The War Precautions Act 1914 increased the regulatory scope of the Government of Australia for the duration of the First World War. This act allowed the Governor-General to make regulations to secure public safety and defend the Commonwealth. And while it’s certainly worded like typical legislation, the regulations refer to local place names and even […]
I won’t pretend to know what the troops thought as they left Pinkenba, Queensland in September 1914 or when they left Albany, Western Australia in November 1914 but I’m fairly certain many had thoughts of home on 25 December 1914. Most of the Australian men who joined the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) in August 1914 […]
The more I research First World War records, the more I realise that many connections can be made today to one hundred year old material. An article by Desmond Crump about Private Archibald James Marshall, published on State Library of Queensland’s blog in August 2014, flagged the fact that Queensland State Archives may also hold […]
This blog post is part of a series of essays commissioned by Queensland State Archives and written by historian Dr Murray Johnson. Before the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, German migrants were held in high esteem for their industriousness and agricultural skills. Successive Queensland governments actively encouraged German immigrants, who came to […]
Government records are often seen as dry and bureaucratic, but can be a treasure-trove of deeply personal events and stories. One such discovery was made in the correspondence files of the Chief Secretary’s Department. Mrs Mary Bell, the wife of J E Bell from Jericho, writes to our Premier T J Ryan in September 1914. […]
The first convoy of Australian Imperial Force (AIF) and New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was remembered as part of the Anzac Centenary commemorations on Saturday 1 November 2014 in Albany, Western Australia. This first convoy included a contingent from Queensland which embarked from Pinkenba in September 1914. This departure happened without fanfare. Police Department correspondence […]
Discovering archival records can throw up as many questions as answers. When staff from the Community and Personal Histories section (Department of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islander and Multicultural Affairs) located and indexed aboriginal census returns we knew this to be a treasure trove of information, but the questions started: Were these stand alone lists […]
One of the fascinating and unexpected aspects of exploring our First World War records is discovering different types of fund-raising events no longer seen today. One that caught my eye was a ‘motor gymkhana’. The Automobile Club of Queensland held a Patriotic Motor Gymkhana on 10 October 1914 with the Motor Cycle Club and the […]
Without accident or injury to person, horse or property: On 26 September 1914, John Dunn, Sub-inspector from the Traffic Office, Queensland Police Department penned these words in a report to his superiors. The words describe the success of the police involvement during the embarkation of the Queensland Quota of the Australian Expeditionary Force from Pinkenba. […]
I was recently in the company of a fifteen year old boy at a friend’s party. He’s tall and strong and obviously loves sport as he gravitated to the backyard tennis game as soon as he arrived. He played gently with the preschoolers but with vigour and intent against older opponents – particularly the middle […]