From Cables to Commemoration:
THE GOLD COAST HOME FRONT 1914 –1918
Proudly supported by
This project is proudly supported by the Queensland Government.
Cover image:
Group of people at Mudgeeraba
Railway Station, circa June 1917.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
2
CONTENTS
Introduction5
Recruitment and training 8
The Southport Cable Station and the Pacific Cable
23
Life at home during the war 26
Repatriation and convalescence at home
34
An unquiet peace
41
End notes
60
Acknowledgements
67
3
Peace Day marching band with soldiers and
nurses looking on, Mudgeeraba, circa 1919.
Image courtesy of Jack Rudd.
4
Introduction
This booklet and accompanying
exhibition, titled From Cables to
Commemoration: the Gold Coast
home front 1914 – 1918, explores
the effect of World War I on the Gold
Coast. World War I, also known as the
Great War, had a profound impact
on all of Australia, and while there
are many national stories about the
war, there are also those particular to
individual communities. From Cables to
Commemoration: the Gold Coast home
front 1914 – 1918 looks at some of
the key themes and stories which
emerged from this tumultuous part of
the city’s history.
On 28 June 1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to
the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and his wife, Sophie,
were assassinated by Serbian separatists while being
conveyed in their open car through the streets of
Sarajevo. No-one that day could have foreseen that the
event would precipitate World War I. Political tensions
had been building in Europe ever since 27 German
kingdoms, principalities and other small states unified
in 1871 into the German Empire under Kaiser Wilhelm I.
This new German state was highly industrialised and
had ambitions for expanding its territory and power.
It allied with the old Austro-Hungarian Empire in
1879, built up its military and naval might, and began
acquiring colonies in Africa, China and the Pacific.
Under Wilhelm’s grandson, Kaiser Wilhelm II, Germany
became increasingly aggressive, and this inevitably led
to conflict with the other great global power of the day,
the British Empire. Ferdinand’s assassination sparked a
diplomatic crisis that triggered a major conflict between
these superpowers and their respective allies.
World War I commenced on 28 July 1914 and lasted
until 11 November 1918. The scale of this war was
unprecedented, and involved all the major European
powers, as well as the Turkish Ottoman Empire, Japan
and eventually the United States of America. More
than 70 million military personnel were mobilised and
over 9 million combatants and 7 million civilians died
as a result of the war.1 As a loyal member of the British
Empire, Australia was swept into the conflict. Indeed,
proportionally Australia was to commit, and lose, more
young men than any other Commonwealth country.
Between 1914 and 1918 the Australian population stood
at approximately 4.9 million, and a total of around
420,000 people enlisted for service, representing
38.7 per cent of the male population aged between
18 and 44.2 Of those who enlisted, it has been
estimated that more than 60,000 were killed and
156,000 were wounded, gassed, or taken prisoner.3 No
previous or subsequent war has made such an impact,
and across the nation communities large and small
struggled to deal with the war and its after effects.
Among those communities was Queensland’s Gold
Coast, then known as the South Coast. In this period
it was a lightly settled, relatively prosperous rural
district which had grown on the back of timber-getting,
5
Soldiers and residents on the platform of
West Burleigh Railway Station, Queensland,
circa 1916, Marriott family, photographer.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries
Local Studies Collection.
6
sugarcane, dairying and mixed farming. The South
Coast Railway, completed in 1903, linked a number of
principal hinterland centres (Nerang, Beenleigh and
Mudgeeraba), coastal towns (Southport, Coolangatta,
Burleigh Heads and Currumbin), as well as various
smaller villages and farms, to Brisbane and the New
South Wales border. While the railway had been built
primarily to boost rural production, it also brought in
tourists. The region’s main drawcard were its beaches
which were becoming popular holiday destinations for
Brisbane people as well as farming and coal mining
families living out west in the Ipswich and Darling
Downs areas. During the years of World War 1, the
railway served to transport enlisted men from the
South Coast area to recruitment centres in Brisbane,
predominantly at Enoggera Barracks. The railway also
carried sick and injured men back to their families or to
convalescent facilities which had been established on
the coast.
Letter to Mr D. Denham, Premier of Queensland from LieutenantGovernor of Queensland, Arthur Morgan relaying the telegraphic
message from the Governor General of Australia about war
breaking out between Great Britain and Germany, 5 August 1914.
Queensland State Archives Item ID2120791, Batch file.
The Gold Coast also played a crucial role in
telegraphic communications with the Southport
Cable Station sending and receiving messages for
the Commonwealth. The war stirred up issues not
previously encountered in the local community,
including ostracism of the German community – a group
which had played a crucial role in the development of
the district since non-Indigenous settlement began.
It removed many young men and women from their
families and livelihoods, some never returning. It
also brought a growing desire within the community
to both commemorate those who served in the war
and to avoid future conflicts. With the end of the war
came the terrible 1918 – 19 global influenza pandemic
which had a particularly local impact; the closure of the
Queensland/New South Wales border and the growth
of Coolangatta as a township.
7
View of Southport Recreation Reserve showing the Southport Drill Hall (building with curved roof), 1898.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Recruitment and training
When war was declared, Australia did not have the
large, full-time, professionally trained defence force
it does today. It had vast spaces to defend, a small
population and an economic depression resulting
from a series of droughts in the 1890s and early 1900s.
Australia could not afford more than a small regular
army supported by a large contingent of volunteers.
During peacetime the vast majority of soldiers were in
reserve units of the Citizens Military Force (also known
as the CMF or Militia). When needed Australian Imperial
Forces were formed, drawing on the CMF and the
broader population, to serve overseas.4 The Defence
Act 1884 provided for the establishment of rifle clubs
for the CMF to encourage rifle shooting throughout
the colony and as such, rifle clubs became important
for the defence of Australia. They were seen to be a
reserve of manpower that could be called upon should
any invasion occur. Rifle clubs were so important that
the Commonwealth supported the movement through
the provision of land for rifle ranges, training staff, rifles,
ammunition and targets. At the time of the outbreak of
war there were a number of local rifle clubs operating
in the South Coast region including the Nerang Rifle
8
Club (established 1891), the Ormeau-Pimpama Rifle
Club (established 1901), the Logan and Albert District
Rifle Club (established 1907), the Alberton Rifle Club
(established 1909) and the Coolangatta Rifle Club
(established 1913).
The Southport Drill Hall, established in 1890, was also
part of the Commonwealth commitment to developing
the citizen military units. Designed purely for military
purposes the function of the Drill Hall was to maximise
the safety and efficiency of personnel and their work
and to provide training facilities for the citizen forces.
Drill Halls were designed to a standard plan and were
erected at strategic points throughout the country
including locations near harbours and rivers. These
areas were deemed to require protection, particularly
as they might have afforded access to enemy warships.
The South Passage at Southport was selected as an
important site for defence, along with protection of the
river traffic between Southport and Brisbane.
From 1891 to 1901 the Drill Hall was used by Colonel
William Larther who was Officer-in-Charge of the
Moreton Regiment of the Queensland Defence Force.
Mudgeeraba Volunteer Defence Corps parade in Southport
Showgrounds, circa 1914. Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Alberton Rifle Club, circa 1913. Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
At the time, the purpose of the Regiment’s location was
to protect the overland telegraph line from Brisbane
to Southport. In 1901, the permanent staff, volunteers
and militia associated with the Southport Drill Hall were
absorbed into the Commonwealth Defence Force and
the Drill Hall was handed over to the Commonwealth.
During World War 1, the drill hall was used by the
Commonwealth Defence Force for military training
purposes, including training of the Volunteer Defence
Corps. A contingent from the Commonwealth Defence
Force based at Southport also guarded the Pacific
Cable Station at Southport during war time.
CMF (known as the Army Reserve after 1980) began to
decline in importance.
The CMF model remained in place until 1947 by which
time the Australian Army had fought in three major
wars: the Second Boer War (1899–1902) in South Africa,
World War I (1914–18), and World War II (1939–45). The
model had been inspired by the Australian experience
of the Second Boer War in South Africa, where the army
faced a highly mobile foe conducting a campaign of
guerrilla warfare under conditions similar to those back
home – large spaces, low population and little money.5
A standing regular army was then formed and the
The First Australian Imperial Force (1st AIF) was the main
overseas, or expeditionary, force of the Australian Army
during World War I. It was formed on 15 August 1914,
initially consisting of one infantry division and one light
horse brigade.6 The infantry division subsequently fought
at Gallipoli between April and December 1915. The AIF
was then expanded to five infantry divisions and three
light horse brigades by the time fighting began in France
and Belgium along the Western Front in March 1916. The
1st AIF also included the Australian Flying Corps (AFC)
which operated in the United Kingdom on the Western
Front and the Middle East. The AFC eventually became
the Royal Australian Air Force, while the rest of the 1st
AIF was disbanded between 1919 and 1921.
By the end of the war the AIF had gained the reputation
of being a well-trained and devastatingly effective
military force, playing a significant role in the eventual
Allied victory.7 Its soldiers, who became known as
‘Diggers’, were considered among the best fighters and
became central to the national Anzac legend. However,
9
Members of the Coomera District
Rifle Club, c. 1910.
Image courtesy of City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
10
this reputation came at a steep price with a casualty
rate among the highest of any army in the war. It also
masked a complex set of tensions and fractures around
the process of creating this force.
In the early years of the war there was great enthusiasm
for enlistment, which was accompanied by considerable
pomp, fanfare and national pride. Regional newspapers
reported enlistment successes as achievements to be
celebrated. When Miss E.M. Greer, a Southport resident,
was accepted into the military as a trained nurse it was
noted in the Brisbane Courier and special mention was
made of the considerable experience she had gained
in the Manchu Revolution of 1913.8 The Southport
School also took pride in their enlistment numbers. The
Brisbane Courier of December 1917 reported that the
schools honour role showed 250 enlistments and the
report was accompanied by an analysis which indicated
that 75 per cent of the eligible old boys of the school
had enlisted.9 Colourful recruitment drives extolling the
greatness of the British Empire and the need to defend
the motherland (Great Britain) drew in large numbers
of men from towns and rural areas to the enlistment
centres. The motivations for these men varied from a
desire to do their duty, seek travel and adventure, follow
family members and mates, to obtaining status and
regular employment. A small number also enlisted to
avoid paternity suits or criminal charges.
Initially the standards for enlistment for men were quite
high and rigorously enforced by examining officers.
In August 1914 men had to be 19–38 years of age,
with a minimum height of 5ft 6in (168 cm) and chest
measurement of 34 inches (86 cm).10 They also had to be
physically fit and have good teeth and eyesight.
Certificate of Medical Examination for Mudgeeraba man Hugh
Fulton, one of six brothers who volunteered for service, showing he
met the height requirements for service in 1914. National Archives
of Australia (NAA): B2455 Fulton, H.
Barriers to enlistment were set along racial and ethnic
lines. Germans were excluded, as well as anyone
who was not of European background. The war
occurred during the height of the White Australia
11
Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), Wedne
sday 23 December 1914, page 8
WHY
SHOULD
*>
THE
TO
Sir,-Becausu
?'
I
FIGHT
?
'?
EDITOR.
1 am
young,
strong, and
people ure asking why
r,in
not
helping in tho defence of the
\V,hat do the
mpire
y expect of mo ? I
nmarried
ead
many
"Courier"
e\ery
and
morning,
British and
their Allies do well
um
amongst tho first to glory in their
eeds of valour,
I
and
sing
"Rule,
ritannia," "It's a
Long
to
Way
Tip
rurj," and
"Sons
of tho Sea"
in
apeciation of their
victories
Common
sings of minc
aro
"Wero
giving ihe
rmans
all
they want,"
'We 11
and
ow
them how
to tight," and
"The
Ger
Us
won't
tako us on
1 al
again
"
s
emphasise tho "Wo"
and "Us
burel«, thebe unreas
onable
minded
people
't think I should volunteer
for o'live
vicc abroad
should
Why
I when
I
e
a
nice snug
billet and
can
live in
fort
and
enjoy
mvsclf out of -each of
t
shell ?
and
Australia
is not
likely
he attacked
so
British
long as the
the
en
y
the
'
keeps afloat,
mine
that
bravo
and
it
is
no
concern
lobing their
s
defending the
Empire, of
which
tralia
is
a
part
M5 mother
and
erb
will
not havo
to underg
the
o
lb
and
sufferings
of
the
Belgian
children
and
until
theso
travo
are
wiped out, and not even
then ii
brother and
joung
the other trainees
it
prevent
My brother was
silly
a
le ass
to
be
born
1894,
in
for as
a
ult ho
has
to
spend his Christmas
idays in uniform, under
active senrtco
itions,
assisting in the
protection of
bridges, water
supply, cable station,
macazines,
whilst I, who
was
born
earlier, am
j cars
oft to
tho seaside
joll> goo
a
d time , and if you would
to know
who
I am
just make
a
to tho Tweed,
Southport, Redcliffe,
other seaside resorts, when
you will
in my
mc
bathing togs parading the
12
h or displaying my
athletic
abilities
he
sea
By tho
wa«,
Mr
E
men
arc
“My brother was a silly little ass to
be born in 1894, for as a result he has
to spend his Christmas holidays in
uniform, under active service conditions, assisting in the protection
of our bridges, water supply, cable
station and magazines, whilst I, who
was born four years earlier, am off to
the seaside for a jolly good time; and if
you would care to know who I am just
make a visit to the Tweed, Southport,
Redcliff, and other seaside resorts
when you will spot me in my bathing
togs parading the beach…”
“Why Should I Fight?” Article from the Brisbane Courier,1914.12
Policy, which was the Federal Government’s strategy
to exclude all non-whites from participating in the
country’s development. Consequently many people
of Indigenous, Chinese, Japanese and other nonEuropean heritage were denied the right to defend
their communities. They were only able to serve if
deemed to be of substantial European descent and
largely white in appearance. During the first year of the
war approximately 33 percent of all volunteers were
rejected on health, bad character or racial grounds.11
As the war progressed, the mounting casualty rates and
stories of horror from the war led to lagging enlistment
rates. After 7,600 Australians were killed at Gallipoli,
and 50,000 perished at the European Western Front,
naïve enthusiasm for the war was steadily replaced by
heartbreak, questioning and cynicism.
In the face of declining recruitment, standards for
enlistment were relaxed. By June 1915 the age range
and minimum height requirements were altered to
18 - 45 years and 5ft 2in (157 cm) respectively, with
the minimum height being lowered again to 5ft (152
cm) in April 1917.13 Ethnic barriers were also relaxed,
with people of stronger non-European backgrounds
being admitted.14 These changes allowed previously
ineligible men to enlist, and a number of historians
have highlighted the proportionally significant role
played by Indigenous, Chinese-Australian and other
non-Europeans in the AIF.15 For example, a conservative
estimate of 1000 Indigenous Australians fought for the
British Empire in World War I. At the outbreak of the
war in 1914 it is estimated that there were less than 1000
Chinese Australian men of fighting age in Australia, and
of these about 198 managed
to enlist.16
Another measure considered for boosting recruitment
was compulsory military service, or conscription. The
Military Service Referendum Act 1916 and the War
Precautions (Military Service Referendum) Regulations
1917 were both contentious attempts by the Federal
Labor government of Prime Minister William (Billy)
Hughes to introduce compulsory war service. The
ensuing public debates during the referendums divided
Australian society on religious and political grounds.
The Queensland Government also adopted an anticonscription stance and went to the extent of guarding
the Government Printing Office with armed police to
prevent the Commonwealth Government censoring
anti-conscription material. The Federal Labor party itself
was divided by the issue, with Hughes’ faction splitting
away and merging with the Liberal Party to form the
Nationalist Party. Local government also responded.
Prior to the first conscription vote the Southport Shire
Council convened a public meeting to discuss the
referendum proposal.17 The conscription debates
polarised the Gold Coast as it did elsewhere. At the
1916 Southport Show, strong speeches in favour of
conscription were heard and the local counter argument
culminated in the formation of the Southport AntiConscription League in 1917. Its primary role was to
contribute money to the state-wide Anti-Conscription
Fighting Fund.18 Later, Southport voted 1005 yes to 647
no in favour of conscription19 although the Queensland
total was an overwhelming vote of
no to conscription.
The campaigns for and against conscription particularly
targeted the emotions and loyalties of women, who
voted in unprecedented numbers on the issue. In
the end both attempts to introduce conscription
were defeated. In light of the failed referendum,
recruiting committees, in particular women’s recruiting
committees, established branches across Queensland.
13
Military portrait of Alexander Laver in
uniform, First World War, circa 1915. Image
courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local
Studies Collection.
14
Red Cross volunteers and returned servicemen, Mudgeeraba, 1919.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
The Southport Women’s Recruiting Committee regularly
held meetings and rallies where patriotic films were
screened and appeals for new recruits were made.
Ultimately, Queensland contributed 57,705 enlistees.
Gold Coast recruits consisted of a mix of men and
women from farms and towns with varying levels of
education and resources. Some, like Alexander Laver,
son of prominent Mudgeeraba pioneers William and
Margaret Laver, was a farmer and possessed the riding
skills and financial means of joining the Light Horse.
Alexander enlisted when he was almost 24 years old.
The members of the Light Horse obtained higher
pay than the infantry but also had to supply and feed
their own horses until the horse was deemed suitable
for military purposes and had passed a medical
examination conducted by a veterinary officer.20
Example of a recruitment poster.
State Records of South Australia GR32/16/43 World War 1
recruitment and war effort posters - State War Council.
15
Dear Bill
Just a PC to let you know that I
have not forgotten you. I have (sic)
going to write to you several times
but really we have not much time
to write here. It has been raining
here this last day or so. A lot of our
company are isolated on account
of mumps. I am going to play in a
cricket match against a Melbourne
team selected by H Prumble. I
suppose it will be a days leather
hunting. I will write you a letter at
first opportunity.
Kindest regards Larry Healy”
Handmade postcard sent to Bill Rudd, Mudgeeraba from new recruit Larry
Healy of Nerang who was training at Seymour Camp, Victoria in 1917.
Seymour Camp, situated 105 kilometres from Melbourne, was established
as a major army base for training infantry battalions and the famous Light
Horse Regiments. Postcard courtesy of Jack Rudd.
16
Dear Mrs Rudd
Others, like Larry Healy, enlisted as ground infantry.
Larry, a saddler from Nerang, enlisted in December
1916. At 5ft 5in (165 cm) tall and requiring extensive
dental treatment21, Larry was probably accepted
for enlistment due to the relaxed recruitment entry
standards that had been implemented in the face of
declining enlistment.
Mrs Ada Rudd, part of the local Red Cross organisation,
wrote to Larry and a number of postcards he sent to
her survive. They are a small glimpse of the period Larry
spent in training at Seymour Camp, Victoria in 1917.
As I have not received any reply to
my last letter about a month ago
when I sent you my photo I have
concluded that your letter must have
gone astray and am just dropping
you a PC to make sure. I have had
several letters sent to me here that
I have not received the mail system
here being anyhow (sic). We have not
sailed yet but expect to go anytime
now. About 2000 sailed last week. I
will write a letter as soon as I can at
present I am awfully busy. Hoping to
hear from you before I leave.
Yours sincerely Larry Healy”
Postcard from Larry Healy sent to Mrs Rudd, 14 May 1917.
Postcard courtesy of Jack Rudd.
17
Composite photo of the Fulton brothers in military uniforms, circa 1919. Clockwise from the top John Fulton,
Thomas Fulton, Alexander Douglas Fulton, George Fulton centre; Hugh Fulton and William Cowan Fulton.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
18
Left to right: George Edward Millen, William James Millen and Robert John Millen. Images courtesy of Jack Rudd.
Some families saw their entire younger generation enlist
or volunteer for service in the armed forces. The Millen
family were based at ‘Sunnyvale’, Mudgeeraba, and in
Southport. The family consisted of George Whitfield
Millen and his wife, Sarah Jane (nee Anderson), and
their five children: William James, George Edward,
Robert John, Margaret Mary and Agnes Hay.22 All the
children contributed to the war effort, with the sisters
volunteering for local nursing services and all three boys
enlisting in the armed forces.
William James Millen was 22 when he enlisted in
November 1915. His brother, George Edward, was
19 when he enlisted in the AIF in 1915. The youngest
brother, Robert John, was 18 years old when he enlisted
in February 1916.
Agnes and Margaret Millen.
Image courtesy of Gold Coast & Hinterland Historical Museum.
19
Women who desired to enlist were accepted in
relatively small numbers as military nurses or, after
prolonged lobbying by the Red Cross, as members
of the Voluntary Aid Detachments (VADs), working
both in overseas hospitals and those in Australia. The
VADs mostly consisted of women who were trained in
first-aid and home nursing.23 They were not formally
trained nurses and worked more as orderlies providing
domestic and quasi-nursing duties in hospitals and
convalescent homes.
Portrait of Linda Gertrude Andrews in her nursing uniform,
1917. Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies
Collection.
20
There were limited places in the Australian Army
Nursing Service (AANS). Some women who were
unsuccessful with the ANNS travelled to England to join
Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Military Nursing Service
Reserve (QAIMNSR) which provided nursing services for
British Army hospitals.24 Others joined privately funded
nursing groups. Nurses of the AANS had to make their
own uniforms, drawing from a uniform allowance, and
so were free to tailor theirs to their own needs and
tastes. As a result there was a huge variety in nursing
uniforms during this period as there was no regulated
standard or central source of manufacture. The VADs
also experimented with their uniforms, sometimes
in reaction to institutional pressure to distinguish
themselves from the qualified nurses.
Among the nurses who worked overseas was Sister
Linda Gertrude Andrews. Born in 1893, she was the
daughter of George and Ellen Andrews, of ‘Bushleigh’,25
Southport. Sister Andrews was working as a nurse at
the Brisbane General Hospital in 1916, but was soon
motivated to join the war effort. At the age of 33,
she joined the Australian Army Nursing Service and
enlisted in the AIF in Brisbane on 2 June 1917.26 On 9th
June 1917 she left Sydney on the transport ship, RMS
Ladies of the local Red Cross organisation with soldiers.
Ada Rudd is 4th from the left. Image courtesy of Jack Rudd.
Ladies of the local Red Cross organisation.
Image courtesy of Jack Rudd.
Mooltan, as part of a contingent of 300 army nurses.
They arrived at Port Suez on the 19 July 1917 and
journeyed by train to Cairo and then on to Alexandria
before travelling by ship to Salonika, Greece. There she
joined nursing staff of the 60th British General Hospital,
which was attached to the British Salonika Force, where
she spent most of her war service. Apart from taking
one week of leave in the UK in December 1918, Sister
Andrews faced very challenging conditions during her
time in service. The nurses at Salonika worked mainly
in tent hospitals, enduring extreme summer heat
and winter cold, shortages of water, mosquitoes and
malaria, and tending large wards of mostly non-English
speakers.27 Like so many service personnel, Sister
Andrews contracted influenza, and was sick for a month
in October 2018 before returning to duty. As the war
began to wind down, nursing staff numbers began to
be reduced and Sister Andrews returned to Australia on
17th August, 1919. She continued her nursing career at
the Rosemount Military Hospital in Windsor, Brisbane,
as matron of the Ipswich Baby Clinic and in Townsville.28
After the death of her mother in 1928, she remained
close to and nursed her father in Southport until his
death in 1930.29
The nurses and VADs who worked locally included Ada
Rudd of Mudgeeraba, who was involved with the local
Red Cross organisation.
21
Pacific Cable Board network map, 1903. Johnson, George.
The All red line : the annals and aims of the Pacific cable
project / edited by George Johnson J. Hope Ottawa 1903.
22
The Southport Cable Station and the Pacific Cable
In 1902, at a cost of 2 million pounds, the Pacific Cable
linking Australia to Canada and Great Britain was
completed. While there were other undersea cables
for communication, construction of the Pacific Cable
was seen to be an important step for the security of
the British Empire during a time of military build-up in
Germany. The cable was a huge engineering feat for
its time, and as cartographers of the day traditionally
coloured British Empire member countries in red, the
route became known as the All Red Route or All Red
Line. The cable route linked Southport, Norfolk Island,
Fiji, Fanning Island, Vancouver and London with a
branch connected to New Zealand.
The cable arrived on the Gold Coast at Main Beach
on the ship Anglia in 1902. Preparations for the cable
landing included the establishment of a temporary
cable office on the corner of Heath Street and Brighton
Parade in Southport, construction of a small cable hut on
the beach and a deep trench for the cable through the
dunes of Narrowneck.30 The cable crossed the Nerang
River between the cable hut and the temporary office.
Later, the permanent Pacific Cable Station was
established in Bauer Street, Southport and the cable was
connected there. The cable station consisted of three
buildings constructed in the Queensland vernacular
style of weather board with corrugated iron roofing.
They were slightly elevated with wrap around verandahs
and ventilated gabled roofs. Until 1912, Southport was
the receiving station for all international messages into
Australia and played a crucial role in communication
throughout the British Empire.
Laying the Pacific Cable at Main Beach, 1902.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
In 1912, a cable from Auckland was extended to
Sydney and for a period after this, traffic for the
southern States went directly to Sydney from Auckland.
Southport continued to play a crucial role in relaying
telegraph traffic into Queensland though, including
official messages relating to World War 1 from
Melbourne, which was the official seat of the federal
23
Extract from Moreton district map showing the Pacific Cable
(noted as submarine cable on map) coming in to Southport.
Natural Resources and Mines, Queensland Government, 2 mile
AG1 series 1906 – 1915 — Moreton district API, licensed under
Creative Commons Attribution sourced on 13 October 2016.
24
Pacific Cable Station, Bauer Street, Southport, circa 1918.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
government at the time. During World War I security
of the Southport Cable Station was paramount. Mr
Ralph Johnston was the Officer-in-Charge of the Cable
Station during this time. He was a local pioneer, well
respected Southport citizen and Chairman of the
local Johnston and Freeman milling firm. In 1885 he
joined the Moreton Regiment and served as Captain
in “G” Company, receiving the Queen Victoria medal
in 1905 for long service.31 His military skills were honed
in local rifle clubs including the Southport Rifle Club
and he was a life member, patron and for many years
president of the Logan and Albert District Rifle Clubs
Union. A contingent of soldiers from the Southport
Drill Hall based Commonwealth Defence Force was
tasked with guarding the Pacific Cable Station at
Southport during World War 1. Despite its great cost
the telegraph network succeeded in its purpose; British
communications remained uninterrupted during the
First World War.
Cable Station Guards having tea, Southport, circa 1914.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Telegram to the Premier of Queensland from Joseph Cook,
Prime Minister of Australia, advising that official information
had been received that war has broken out with Germany,
5 August 1914.
Queensland State Archives, Digital Item ID 26715.
25
Life at home during the war
As a mostly rural district, the Gold Coast was able to
contribute to the war effort through rural production.
Its main products of timber, dairy, sugar and other
foodstuffs were all needed to support both the home
front and the imperial forces. Great Britain relied
heavily on its empire for raw materials and foodstuffs,
with British troops surviving on rations of tinned meat
and vegetable stew known as Maconochie, tinned
corned beef (bully beef), hard army biscuits made by
Huntley & Palmers, cheese, tea, jam, sugar, salt, rum
and condensed milk.32 Like their British counterparts,
Australian troops had a similar diet which included bully
beef, rice, jam, cocoa, tea, some bread and above all
hard tack, also known as “Anzac Wafer”, or “Anzac
Tile”33. These were made by Arnott’s and could last
a very long time. Although the civilian populations of
Europe and Great Britain suffered food shortages and
food rationing, this was not so evident in Australia
where most people still undertook some backyard
vegetable growing and livestock keeping. However
supporting the war and the national population were
tested during the early years of the war due to droughts
from 1911-16 which affected large parts of the country,
including the Gold Coast.
Other forms of support for troops came from the
YMCA, Red Cross and Australian Comfort Funds which
were the three official charitable organisations allowed
to accompany the troops overseas. The Australian
Red Cross primarily cared for the sick and wounded;
the Australian Comforts Fund offered morale building
gifts and articles of clothing like socks; and the YMCA
organised social and recreational material such as
books and games.34
The Australian Red Cross was formed nine days after the
declaration of war, and as historian Brian Rough notes:
26
From initial knitting circles, the scope
of Red Cross support expanded rapidly
to include teaching handcrafts to
convalescent soldiers, mending hospital
clothes and providing food and other
necessary supplies to local and overseas
military hospitals. So strong was the
mobilisation of Red Cross ‘kitchen ladies’
that in addition to providing food for the
Rosemount, Kangaroo Point and Lytton
military hospitals, they were also able to
supplement food to asylums, orphanages,
and public hospitals.” 35
The Red Cross also formed the Voluntary Aid
Detachments (VADs). VAD members worked mainly as
orderlies carrying out domestic duties such as cleaning
and helping with patient care. They were not employed
in military hospitals, except as ward and pantry maids;
rather, they worked in Red Cross convalescent and
rest homes, canteens, and on troop trains.36 The VAD
proved to be an invaluable resource on the Gold Coast.
To raise funds and provide comforts for the three official
aid organisations, a seemingly infinite number of local,
state and national schemes arose. These included
National Council of Women (which comprised 41 other
societies), the Queensland Soldier’s Comfort Fund,
the Babies of the Allies Clothing Society, the Women’s
Mutual Service Club, the Soldier’s Pastime Club, the
Queensland Patriotic Fund and the Christmas Box
Fund.37 Local organisations, like the Southport Sock
and Comfort Fund and the Mudgeeraba Patriotic Fund,
Ladies of the Red Cross, Mudgeeraba, circa 1917.
Image courtesy of Jack Rudd.
27
Article in the Brisbane Courier
regarding the establishement of the
Mudgeeraba Patriotic Fund, 1914.38
were branches of state-wide or national schemes.39 The
Courier Mail newspaper also ran its own comfort fund
and the Mudgeeraba Patriotic Fund, established in
September 1914, contributed regularly.
Collectively these funds covered all aspects of the war
crisis, including supporting wounded soldiers, funding
of motor ambulances, nurses, travelling kitchens, bands,
aeroplanes, and giving aid to the war-torn populations
of Europe.40
The social and economic value of such voluntary work
was considerable, and the Gold Coast was an active
contributor. Some of the initiatives were specifically
driven by men, such as the Tallebudgera Mens’ Auxilliary,
Tallebudgera and District Men’s Help Circle and the
Tallebudgera branch of the Oddfellows.41 However it
was in voluntary organisations that women made their
most significant contributions to the war effort nationally
and locally, for they played a critical role as organisers
and donors. In 1917, for instance, the women of
Tallebudgera were noted as contributing goods to the
Queensland Soldiers’ Comfort Fund as well as helping
with street collection for funds for erecting Schools of
Arts or libraries at the soldier settlements at Beerburrum,
28
Stanthorpe and Innisfail.42 Money and goods were
pledged by organisations as well as individuals, with the
South Coast Dairy Co., for example, being a particularly
active contributor to the Red Cross Kitchen for home
hospitals.43 Typical charity events included gift sales,
balls and concerts, such as the Southport School of Arts
concert held in 1918 in aid of the Comforts Fund.44 The
Southport School of Arts was also where the Southport
Show was held, and during the war the proceeds were
donated by the Show Society to the Red Cross and the
Southport Military Hospital.45
The importance of this charity work, as well as the
letters and postcards between families at home and
men and women serving, cannot be overstated. The
AIF soldiers were not as well-equipped or supported
as Australian soldiers today, and they faced abysmal
conditions at the warfronts in Europe and the Middle
East. They needed every bit of assistance from the
Australian community, however modest. A glimpse into
those conditions, and the significance of regular parcels
and letters, is given by an extract from a letter to Miss
Maude Burrows, of Tweed Street, Southport, from her
brother, Corporal J.R. Burrows, who was in France:
Corporal J.R. Burrows
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
It is some time since I wrote to you, but I really haven't had the chance. I have received
several letters from you, and I cannot tell you how pleased I am to know that you are
receiving my letters. We have done some moving about the last two months. Just now I
have a cold; it is a common thing this weather. One has to be careful not to get frost bite. I
watch my feet pretty closely. We were lucky enough to get some socks from the comforts
fund. They are things we need. It is almost impossible to keep dry feet, and as we move so
much one cannot carry a good supply of socks. I am doing pretty well at present. We have
had one fall of snow, and there is plenty of ice about. It was a funny experience walking
on the frozen mud first time, but now we are used to it. We were in the line for a time, and
then out about 10 days. We have been in again, and are now out again for a few days. The
weather here is very much up against us. The mud is so deep that it is impossible to get
the transport through. Pack horses have to be utilised. The work is hard on the horses
and soon knocks them out. I saw one bogged; he had been dead some time. It was almost
out of sight so you can understand how deep the mud is. The ground is ploughed up so
much with the heavy shelling and with the continual rain that it soon becomes a bog. It
is fun to see a man get bogged. I have experienced myself; I didn’t feel pleased about it.
In fact, I said hard things about the mud, of course, that’s what we enlist for. Although in
Australia we have no idea of what it is like here.”46
29
France
April 21st 1917
A card to let you know that I’m quite
alright up to the present. And so far
have managed to dodge Fritz. I am just
beginning to feel well again after the
winter hope to goodness we’re not to
put another one in here and reckon
that I’ll not be able to stick it if we
do. Things going great guns here at
present, Geof (sic) and Fritz is getting
particular hell and there is a lot worse
in store for him as soon as the weather
takes up and we can get things going
again. The boys are all in great heart
now that there (sic) getting a bit of
their own back. I could fill a writing
pad with very interesting news but
worse luck we are allowed to say next
to nothing from here so I’ll have to
say ta for the present and with kind
regards to Mrs Rudd and Billy.
I’ll remain yours obediently J. Cole”
Another example of letters home. Easter postcard
to Geoff Rudd from J. Cole, April 1917.
Postcard courtesy of Jack Rudd.
30
Local German settlers
By the beginning of the 20th century, with an estimated
population of around 100,000, people of German
background comprised Australia’s largest non-British
immigrant group.47 The main centres of German
settlement were South Australia, where they pioneered
that state’s famous wine regions, and Southeast
Queensland, where they were instrumental in growing
sugarcane and developing mixed farming. The
Southeast Queensland German community emerged
in the 1860s through the efforts of the Reverend John
Dunmore Lang, the German missionary Pastor J.G.
Haussman and the immigration agent John Heussler,
who organised the mass migration of German families.48
These families settled along the Albert and Logan
Rivers, and as far west as Fassifern and Marburg. Early
German immigrants were notable for their high level
of social cohesion and mutual support, settling in
family groups held together by strong religious, social
and cultural ties. Drawing on these bonds, they soon
displayed an ability to prosper on small land holdings
and under adverse conditions, and inserted themselves
into the local economy mostly as small-scale farmers.49
On the whole they integrated well with their AngloIrish neighbours, while also keeping a distinct cultural
identity through the maintenance of German social
clubs, the German language and Lutheran churches.
In the Gold Coast region, relations between the
German and Anglo-Irish settlers appear to have been
largely amicable, with intermarriage and cooperation
occurring,50 although tensions flared occasionally during
this early settlement phase, often due to jealousies over
German success.51 German families were extensively
involved in sugar production in the northern areas of
Pimpama, Alberton and Beenleigh. Notable families
included Heck, Rehfeld, Kleinschmidt and Huth. In the
German School building, Alberton, circa 1919.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
southern hinterland areas were the Schmidt family, who
began dairy farming at Mudgeeraba in the 1890s; the
Sehmish family, loggers and farmers at Bonogin; the
Hinze family who had a farm at what is now the Hinze
dam;52 and Henry Schneider, partner of the Birribi sugar
plantation at Nerang.53
Across Australia anti-German prejudice was to escalate
towards the end of the 19th century with the growing
competition between the British and German empires
in world affairs. When war was declared in 1914,
German communities suddenly became the target of
suspicion and distrust. The Federal Government, under
the leadership of Prime Minister Hughes, engaged in
an active campaign to eliminate German economic
interests and cultural identity from the country, ensuring
the nation remained staunchly British. This hostility
was not only aimed at recent German arrivals, but also
at those who had married Australians and become
naturalised citizens, and those who were Australian
by birth, sometimes second and third generation.54
Despite calls to intern all Germans, this was not feasible.
31
Truth (Brisbane, Qld. : 1900 - 1954), Sunday 30 January 1916, page 9
SUGAR
Authorities undertook selective targeting of prominent
business and spiritual leaders, as well as others deemed
to pose potential security risks; in total 6890 people,
mostly Germans and Austro-Hungarians, were sent to
concentration camps in Australia.55 The closest camp
to the Gold Coast was the Enoggera internment camp,
located next to the existing army camp. It housed
nearly 140 internees, including the non-military officers
and crew of civilian German ships docked in Brisbane
after the outbreak of war. The camp was closed in
August 1915 and the internees were transferred to the
Holsworthy camp in New South Wales.56
Under the War Precautions Act 1914, those Germans
not interned had to register at the nearest police
station and comply with certain restrictions, such as
not owning motor vehicles and renouncing shares in
public companies. German cultural institutions were
also targeted, with the closing of German clubs being
a prime example. Prior to the war the Department of
Education allowed German children to spend one day
of their schooling week attending Lutheran churches to
receive both religious instruction and German language
lessons. In 1915 this privilege was rescinded with an
instruction sent to all German schools advising that
attendance at lessons given by a German pastor was
no longer a valid excuse for absence from school.57
Anti-German feeling led to a Queensland Cabinet
direction in 1916 that people of German or Austrian
birth could not be employed in the public service
if there were British nationals available. At the time
there were 65 police officers of German background in
Queensland, and although they were not dismissed,
they were heavily monitored.58 The Queensland police
were also required to keep a close eye on the Turkish,
Syrian, Bulgarian, Greek, and Italian communities in the
state and provide assessments of the moral character
of soldiers’ wives who were receiving assistance.60 This
32
A
H.
meeting of
the
Southern
Queensland
mills
BEENLEIGH,
Sugar Millers'
Association
was
June
held in
the
SNORT.
13,
ShireHall on
Saturday
afternoon.
1908.
Therewere
Kleinschmidt(Steglitz),
KIeinschmidt
(Albert River),
G. F. Dauth (JunctionMill),O.
W. Heck (RockyPoint), A. Kleinschmidt (secretary).
C.
Herse, senr. and
junr., and
Pinnow (Eagleby), Musch (Gramzow), and
A.
W.
W.
It
was
assistance
shouldapproach the Germanlmperial Government, through the GermanConsul, to
see what
they wouldget to
Heinemann(president),
Rehfeldt
the
"SAUERKRAUTS"
(Alberton),
association
CHORUS OF
and
FRAUS
belongings
(TO
to
QUEENSLAND):
"VE
German
DON'D
possessions.—News
VONDTO BLAY
item.
IN
YOUR
present:
F.
Messrs.
W.
agreed that
transfer
their
YARD."
Southern Queensland Sugar Millers’ Association cartoon from
Truth newspaper, January 1916.59
move to restrict or erase German communities even
extended to German place names, many of which were
replaced with non-German names. Locally, Steizlits
(Steglitz) was changed to Woongoolba in 1917.61
Although German people were extensively persecuted
in various parts of Australia during the war, the
Gold Coast area appears to have been much more
accommodating of its German population, and
extreme forms of harassment did not eventuate.62 In
part this may be due to the more lenient
attitude of
National Library of Australia
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article203037241
the federal government towards German farmers, who
were seen as more useful and less of a potential threat
than industrialists and businessmen. The economic
importance of the German farming community to
the Gold Coast, especially the northern sugar district
around Beenleigh and Alberton, was well established. A
considerable amount of the farming in this area was in
the hands of old German families and all the sugar mills
were under the control of the Southern Queensland
Sugar Miller’s Association, which was run exclusively
by Germans.63 Occasionally, this ownership caused
local concern as reflected in the article published in
the Brisbane newspaper Truth in 1916 regarding sugar
prices and labour on farms (see cartoon page 32).64
The strong position of the local German community
was reflected in leaders such as Otto Kleinschmidt,
Carl Rehfedt and Wilhelm Heck, who all served on
the Beenleigh Shire Council throughout the war.
They demonstrated their loyalty to Australia by being
involved in forming a local war council to assist in the
war against Germany and participating in Patriotic Day
parades.65 Despite this greater level of tolerance, the
local German families could not avoid being touched by
the wider sense of discrimination sweeping the country.
The Lutheran church schools at Beenleigh, Pimpama
Island, Alberton and Norwell were among those in the
state affected by the clampdown on German religious
and language instruction.66
Almost all the German people interned, even if naturalborn Australians, were deported to Germany after
the war. This would have had an emotional as well as
cultural impact on all German communities as many
deportees were business and spiritual leaders. The
war saw the virtual cessation of German immigration
to the Gold Coast district and eroded its position
as a flourishing centre for German culture. Some
German families stopped maintaining their language
and assimilated even more closely into mainstream
society. People even changed their names, like Henry
Schneider, who changed his surname to Carlton a year
before his death in 1917 ‘on account of the annoyance
and inconvenience it had caused his children since the
beginning of the war’.67
Henry and Mary Thomasine (nee Cooper) Schneider, circa 1880.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
33
Repatriation and convalescence at home
In 1915 the Queensland Government established the
Queensland War Council (1915-1932), which was chaired
by the Queensland Premier.68 Its role was to recruit and
coordinate the funding and initiatives for employment,
medical care and settlement of returned soldiers as
well as assist the families of those killed or disabled.
Local War Council Committees were also established
including Beenleigh,69 Coomera,70 Coolangatta/
Tweed Heads,71 and Southport72. Local War Councils
had various agendas, political and otherwise. The
Coomera War Council was sarcastically reported by
newspaper, the Daily Standard, as a ‘remarkable War
Council’ in 1916 when they decided to send a petition
to the Commonwealth Government concerning the
Defence of the Realm Act 1914. They petitioned that
inciting workers to strike during war time should be
an indictable offence under the Act. The move was
criticised by the paper as unworkable and that ‘only
martial law will deprive men of the right to strike against
oppressive economic conditions’.73
The Southport War Council was involved in discussions
about the 1916 Anzac Day commemorations. At the
time the Southport Shire Council thought that as the
War Council was in touch with the military, and had two
ministers of religion on its committee, that it would be
better able to deal with arrangements for Anzac Day
commemorations.74 Eventually it was decided to ask the
religious bodies to hold services in the churches. Other
typical War Council activities included social functions
like the one held in 1918 at the Empire Theatre in
Tweed Heads, which, under the auspices of the local
Soldiers Recognition Committee, welcomed home
trooper Ernie (Pat) Powell, and farewelled new recruit
Mr JC Cunningham.75
34
As the war progressed, the focus increasingly turned
to the repatriation of soldiers, and the Queensland
War Council established the Queensland Repatriation
Committee and associated fund in 1916.76 Again,
local branches formed including the Coolangatta
Repatriation Committee who noted in their formation
meeting that the duties of the committee were most
important and that it was their privilege and duty to
look after returning soldiers.77 The Queensland War
Council and its local committees were the primary
force in the repatriation of Queensland soldiers until
the Federal Government took over the role in early
1918. Key measures that needed local and state
coordination included land and financial assistance
for which returned servicemen could apply under
the Queensland Government’s Discharged Soldiers
Settlement Act 1917. Another measure to support
returned servicemen was the preferential employment
scheme adopted by the Public Service Board.
The Returned Sailors and Soldiers Imperial League
of Australia (RSSILA) was also intimately involved in
repatriation. Formed in 1916 it was the precursor
of today’s Returned and Services League (RSL). It
established various local branches, with a Tweed
Heads sub-branch being active by mid-1919,78 and
a sub-branch forming in Southport in the same year
to represent the soldiers of Southport, Nerang,
Mudgeeraba and Coomera districts.79 By the 1920s the
Tweed Heads branch had become the Tweed Heads
and Coolangatta RSSILA,80 and in 1933 a sub-branch
formed in Burleigh.81
The high casualties inflicted on the Allied forces at
Gallipoli from 25 April to 20 December 1915 sent
a shockwave through the nation and presented
Military personnel recovering at
Staghorn Hospital, Southport, 1916.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
the alarming prospect of having to deal with many
wounded evacuated soldiers coming home. To help
meet this urgent medical need, military hospitals
and convalescent homes were hastily established by
converting existing houses and government facilities.
Hospitals were established at Enoggera, Rosemount
House in Windsor, in Toowoomba, at the Kangaroo
Point Immigration Depot, and on the Gold Coast.82 With
its beaches, ocean and mild maritime climate, the Gold
Coast became an ideal locale for restoring the health of
convalescing soldiers, a role it performed during both
World Wars.
On the Gold Coast a military hospital was established in
mid-1915 in a rambling old house known as Staghorn,
previously the residence of former Queensland
Governor, Sir Henry Norman, and at the time owned by
Mr D.J. Abercrombie.83
Initially designated No. 3 Auxiliary Hospital, it later
changed to No. 8 Auxiliary Hospital, but was more
commonly referred to as Staghorn Hospital. It was
located within the newly released Staghorn Estate,
Labrador, and had capacity for 50 beds. The facility
was equipped and run with the assistance of the Red
Cross and the Southport Wounded Soldiers Fund.84
The local community were also very supportive of the
hospital. Among the items donated to the hospital were
bamboo blinds, a gramophone, books and magazines,
cigarettes, tinned and fresh food, and baked goods.85
Another hospital was established in Surfers Paradise
in the old Main Beach Hotel at the river end of Cavill
Avenue. This had been purchased by Mr H.S. Bere of
‘The Hill’, Southport, as a holiday house. Mr Bere, the
secretary of the Southport Wounded Fund, offered the
35
Newspaper article in the National Leader
about the appointment of a German
manager to Staghorn, November 1916.86
Newspaper article in the National Leader about men
who have not served being given jobs at the local
hospitals, December 1916.87
36
‘Staghorn’ converted to the No.3 Army Auxiliary Hospital, mid-1915. Image courtesy State Library of Queensland.
building to the military as a convalescence facility and
it was turned into the 50 bed No. 2 Auxiliary Hospital,
later No. 7 Auxiliary Hospital.88
at a cost of £219 (approximately $21,000), which
accommodated a donated billiards table and where
concerts were held.91
Both hospitals were lit by gas and had wide verandahs
with easy chairs for patients to take in the sea breezes.
Activities were also organised for the convalescing
soldiers and included games and outings. Mr Bere
placed his motor launch at the disposal of Staghorn
and boat trips were run two to three times a week.89
Christmas was a particularly busy time at Staghorn, with
the Red Cross and local community coming together to
provide Christmas lunch and entertainment.90
A recreation room was eventually added to Staghorn,
Both hospitals were initially managed by warrant-officer
Nickel, who was based at Staghorn Hospital and had a
staff of one sergeant, one sergeant cook, one corporal
and three privates at each hospital. Nickel was later
replaced by Sergeant-Major Goode. Staffing fluctuated
over the course of the war, with contentious appointments
at times, such as the replacement of Goode by a man of
German background in late 1916. This caused tension and
was reflected in the National Leader newspaper reports of
the appointment (see page 36).
37
Church of England Soldiers Rest Home, Coolangatta, circa 1919.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Light-horsemen in front of the Church of England Rest House,
Coolangatta, circa 1918. Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries
Local Studies Collection.
Another official was dismissed from Staghorn following
agitation from the Brisbane-based National Leader
newspaper when it was revealed he had not seen active
service; the newspaper believed employment within the
home service, which included the auxiliary hospitals,
should be reserved for returned servicemen and also
objected to a non-serving man being employed as the
caretaker for the Main Beach Hospital and the driver of
the Staghorn motor ambulance.92
the Church of England, which opened in January
1918.95 It was run by committee which relied heavily
on public donations of food, goods and money and
provided holiday accommodation to soldiers being
treated at the military hospitals as well as returned
soldiers in general.96 Returned soldiers wishing to
stay at the home had to apply to the Anzac Club
in Charlotte Street, Brisbane. By late 1918 the rest
home had 30 beds, but by early the following year it
had doubled its capacity to 60 beds and was able to
offer accommodation for large numbers of returned
servicemen. The Daily Mail noted that here ‘in healthful
recreation, in the company of old comrades, and
administered by gentle women, they have been able
to win back much of the health and vitality which they
had spent in the service of the nation.’97 Although
the original building has long been replaced with a
modern facility, the rest home continues to provide
accommodation to service personnel to this day.
Officially the two hospitals had the capacity to
accommodate up to 100 men, but it is unclear if that
number was ever reached because the Main Beach
Hospital appears to have sat empty for a time in 1916, and
the main fundraising and other activities were primarily
focussed on Staghorn.93 In 1919, after the end of the
war, Staghorn was closed and all the Red Cross property,
including the recreation room, was disposed of.94 The Old
Main Beach Hotel was demolished in the 1920s.
The other main convalescent facility was the
Coolangatta Soldiers’ Rest House, established by
38
The Soldiers’ Rest Home
feature in The Queensland
Pictorial, 1919. Image courtesy
State Library of Queensland.
39
Peace Day parade in the Pimpama district, circa 1918.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local
Studies Collection.
40
An unquiet peace
The news of the Armistice in 1918 was welcomed with
a range of public celebrations. Peace parades were
organised by communities all over the Gold Coast and
held from Coolangatta in the south to Pimpama in the
north. They were an opportunity for people to publically
celebrate the end of World War 1.
While hostilities officially ended on 11 November 1918,
life in Australia did not return to how it had been prior
to 1914. Most historians now agree that the war left the
nation shattered, divided and profoundly changed.98
Response to the war had initially been an enthusiastic
demonstration of loyalty to empire, but as hostilities
dragged on and the casualties mounted, rifts opened
in the social and political fabric of the home front.
Questions began to be asked about the point of the war.
Anti-war campaigns and peace councils formed, and
were targeted by the federal government. Communities
became divided along many lines, including families
who lost men and women and those who had not, and
between capitalists and labour supporters. Men who
appeared capable of fighting, but for various reasons
did not, were, along with their families, shamed and
ostracised. Flagging enlistments led to two bitterly
fought referendums in 1916 and 1917 over introducing
conscription, and these saw competing propaganda
campaigns heavily aimed at the emotions of mothers to
either support or reject the sending of sons into battle.
The conscription bills were defeated but focussed
sectarian animosity against Irish Catholics (who generally
argued strongly against conscription). The ill treatment
of those members of the community classed as enemy
aliens, especially those of German background, left
Australia both less tolerant and less multicultural. Into
this mix came returning soldiers, many of whom were
physically sick and disabled and suffering from what we
Cover of a commemorative booklet for Armistice Day featuring
King George V, Southport, 29 November, 1918. Image courtesy
City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
41
Peace Day procession through Mudgeeraba, 1919.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Peace parade, Nerang Street, Southport, 1919.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
know today is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
In the long term, many veterans emerged as deeply
damaged members of society who found it difficult to
adjust to life back home. Numerous cases appeared of
war veterans disrupting their families and communities
through drink and violence, falling victim to mental
illness, and ultimately resorting to suicide. These
traumas and rifts did not end with the war but lingered
into the 1920s and 30s until subsumed into the hardship
of the Great Depression and then a second world war.
Many returned soldiers, parents, widows, fiancés and
children were financially cut adrift and plunged into
grinding poverty. The often rigid and mean-spirited
bureaucracy of the early Department of Defence
could make it difficult for families to access war
pensions, especially when death or disablement of a
provider occurred some years after the end of the war,
or could not be conclusively related to injuries incurred
during service.
The Gold Coast witnessed its share of post-war
difficulties. There was the grief of loss, which in many
cases was intensified by a lack of closure because
under British military policy the dead were buried
where they fell. The bodies of many soldiers were
never recovered from foreign soil and returned home.
Then there was the economic impact on the men who
returned invalided, as well as their families, which was
especially severe for those on the land who relied so
heavily on able bodies to undertake manual labour.
42
There are many local stories to be examined which
illustrate different impacts on the returnees and the
families of those who served.
The Millen family was to lose two of its three sons.
George Edward was killed in action in France in August
1916 and Robert John, after being twice wounded in
action, was killed in July 1917. He was interred in the
Adelaide British Cemetery, Villers Bretonneus, France.
The third son, William received a serious gun-shot
wound to his hip. While his treatment was favourable
he was no longer able to fight. He was discharged as an
Dear Madam, Upon enlistment the late No. 181 Private G.E.
Millen…recorded you as next of kin but it is noted from the file
that his father is living…according to the instructions under the
“Deceased Soldiers’ Estates Act 1918” which prescribes that these
items must go to next of kin in the following order of relationship
unless good and sufficient reasons for varying the procedure are
stated for the consideration of the Minister: …father, mother,
eldest surviving brother, eldest surviving sister…”
Letter from Defence Department to Miss M. Millen
regarding the allocation of G. E. Millen’s war medals etc.
National Archives of Australia: B2455, Millen GE.
43
invalid, returned home in 1919, married and moved to
New Zealand. The war exposed rifts within this family.
George Edward did not leave a will and after his death
his sister Margaret, to whom he was very close and had
named as his next of kin, entered into a dispute with
their father for George’s medals and gratuity. The result
was that Margaret received the gratuity payments and
his father received his war medals.
Lt. Christopher Reginald Andrews.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Southport born Christopher Reginald Andrews, brother
of Sister Linda Andrews, was a 21 year old engineer
when he enlisted in the AIF on 24 December 1915.99
He was assigned to the Australian Flying Corps as a
private and worked as a fitter and turner. Initially based
in Egypt, he was soon transferred to England where
he achieved the rank of lieutenant and graduated
as a pilot. He subsequently saw service in France
and Belgium where he was wounded in action, and
admitted to hospital with multiple gunshot wounds
including to the right eye, right ear, both legs and feet,
and right buttock. The lower body wounds were severe
and he was discharged as an invalid and returned to
Australia in January 1919. After the war Christopher
Andrews returned to Southport and joined the RSSILA.
He later married and moved to Mount Tambourine,
where he and his wife had a daughter in March 1924.100
Sadly, not long afterwards, on 30 June 1924 he died as a
consequence of his war injuries.101
The Fulton family of Springbrook was to lose three of
its sons. In 1917, the youngest boy, Private Alexander
Fulton wrote to the Assistant Adjunct General
Australian Imperial Force (A.A.G.A.I.F) and requested
to be returned home as he was the sole support for
his aged parents. He noted that at least three of his
brothers, William, Thomas and George, had already
died in service and one, Hugh, had been returned to
Australia disabled.102 At the time he was not sure of the
whereabouts of his other brother, John. Alexander was
44
Letter to the A.A.G.A.I.F from Alexander
Fulton requesting he be returned to
Australia for family reasons.
NAA: B2455, FULTON A D.
45
discharged and returned home in April 1918. John also
returned home later the same year, disabled.
Another story illustrating the tragic impact of the war
is that of Frederick Alexander Anderson.103 Frederick
Anderson was born and educated at Mudgeeraba,
the second son of Mr. and Mrs. J. G. Anderson. An
unmarried man, before enlisting he worked as a
teamster, was well respected in the community where
he was noted as being quiet and very unassuming,
and possessed a significant amount of land in the
Mudgeeraba district. On 16th September 1914, at the
age of 35, he enlisted in the 15th Battalion, and was
sent to Egypt, where he completed his training. He was
then deployed to Gallipoli on April 25th 1915, and was
killed in action on the morning of May 18th. His body
was buried at Shrapnel Gulley by Colonel Reverend
F. Wray on 20 May 1915. His death had an enormous
impact on his family, particularly his two aged parents,
and five siblings (an older brother and four sisters)
who had cruelly heard of his fate in the newspaper
rather than through official channels. The subsequent
correspondence with the Department of Defence104
reveals first their anguish and determination to be
provided official confirmation of Frederick’s death, and
then their desire to be sent his personal effects and a
photograph of his grave. The photograph could not be
provided, but his meagre personal possessions, which
included a diary, dictionary, fountain pen, knife, Roman
Catholic token, silk handkerchief and postcards, were
returned to his parents in two anonymous brown paper
parcels. These stories are typical of the burden of grief
the parents, siblings, friends and community had to bear
as they lost their young men and women overseas.
Military portrait of Frederick Alexander Anderson, 1914.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Receipt for delivery of Frederick Anderson’s personal effects to his
family. National Archives of Australia: B2455, ANDERSON F A.
46
Lettergram from nearest station
J. Anderson
Rose Hill
Mudgeeraba
Regret inform you newspaper announcement correct report
was wired to military commandant Brisbane thirteenth
instant to inform father cable containing report was dated
ninth June date of death not known
Defence
21/6/15”
Lettergram from Defence Department to J. Anderson confirming the newspaper
report of his son’s death. National Archives of Australia: B2455, ANDERSON FA.
47
Another impact of the war was the establishment
of the Soldier Settlement Scheme. Under the
Discharged Soldiers’ Settlement Act 1917 and
associated regulations, land was resumed in all
states and subdivided into small farm blocks.
Discharged members of the armed forces and their
dependents could apply for these land grants and
financial assistance to build a house. The primary
purpose of this Act was to open new agricultural
land for settlement while at the same time providing
a livelihood for the thousands of returning soldiers.
While laudable, the scheme was plagued by some
critical failures. One was that it was not extended
to Indigenous soldiers and their families. In some
cases was used to further dispossess Indigenous
communities by carving up mission reserves, (on to
which Colonial policy had originally forced them),
for the settlement of white soldiers. Other problems
included farms that were often too small or infertile
to be viable, returnees lacking farming experience
and the often fragile mental and physical condition
of returned soldiers, which left them unsuited to
rural labour. With the onset of the Great Depression,
the economic feasibility of many of these holdings
deteriorated further, with numerous returned soldiers
and their families accruing large debts or walking off
their land altogether.
In Queensland the main Soldier Settlements were
at Amiens, Atherton Tablelands, Beerburrum, Cecil
48
Plains (Darling Downs), Coominya, El Arish and Ubobo.
There was also a settlement across the border from
Coolangatta at Bilambil in Tweed Shire. While no
settlements were officially established on the Gold
Coast, their presence was still felt with the Gold
Coast communities actively involved in fundraising to
provide the settlements with assistance. In 1920, for
instance, the Coolangatta Peace Loan Committee and
the local Returned Soldiers’ League were involved
in a national campaign to raise money for loans to
soldiers to assist them in becoming farmers.105 The
residents of Coolangatta and district were particularly
involved in the affairs and welfare of the nearby Soldier
Settlement at Bilambil.
Into the 1920s and 30s a number of returned soldiers
and their families settled land on the Gold Coast
through later Depression Relief Schemes, particularly
as farmers were encouraged into the area through
the subdivision and release of selections for banana
cultivation. Austinville, upper Mudgeeraba, was
founded in 1934 as a banana settlement to provide
employment to families in the Great Depression.106
However the community struggled with bunchytop
virus, heavy frosts and isolation.107 Families soon began
deserting and the school closed in 1939.108 More
sustainable banana farming areas were established
around Tallebudgera, Burleigh Heads and the New
South Wales border.
Arrival of banana settlers at the
Mudgeeraba Railway Station before
heading to Austinville, circa 1930s.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
49
The influenza pandemic
Another major post-war impact on the Gold Coast
was the influenza pandemic of 1918-19. Nicknamed
the Spanish Flu, this particular virus began to infect
troops and communities in Europe during the war. Its
spread was greatly assisted by the close quarters and
massive troop movements. The return home of infected
personnel after hostilities ceased resulted in a global
pandemic that killed over 50 million people – more than
the war itself. In Australia it is estimated that in excess
of 12, 000 people, including young healthy adults died
as a result of the influenza pandemic.109 Queensland
deaths totalled 830.110
One of the measures undertaken by authorities to
stem its spread in Australia was the closure of the
Queensland/New South Wales border. This caused the
sudden isolation of the Gold Coast’s southernmost
town, Coolangatta, from its neighbour Tweed Heads,
located on the other side of the state boundary.
Although surveyed in 1883, Coolangatta had largely
developed as a residential satellite of Tweed Heads,
which contained most of the essential services and
infrastructure; hence the common name for the two
being the Twin Towns. In January 1919, when the border
was closed, people found themselves stranded on both
sides of the border and unable to return to their homes
or employment. An isolation camp was established
next to the Coolangatta Rest Home as well as along
the border to quarantine people travelling from New
South Wales.111 Some 1300 to 1400 people had passed
through the Coolangatta camp by March 1919. 112
50
Quarantine tents erected as a result of the influenza pandemic
at Coolangatta, circa 1918. Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Men exchanging money over the Queensland - New South Wales
border during the flu epidemic of 1919. Image courtesy City of
Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Stranded Queenslanders outside the
Post Office, Tweed Heads, February
1919, during the influenza pandemic.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
51
Coolangatta State School following its first extension, Queensland, circa 1925.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Another impact of the border closure was the need to
duplicate services across the two towns, including the
establishment of a school in Coolangatta. A temporary
school was established behind the Coolangatta
Municipal Council office on 10 February 1919 while a
permanent school building was being built on Kirra
Hill. The new Coolangatta State School opened in early
1920. While the border closure only remained in place
until May 1919, it set in motion the development of
Coolangatta as a distinct township.
Opening of the Coolangatta State School, Queensland, 1920.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
52
Coolangatta State School pupils at the
opening of the school, 1920. Image
courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries
Local Studies Collection.
53
Mudgeeraba and Springbrook Memorial Hall, circa 1923. Image
courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Mudgeeraba District Roll of Honour, World War 1. The roll of
honour was originally housed in the Mudgeeraba Railway Station,
but was moved to the Mudgeeraba – Springbrook Memorial
Hall when it opened in 1922. Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
War Memorials
During the course of the war a strong community need
to honour those who served emerged and was carried
through subsequent decades. This was the first war to
touch Australia as a federated nation and impact all its
communities. A common way of commemorating the
Great War was the placement of honour boards and
the building of monuments and memorial halls. Prior
to World War I Queensland had few civic monuments,
but after the war there was a flurry of monument and
memorial building to mark the devastating effect the
conflict had on society. Indeed, even before the war
had finished some memorials were already in place.
An honour board to those who had served in the war
was unveiled at the Southport School of Arts in 1916.
At the time of the unveiling, it was noted the board
carried the names of five members of the Whelan family,
and that the names of others, including F. Spencer,
BE. Stevens and Miss May Greer, were still to be
54
added. 113 In following years, honour boards were also
erected in various public buildings including the Upper
Coomera School of Arts, Pimpama School of Arts and
the Mudgeeraba-Springbrook Soldiers Memorial Hall
– which had been built in 1922 as a memorial to those
who had served.
Construction of war memorials on the Gold Coast also
happened quickly at the end of the War. One of the
earliest memorials on the Gold Coast was the Pimpama
and Ormeau War Memorial, erected by local residents
in the grounds of the Pimpama Uniting (formerly
Methodist) Church in 1919. The masons were A.L. Petrie
of Toowong and the project cost £154 (approximately
$14,000), which was raised by public subscription from
the local community. The War Memorial was erected in
remembrance of the six local Pimpama men who lost
their lives in World War I.
War Memorial and war trophies at Anzac
Park, Southport, circa 1924.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast
Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Memorial soldier and Pimpama and
Ormeau Honour Roll, Pimpama, circa 1919.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries
Local Studies Collection.
55
Coolangatta War Memorial in Griffith Street, Coolangatta, circa 1929.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
Avenue of Commemorative Trees, 2011.
Image courtesy City of Gold Coast.
Another early memorial is the Southport War Memorial,
which was built of Helidon freestone and unveiled in
1922.114 Its original location was on the foreshore end
of Nerang Street in Southport. Like the Pimpama and
Ormeau War memorial, it is a digger statue supported
by a plinth.
organisations, erected memorials to those who had
died as well as those who had served during the Great
War. Most memorials were constructed by local masonry
firms, although some were by artists or imported
from overseas. Memorials produced by masonry firm
A.L.Petrie and Son of Toowong were the most prolific.
They were the largest masonry firm in Queensland at
this time and were responsible for many First World
War memorials throughout the state. In Queensland
the soldier statue was the most popular choice of
memorial whereas the obelisk predominated in the
southern states. Researchers posit that this may be due
to the stronger working class traditions of Queensland,
with which the digger image struck a chord through
its embodiment of ideal Australian virtues of the time:
loyalty, courage, youth, innocence and masculinity. The
digger was also more common due to the fact that in
other states the design of memorials was overseen by
advisory boards of architects and artists115 who tended
to regard the digger statue in an unfavourable light. On
the Gold Coast, memorial design was in the hands of
the local community.
One of the few obelisk-style memorials is the
Coolangatta War Memorial, erected in 1926 at the
intersection of Griffith and MacLean Streets and later
moved to Queen Elizabeth Park. It is an obelisk topped
with a funeral shroud, symbolizing those who died.
Crossed rifles on the front suggest the soldiers are now
at peace.
These memorials were extremely important to those
families who had lost members overseas, for they
served as a place of remembrance much like a grave.
They also became the centre of general community
commemoration and reflection. Across the Gold Coast
communities banded together and through public
subscription and, with the assistance of local RSSILA
56
Australia’s Govenor-General Lord Forster at the official opening of
Southport Anzac Memorial Park, 1922. E H Foreman, photographer.
Image courtesy of City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
57
A less expensive way of memorialising those lost
during the Great War was through the planting of
commemorative trees. This was done by both individuals
and communities. World War 1 commemorative
plantings survive at Latimer’s Crossing, Numinbah
Valley. This avenue of fifteen Hoop Pines (Araucaria
cunninghamii) and one Bunya Pine (Araucaria bidwillii)
was planted around 1920 by Joseph Hinde, a teamster
from Numinbah, in honour of his brother Thomas Hinde
who was killed in action in France in 1918.
Thomas Hinde was a 23 year old farmer from Gilston.
He enlisted for service in March 1916 with the AIF. He
was appointed to the 20th Reinforcement, 9th Battalion
and despatched overseas. Private Hinde served for two
years in Belgium and France and was wounded in action
a number of times. On the 19th September 1918, he
was again wounded in action and admitted to the 55th
General Hospital in Boulogne with a gunshot wound to
the head. He died of his wounds on the 21st September
1918 and was interred at Terlincthun British Cemetery.116
Some of the trees originally planted in the avenue are
no longer extant and those that remain are entered in
the Gold Coast Local Heritage Register.
The Great War also gave rise to the modern peace
movement, which began during the war years and was
continued through the subsequent conflicts of the
20th century. One Gold Coast individual who became
involved in this movement was John Hall Rosser. He
was a 24 year old, unmarried beekeeper living with
his mother at Mount Tambourine when he enlisted for
service on 19 March 1917.117 Like many other men of the
area, he travelled by train to Brisbane and was accepted
into the field artillery. Soon after enlistment he had to
apply for leave to return home to see his mother and
arrange for a man to care for his beekeeping business.
58
He was then transferred to Sydney and in April 1918,
left for the Australian Camp at Suez as Acting Sergeant.
Here he faced the poor sanitary conditions of camp
life and quickly succumbed to diarrhoea and was
hospitalised for sixteen days. After being discharged
from hospital he was transferred to Alexandria,
Southampton and then France, during which he reverted
to the rank of gunner. On 4 February 1919 he was
evacuated to the Group Clearing Hospital, Sutton Veney,
Wiltshire, England, after contracting the influenza virus.
John recovered from the illness and was granted leave
without pay to return to Australia. He returned at his
own expense via the United States, where he took the
opportunity to cross the country by motorbike.
John quickly resumed his old life as a beekeeper at
Mount Tambourine, married, started a family, moved
to a farm at Benowa and became a prominent figure
in the apiary industry. He was profoundly altered by
his wartime experiences and became a self-educated
free thinker deeply concerned with the betterment of
human society. The ideals of socialism intrigued him
and he stood for election in the 1949 local elections
as a candidate for the Australian Labor Party. He
also emerged as a leader of the Queensland Peace
Council and member of the Australian Peace Council,
contesting the 1951 federal election as an independent
peace candidate and actively campaigning against
nuclear armaments during the Cold War period.118He
also became an early environmentalist, champion of
free education and wrote prolifically to the newspapers
on a wide range of intellectual and utopian issues.
Towards the end of his life, his philanthropy led to his
granting approximately 6.5 acres of his farm land for the
creation of the Gold Coast Regional Botanic Gardens.
Anzac Day memorial service on Marine Parade, Coolangatta, circa 1930s.
Image courtesy of City of Gold Coast Libraries Local Studies Collection.
59
End notes
Wikipedia. “World War 1.” 20 May 2016, en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/World_War_I#Allied_victory:_summer_1918_
onwards.
12
Australian War Memorial. “Enlistment statistics,
First World War.” 20 May 2016, www.awm.gov.au/
encyclopedia/enlistment/ww1/.
13
Australian War Memorial. “First World War 19141918.” 14 June 2016, www.awm.gov.au/atwar/ww1/.
14
1
2
3
Wikipedia. “Australian Army.” 25 May 2016,
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_Army.
“WHY SHOULD I FIGHT?” The Brisbane Courier
(Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 23 December 1914: 8. Web. 1 Sep
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20004027.
Australian War Memorial. “Enlistment statistics,
First World War.” 20 May 2016, www.awm.gov.au/
encyclopedia/enlistment/.
4
Australian Military History of the Early 20th Century.
“Desert Column Forum.” 25 May 2016, alh-research.
tripod.com/Light_Horse/index.blog?topic_
id=1104177.
5
6
Wikipedia. “First Australian Imperial Force.” 26
May 2016, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Australian_
Imperial_Force accessed.
Wikipedia. “First Australian Imperial Force.” 26
May 2016, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Australian_
Imperial_Force accessed.
7
“Country Volunteers.”, The Brisbane Courier (Qld:
1864-1933), 22 March 1915:7. Web, 18 Aug 2016
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20051097.
8
9
“SOUTHPORT SCHOOL.” The Brisbane Courier
(Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 11 December 1917: 8. Web. 22
Aug 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20202057.
Australian War Memorial. “Enlistment statistics,
First World War.” 20 May 2016, www.awm.gov.au/
encyclopedia/enlistment/.
10
Australian War Memorial. “Enlistment statistics,
First World War.” 20 May 2016, www.awm.gov.au/
encyclopedia/enlistment/.
11
60
Australian War Memorial. “Indigenous Australian
servicemen.” 10 October 2016, www.awm.gov.au/
encyclopedia/aborigines/indigenous/.
Australian War Memorial. “Anzac Diveristy.” 10
October 2016, www.awm.gov.au/education/schools/
resources/anzac-diversity/.
15
16
Kennedy, Alastair. Chinese Anzacs: Australians of
Chinese descent in the defence forces 1885-1919
/ Alastair Kennedy A. Kennedy] [O’Connor, A.C.T
2012, p. 13.
“SOUTHPORT SHIRE COUNCIL.” The Brisbane
Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 15 September 1916:
9. Web. 25 Aug 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle20096064.
17
18
“Anti-Conscription Fighting Fund.” Worker
(Brisbane, Qld. : 1890 - 1955) 20 December 1917:
15. Web. 22 Aug 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle71040827.
“The Referendum” The Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld. :
1872 - 1947) 31 October 1916: 5. Web. 22 Aug 2016
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article176377763.
19
“LIGHT HORSE ALLOWANCES.” Daily Mercury
(Mackay, Qld. : 1906 - 1954) 30 January 1914: 7.
Web. 23 Aug 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle171498190.
20
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
Healy L 685
21
22
Information for Margaret, Agnes and Robert Millen
verified through Queensland Births Deaths and
Marriages.
Australian Red Cross. “100 years of women’s service
to Red Cross.” 25 June 2016, www.redcross.org.
au/100-years-of-womens-service-to-red-cross.aspx.
23
Australian War Memorial. “Blog: Australian Army
Nursing Service.” 29 June 2016, www.awm.gov.au/
blog/2014/05/14/australian-army-nursing-service1914-15-outdoor-dress/.
24
Other references give the Andrews family address as
East Knoyle, Southport.
25
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
ANDREWS L G.
26
State Library of Queensland. “Nurse Jane McLennen
collection digitised @ SLQ.” 14 June 2016, blogs.slq.
qld.gov.au/ww1/2015/08/04/nurse-jane-mclennancollection-digitised-slq/.
27
28
“WOMAN’S WORLD.” The Brisbane Courier
(Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 20 May 1920: 11. Web. 13 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2041506;
“SOUTHPORT.” The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864
- 1933) 25 March 1925: 19. Web. 12 Oct 2016 http://
nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20900087.
“WOMAN’S WORLD.” The Brisbane Courier
(Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 20 May 1920: 11. Web. 12 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20415065;
“SOUTHPORT.” The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864
- 1933) 25 March 1925: 19. Web. 12 Oct 2016 http://
nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20900087; “SOCIAL.” The
Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 30 June 1927:
19. Web. 12 Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle21853304.
29
“PREPARATION’S FOR THE PACIFIC CABLE.” The
Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 11 March 1902:
6. Web. 23 Aug 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle19161596.
30
“ANOTHER LINK SEVERED” South Coast Bulletin
(Southport, Qld. : 1929 - 1954) 18 April 1951: 9.
Web. 1 Sep 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle225634325.
31
Express. “The battle to feed Tommy: new exhibition
looks at the diet of a WW1 soldier.” 25 May 2016,
www.express.co.uk/news/world-war-1/502452/TheBattle-to-feed-Tommy-The-diet-of-a-WW1-soldier.
32
Australian War Memorial. “Make hard tack.” 25 May
2016, www.awm.gov.au/education/schools/resources/
hard-tack/.
33
YMCA. “World War One a National Presence
Emerges.” 25 May 2016, www.ymcabrisbane.
org/150/stories/world-war-one-a-national-presenceemerges.html.
34
Queensland State Archives. “Stories from the
archives: the Queensland home front during the First
World War.” 15 June 2016,
blogs.archives.qld.gov.au/2014/06/10/thequeensland-home-front-during-the-first-world-war/.
35
Australian War Memorial. “Voluntary Aid
Detachments.” 5 October 2016, www.awm.gov.au/
encyclopedia/vad/.
36
Queensland State Archives. “Stories from the
archives: the Queensland home front during the First
World War.” 15 June 2016,
blogs.archives.qld.gov.au/2014/06/10/thequeensland-home-front-during-the-first-world-war/.
37
61
9. Web. 1 Sep 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle214364304.
“MOVEMENTS IN THE COUNTRY.” The Brisbane
Courier (Qld: 1864 - 1933) 8 September 1914: 7. Web.
1 Sep 2016 nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19982166
47
“QUEENSLAND PATRIOTIC FUND” Daily Standard
(Brisbane, Qld. : 1912 - 1936) 2 February 1915: 2
(SECOND EDITION). Web. 12 Oct 2016 http://nla.
gov.au/nla.news-article181407087; “SOCK AND
COMFORT FUND.” Darling Downs Gazette (Qld. :
1881 - 1922) 6 November 1915: 5. Web. 12 Oct 2016
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article182686515.40 The
Brisbane Courier, 18 August 1915, p. 7.
48
38
Fischer, Gerard, ‘Fighting the war at home: the
internment of enemy aliens in Australia during
World War 1’, 2011, pp. 17 – 45 in Helmi, Nadine.
and Fischer, Gerard. The enemy at home : German
internees in World War I Australia / by Nadine
Helmi, Gerard Fischer ; with contributions from Beth
Hise, Stephen Thompson, Mark Viner UNSW Press
Kensington, N.S.W 2011.
39
“COURIER” PATRIOTIC FUNDS.” The Brisbane
Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 18 August 1915: 7.
Web. 12 Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle20033005.
Jones, M. A. Country of five rivers, Albert Shire 17881988 /Michael Jones Allen & Unwin Sydney 1988, pp.
43, 186-190.
40
“COUNTRY MOVEMENTS.” The Brisbane Courier
(Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 15 December 1915: 10. Web. 12
Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20062461;
“PATRIOTIC WAR WORK.” The Brisbane Courier
(Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 13 March 1918: 8. Web. 12 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20216279.
41
“PATRIOTIC WAR WORK.” The Brisbane Courier
(Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 4 October 1917: 8. Web. 14 Sep
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20190938.
42
“WAR FUNDS.” The Daily Mail (Brisbane, Qld. :
1903 - 1926) 26 December 1916: 2. Web. 14 Sep 2016
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article215513016.
43
“OUR NEIGHBOURS.” The Queenslander (Brisbane,
Qld. : 1866 - 1939) 13 April 1918: 16. Web. 14 Sep
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article22360153.
44
“SOUTHPORT SHOW.” The Brisbane Courier (Qld.
: 1864 - 1933) 29 September 1916: 8. Web. 14 Sep
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20125012.
45
“[?]MUD, FROST. AND TANKS” The Daily Mail
(Brisbane, Qld. : 1903 - 1926) 8 February 1917:
46
62
Jones, M., pp.128-181, 189-190.
49
Howells, Mary. and Johnson, Darren. and Logan (Qld.).
Council. Logan River Tinnie Trail : a heritage trail
along the Logan River / by Mary Howells ; illustrated
by Darren Johnson Logan City Council Logan City,
Qld 2003, pp. 70.51 M. Jones, p. 123, 190.
50
M. Jones, p. 123, 190.
51
City of Gold Coast oral history collection, Doreen
Kropp and Jean Groves oral history, 2013.
52
“PERSONAL.” The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 1933) 28 February 1917: 11. Web. 13 Oct 2016 http://
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53
Fischer, G., pp. 20-21.
54
Fischer, G., p. 24.
55
National Archives of Australia. “Enoggera
(Gaythorne), Queensland (1914-15 and 1940-46):
World War 1.” 28 June 2016, www.naa.gov.au/
collection/snapshots/internment-camps/WWI/
enoggera.aspx.
56
Queensland State Archives Item ID2036412,
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archives: the Queensland home front during the First
World War.” 15 June 2016, blogs.archives.qld.gov.
au/2014/06/10/the-queensland-home-front-duringthe-first-world-war/.
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- 1933) 25 February 1916: 9. Web. 12 Oct 2016 http://
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58
“SUGAR “SAUERKRAUTS” SNORT.” Truth (Brisbane,
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59
Queensland State Archives. “Stories from the
archives: the Queensland home front during the First
World War.” 15 June 2016, blogs.archives.qld.gov.
au/2014/06/10/the-queensland-home-front-duringthe-first-world-war/.
60
“PUGH’S ALMANAC.” The Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld.
: 1872 - 1947) 20 March 1917: 2 (SECOND EDITION).
Web. 13 Sep 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle176437088.
61
Jones, M., p. 197
62
Queensland State Archives, Item ID1623126,
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66
“PERSONAL.” The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 1933) 28 February 1917: 11. Web. 13 Sep 2016 http://
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67
68
Queensland State Archives. “Stories from the
archives: the Queensland home front during the First
World War.” 15 June 2016, blogs.archives.qld.gov.
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69
“RECRUITING COMMITTEES.” The Brisbane Courier
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more in this article.
70
“THE COGITATIONS OF COOMERA.”Daily
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4 (SECOND EDITION). Web. 14 Sep 2016 http://nla.
gov.au/nla.news-article179857827.
“SUGAR “SAUERKRAUTS” SNORT.” Truth (Brisbane,
Qld. : 1900 - 1954) 30 January 1916: 9. Web. 5 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article203037241.
63
“SUGAR “SAUERKRAUTS” SNORT.” Truth (Brisbane,
Qld. : 1900 - 1954) 30 January 1916: 9. Web. 13 Sep
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article203037241.
64
65
“BEENLEIGH SHIRE COUNCIL.” Daily Standard
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gov.au/nla.news-article179427709; “BEENLEIGH
SHIRE COUNCIL.” The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864
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“TWEED HEADS AND COOLANGATTA” Tweed
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“SOUTHPORT SHIRE COUNCIL.” The Brisbane
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“THE COGITATIONS OF COOMERA.” Daily
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(SECOND EDITION). Web. 1 Sep 2016 http://nla.gov.
au/nla.news-article179857827.
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74 Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 10 June 1915: 7. Web. 13
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Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933) 18 December
1915: 7. Web. 13 Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle20076799; Australian Army Medical Corps files
(Tait collection) 1914-18 War:] AAMC units in Australia
- Convalescent homes and Auxiliary Hospitals in 1st
Military District - No.7 Australian Auxiliary Hospital
“Old Main Beach Hotel”, Southport Qld - No.8 AAH
“Staghorn”, Southport Qld - No.9 AAH “Finchley”,
Toowoomba Qld.
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“TWEED HEADS AND COOLANGATTA” Tweed
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1918: 2. Web. 12 Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.
news-article191049893.
76
“TWEED HEADS AND COOLANGATTA” Tweed
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1918: 4. Web. 1 Sep 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle191050055.
77
“R.S.S.I.L.A.” Northern Star (Lismore, NSW : 1876 1954) 20 June 1919: 7. Web. 1 Sep 2016 http://nla.
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“R.S.S.I.L.A.” The Daily Mail (Brisbane, Qld. : 1903
- 1926) 5 April 1919: 4. Web. 14 Sep 2016 http://nla.
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79
“COOLANGATTA AND TWEED HEADS.” The
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16. Web. 14 Sep2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle20930841.
80
“BURLEIGH R.S.S.I.L.A.” The Telegraph (Brisbane,
Qld. : 1872 - 1947) 5 June 1933: 5 (CITY FINAL LAST
MINUTE NEWS). Web. 14 Sep 2016 http://nla.gov.au/
nla.news-article181195084.
81
“HAVEN BY THE SEA.” The Daily Mail (Brisbane,
Qld. : 1903 - 1926) 1 February 1917: 3. Web. 13 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article214365801;
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82
64
“For Our Wounded Boys” The Queenslander
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Web. 1 Sep 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle22298174. “FOR OUR WOONDED.” The
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85
“ALIENS AGAIN.” National Leader (Brisbane, Qld. :
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“SOUTHPORT MURMURS.” National Leader
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87
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88
“OF INTEREST TO WOMEN.” National Leader
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“No. 3 AUXILIARY MILITARY HOSPITAL,
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90
“RED CROSS SOCIETY.” Daily Standard (Brisbane,
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97
98
For a detailed account of the impacts of the Great
War see Evans, Raymond: Loyalty and disloyalty.
Social conflicton the Queensland home front, 191418, Sydney; Boston 1987: Allen & Unwin.
99
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
ANDREWS CR; Queensland Times, 19 February
1930, p. 8.
91
“SOUTHPORT MURMURS.” National Leader
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92
“RETURNED SAILORS AND SOLDIERS’ IMPERIAL
LEAGUE.” Maryborough Chronicle, Wide Bay and
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6. Web. 13 Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle152605097; “Family Notices” Queensland
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National Leader, 15 December 1916, p. 6.
93
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94
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95
“AT COOLANGATTA.” The Daily Mail (Brisbane,
Qld. : 1903 - 1926) 3 January 1919: 7. Web. 13 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article220549176;
“COOLANGATTA SOLDIERS’ REST HOUSE.”
96
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
ANDREWS CR
101
102
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
FULTON A D
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
ANDERSON F A.
103
104
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
ANDERSON FA
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“Peace Loan Campaign.” The Week (Brisbane,
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“AUSTINVILLE” Warwick Daily News (Qld. : 1919
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“COUNTRY NEWS” The Courier-Mail (Brisbane,
Qld. : 1933 - 1954) 27 July 1935: 8. Web. 13 Oct
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“GLEANINGS FROM THE COUNTRY” The CourierMail (Brisbane, Qld. : 1933 - 1954) 24 April 1937:
7. Web. 13 Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle36900451.
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“FROM THE BORDER CAMPS.” The Brisbane
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“SOUTHPORT SHOW.” The Brisbane Courier (Qld. :
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113
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ABC Radio National. “The digger image and
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http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/
saturdayextra/the-digger-image-and-australian-warmemorials/6460948.
“STRAWBERRY OUTPUT RIBBON TO” The CourierMail (Brisbane, Qld. : 1933 - 1954) 22 June 1939: 4
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au/nla.news-article40852031.
108
Curson, P and McCracken, K., “An Australian
Perspective of the 1918 – 1919 Influenza Pandemic”.
Department of Human Geography, Macquarie
University. In NSW Public Health Bulletin, Vol. 17.,
No. 7-8., p. 103 – 107.
109
Office of Economic and Statistical Research,
Queensland Government. “Queensland Past and
Present: 100 Years of Statistics 1896–1996”. Office
of Economic and Statistical Research, Queensland
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“SOLDIERS’ REST HOUSE, COOLANGATTA.” The
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111
66
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
HINDE T 6266.
116
117
National Archives of Australia (NAA): B2455,
ROSSER JOHN HALL.
“MR. ROSSER” South Coast Bulletin (Southport,
Qld. : 1929 - 1954) 30 April 1947: 11. Web. 13 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article188790215.;
“JOHN ROSSER” South Coast Bulletin (Southport,
Qld. : 1929 - 1954) 25 April 1951: 5. Web. 13 Oct
2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article225634453.;
“FEDERAL POLICY CRITICISED” South Coast
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4. Web. 13 Oct 2016 http://nla.gov.au/nla.newsarticle225634300.; “People Given Choice of Peace
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118
Disclaimer
The materials presented are made available by City of
Gold Coast as an information source only. City of Gold
Coast makes no statement, representation, or warranty
about the accuracy, completeness or suitability for any
purpose of any information contained. Any use of this
information is at the user’s own risk.
City of Gold Coast disclaims all responsibility and
all liability (including without limitation, liability in
negligence) for all expenses, losses, damages and costs
that might be incurred as a result of the information
being inaccurate or incomplete in any way for any reason.
City of Gold Coast disclaims all liability for any damages
arising from your access to, use of, or downloading of
any material or part thereof from their publication or
internet site.
Acknowledgements
Researched and written by Dr Kevin Rains and Jane Austen
(City of Gold Coast Office of City Architect, Heritage Unit);
Kyla Stephan (City of Gold Coast Libraries, Local Studies) and
Josh Tarrant, (Queensland Museum). Graphic design by Nicole
Howell (City of Gold Coast). Valuable information and assistance
has been provided by: Lesley Jenkins (Oral Historian); Jack
Rudd; Gold Coast Australia Day Foundation and Albert Battery;
Queensland State Archives and John Oxley Library (State Library
of Queensland).
Special thanks to local small museum project partners;
Gold Coast Hinterland Heritage Museum Inc., Mudgeeraba
Southport Military Museum, Southport
Gold Coast and Hinterland Historical Museum Inc., Bundall
67
This exhibition explores the effect of World War I on the
Gold Coast. World War I had a profound impact on all of
Australia, and while there are many national stories about the
war, there are also those particular to individual communities.
From Cables to Commemoration: the Gold Coast home front
1914 – 1918 looks at some of the key themes and stories which
emerged from this tumultuous part of the region’s history.
Proudly supported by
This project is proudly supported by the Queensland Government.