robbie Posted 30 October , 2004 Share Posted 30 October , 2004 Hi all, The AWM website has a little information re this topic. It appear that all were volunteers and the only profession allowed to serve o/s were nurses. Any AUssies out there who can add a little to this? "Australian women volunteered for service in auxiliary roles, as cooks, nurses, drivers, interpreters, munitions workers and skilled farm workers. While the government welcomed the service of nurses, it generally rejected offers from women in other professions to serve overseas. Australian nurses served in Egypt, France, Greece and India, often in trying conditions or close to the front, where they were exposed to shelling and aerial bombardment. The impact of the war was also felt at home. Families and communities grieved following the loss of so many men, and women increasingly assumed the physical and financial burden of caring for families." Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 1 November , 2004 Share Posted 1 November , 2004 Hi Robbie In my research of around 3000 Fremantle people who served in WW1, so far I have only found around 30 women from this area who served overseas and this was in nursing. Many of the women had families and did fun raising activities here instead. One well known charity that women were involved in was raising money for the Ugly Mans Society. This society helped out the war widows and orphans, pretty much similar to what Legacy has done for the last 80 years. Regards Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yves Le Cuziat, MBE Posted 1 November , 2004 Share Posted 1 November , 2004 G'day according Lieut Col Neil C. Smith AM..author of "The autralian army nursing service" 2139 sisters served abroad with 423 in Australia and 130 with the Qaimns ( Queen Alexandria's imperial military nursing).21 died on active service with further 8 dying in Australia after having returned but before discharge. 388 of them were decorated. Few were wounded in action. It seems that 200 more nurses had to be added to the official figure. They served in India. If you need more I have their nominal roll & award citations Regards Yves Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 1 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 1 November , 2004 If you need more I have their nominal roll & award citations Regards Yves Hi Andrew and Yves, Thanks for the information. Yves - is the nominal roll available online or to buy? Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yves Le Cuziat, MBE Posted 1 November , 2004 Share Posted 1 November , 2004 G'day Robbie It is not a book .. it is a photocopied book or brochure ..I think that this very accurate study made By Lieut Col Smith.. was never published... maybe AWM staff is able to provide you a copy..I have been given it by 8 years ago by an Australian .. friend of mine.. now deceased .. who got it from Australian Nurse army service. Regards Yves Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 1 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 1 November , 2004 Thanks Yves. You an Aussie, too mate? Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yves Le Cuziat, MBE Posted 2 November , 2004 Share Posted 2 November , 2004 G'day Robbie Basically I am French..My Aussie mates are saying that I am the most "Aussie Frenchman".. a Fair Dinkum Froggy cobber. Cheers Yves Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pete Wood Posted 2 November , 2004 Share Posted 2 November , 2004 Hi all, The AWM website has a little information re this topic. It appear that all were volunteers and the only profession allowed to serve o/s were nurses. While the government welcomed the service of nurses, it generally rejected offers from women in other professions to serve overseas. Australians also worked in the munitions factories in the UK. Australia is unique in insisting that civilian workers who died, from any cause while serving abroad, should be treated as a military casualty. So their names are found on the CWGC register. Here is one as an example: Name: SMITH, GEORGE HENRY Initials: G H Nationality: Australian Rank: Worker Regiment: Australian Munition Worker Age: 30 Date of Death: 27/11/1918 Service No: B/2195 Casualty Type: Commonwealth War Dead Grave/Memorial Reference: FC. 305. Cemetery: FULHAM NEW CEMETERY The next of kin of these men and women would have received a memorial plaque and scroll. Jim Strawbridge has the details of a number of women who were Australian munition workers and died in the UK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 2 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 2 November , 2004 Thanks RT. I hadn't heard of this at all. I am pleased that such workers were officially recognized. I wonder where the munitions factories were? Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 3 November , 2004 Share Posted 3 November , 2004 Hi Robbie Just adding on what Yves mentioned, Lt-Col Neil Smith has released several interesting publications on Aussies in WW1, including that one on nursing. His website follows in case you are interested. http://mostlyunsung.alphalink.com.au/muhomepage99.htm Cheers Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 3 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 3 November , 2004 This is great Andrew. Does this guy do paid research then ? Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 4 November , 2004 Share Posted 4 November , 2004 Yep he does this both in Australian & the UK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yves Le Cuziat, MBE Posted 4 November , 2004 Share Posted 4 November , 2004 G'day Robbie Thanks for the info. Is hall go to bed less stupid All the best Yves Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frev Posted 5 November , 2004 Share Posted 5 November , 2004 Hi Guys, In the book "Lines of Fire" (Women Writers of WW1) their is a section on a very interesting Australian lady: Olive "Jo" King (1885-1958) [who incidently, in 1910 - became the 3rd woman to climb Mt Popocatepetl, Mexico] Some excerpts follow: "When the war broke out in August 1914, King was in England, where she immediately volunteered to work with the Allies Field Ambulance Corps in Belgium, supplying her own large ambulance ("Ella"), which seated sixteen patients. She and two other women drivers were briefly arrested upon suspicion of being spies, and just managed to escape the invading German army and return safely to England. In May 1915 she joined the Scottish Women's Hospitals ......... with whom she went to Troyes, France, where they were attached to the French army. ....................... Five months later her unit embarked for the Balkans, serving several weeks at the Serbian border before the Bulgarian advance forced them to retreat to Salonika, Greece." "In July 1916 King joined the Serbian army as a driver, still driving "Ella" as well as a smaller vehicle, "Bridget". ............................... By the next year, when Salonika burned on August 17, 1917, she was the only female driver left with her unit, and drove for twenty-four hours to rescue the inhabitants of the city. In October she received a Silver Medal for her bravery." "As the war drew to a close in 1918, King recognized that the Serbian soldiers and refugees were on the brink of starvation and proposed a non-profit canteen selling foodstuffs, for which she enlisted her father's aid raising funds in Australia and England. ..................... She helped feed the refugees for two more years, ............" She returned to Sydney in 1920. In 1935 she was given the King George V Silver Jubilee Medal, and 1937 the King George VI Coronation Medal - for her work during the war. Cheers, Frev. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 5 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 5 November , 2004 Interesting thanks Frev. What a gal! RObbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bonza Posted 5 November , 2004 Share Posted 5 November , 2004 G'day I 'stumbled' across a Memorial in Tilba Tilba NSW & was intrigued by the name of Sister Corkhill MM. 4th from bottom on top panel A quick check of the AWM site disclosed the following link: Sr Pearl Corkhill The name preceeding hers is that of her brother. I 'understand' that the town of Tilba Tilba was really the settlement dependant upon the Pastoral Station owned by their father. So they apparently made sacrifices to leave the country seat & head off to FRance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bonza Posted 5 November , 2004 Share Posted 5 November , 2004 and here she is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 5 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 5 November , 2004 You bewdy Pat. Fantastic. Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frev Posted 6 November , 2004 Share Posted 6 November , 2004 Sister E. Pearl Corkhill continued to nurse her soldiers after her return to Australia, and at the age of 88 this tireless lady led the procession of the Cooma Show on horseback - she lived to the ripe old age of 99. She was one of 7 Australian nurses to win the Military Medal, another of those being Sister Alicia Mary Kelly - known as Rachel to her co-workers. The following extract is from a letter to Alicia's mother from Chaplain Munschamp, 29/8/17: "Finally came the day when the Germans deliberately shelled the camp, and no one who has not seen it can realise what it means to have huge armour-piercing shells fall in your midst with a burst of quarter of a mile all round. We got all the sisters away to a trench at the back of the camp, but when all had gone we found Rachel alone in her ward, giving to each patient an enamel bowl to cover his head from flying pieces of shell - absolutely comforting all these poor, frightened, helpless creatures in her calm and sweet motherly ways and we had literally to drag her to a place of safety. I cannot write at any great length, but a man could cry for very pride at being associated with such a girl, and with gratitude that God has endowed her with such graces and virtues. And the dear child didn't know that she had been perfectly heroic; she was only troubled that she couldn't obey the order to seek shelter, because her poor boys looked so frightened, and all the orderlies had run out of the ward." Alicia knew that the bowls wouldn't be much protection against the shrapnel, but she thought they would help boost morale. She had been recommended more than once before for decoration, and this time she received it. Apparently her health was never quite the same after the war, and she eventually died of pneumonia at the age of 57. Frev. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 6 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 6 November , 2004 You bewdy, too Frev. Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petrick Posted 8 November , 2004 Share Posted 8 November , 2004 just for a sec. imagine yourself laying in your hospital bunk recovering and a beaut like this hovering over you with her sincere worry over your safety. Wouldn't that make any bloke feel special and want to marry her ?? wonder how many times this must have flicked through the minds of the cobbers who encountered these brave women. coo-ee patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted 8 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 8 November , 2004 imagine yourself laying in your hospital bunk recovering and a beaut like this hovering over you with her sincere worry over your safety.Wouldn't that make any bloke feel special and want to marry her ?? Hi Patrick, Not sure about the marriage bit, mate. But she definitely has a certain "mysteriousness" about her which always works for me. Robbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bonza Posted 8 November , 2004 Share Posted 8 November , 2004 G'day Patrick The film "The Lighthorsemen" is based onone such marriage, as is the old classic 'Tear-Jerker" song which includes "He paid the price, that April Day, and now he lies on Suvla Bay". The bereaved girl then becomes a nurse & marries that bloke's mate who she nurses at an AGH in Gaza. Pat Robbie There are less hazardous ways of meeting shielaghs, cobber. Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew P Posted 10 November , 2004 Share Posted 10 November , 2004 She was one of 7 Australian nurses to win the Military Medal, another of those being Sister Alicia Mary Kelly - known as Rachel to her co-workers. The Army Museum of WA actually have her medals in their collection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frev Posted 10 November , 2004 Share Posted 10 November , 2004 Andrew Thanks for that info (I'll add it to my notes) - it's good to see her medals weren't lost. Cheers, Frev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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