before the Armistice, so his war did not end with the Peace.  Read his story here.

Researching Australian Servicemen and Women of the Great War

In 2015 Australia will commemorate the centenary of the Great War.    To aid research on your family members, or names commemorated on district memorials, the RHSV will hold a workshop
on Tuesday 17th April 1.30 to 4 pm at RHSV Headquarters, 239 A’Beckett Street, Melbourne.

Presenters will be:

Lenore Frost “Official and unofficial sources”
An RHSV Volunteer  “WW1 holdings in the RHSV collection”
Andrew Kilsby     “The use of Unit War Diaries at the AWM”.

Attendees will receive a Bibliography of sources and RHSV holdings. 

Cost: $20.00 for members, $30.00 for non-members
Bookings essential:  phone 9326 9288 or email office@historyvictoria.org.au