Skip to main content

New Year in Gunning: January 1917

Private Arthur Montague Alchin. Photo: AWM (public domain)
The ringing of church bells marked the New Year in Gunning in 1917.  There was a sombre tone to the reporting of the War, including the view that neutral states adjacent to Germany would be overrun.

By contrast, the following was reported on Thursday, 4 January 1917 in the Goulburn Evening Penny Post , page 4:

GUNNING SOLDIERS.

The Editor has received the following from Codford (a training battalion near London), England, dated 7th Nov., 1916:

"We arrived in England on October 11th, 1916, after seven weeks on the water.  We had a pleasant trip across.  We met two of the Gunning boys here at Codford – Ptes C. Meehan and Ged. McLaughlin.  They wish to be remembered to all the Gunning friends.  (Signed) A. M. Alchin, C Reynolds, F. P. Sheridan, and W. H. Sheridan."

Arthur Montague Alchin's photo was taken in a studio when he was at Maitland army camp following enlistment.  He was born in Yass and was a resident of Yass Street, Gunning.  He was the mail driver.  His enlistment in April 1916 stated he was 18 years, 5 months, but the AWM reports he was killed in action in Belgium at 17, in October 1917.  His name is on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres. 

Also on the AWM Roll of Honour is William Henry Sheridan, born Collector, killed in action in August 1918 (having been shell-shocked in June 1917, and wounded in action in July 1917).

Charles Reynolds, from Gunning, was wounded in action in October, 1917, and returned to Australia with a ‘debility of the chest’ after being ‘dangerously ill with turbercolosis lung’.  Fred Parker Sheridan, born Collector, survived the War.

Cecil Arthur Meehan was born and worked in Gunning, and survived the War.  Ged (William Gerard) McLaughlin is on the Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour.  He was the son of the Gunning Police Sergeant, killed in action in April 1917 and buried in Pozieres British Cemetery.

Contributed by Rosemary Spiller

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

First Settlers in Lade Vale: Frank and Catherine Lawless

Is this the house that Frank built? Remains of a substantial granite block house on land once owned by the first settlers in Lade Vale, Frank and Catherine Lawless.  It may well have been built by Frank when the family took up their circa 1826 land grant. While we cannot be absolutely certain this is his work, there can be no doubt it is just the sort of house a skilled builder/bricklayer such as Frank would have constructed to settle his family in. Frank and Catherine Lawless  – The Lade Vale Years The Story So Far This is the second chapter in our look at early colonial settlers Frank and Catherine Lawless written by their 3rd great granddaughter, Carmel Peek, in association with GDHS. At the end of our last episode: Bricklayer Frank [as he was commonly called rather than by his formal given name Francis] had been transported to Sydney from Ireland in 1809 following his conviction for highway robbery; He compounded his failings and misfortunes in late 1810 whe...

Lees Family Origins: Links to Gunning

Waratah (now Warrataw) Street, Gunning, circa 1905. Article by Kim Lees The Lees family emigrated from Germany in the 1850’s as Bounty Immigrants under a scheme to bring citizens from various countries to Australia to assist in establishing farming and other industries. They came from the wine growing area of Grossbottwar, some 26 kms north of Stuttgart. It has been possible, through a German Ancestry organisation ‘Beyond History’, to trace the Lees family in Grossbottwar as far back as the late 1500s, some 6 generations before the family emigrated from Germany to Australia. In 2013 I visited Grossbottwar where I met with a cousin and his family who still live there.  The Lees family (parents Johannes (48) & Louisa (44) and children Conrad (20), Adam (16), Jacob (14), Fredricka (9), and David (6)) travelled to Australia on the Dutch Barque ‘Helene’ with 215 other German Immigrants. The youngest child, a daughter Christiana (aged 5 months) died on the voyage to Aust...

Walking and Unwitting Death Trap: September Bird of the Month

  Image courtesy Duade Paton https://www.photos.duadepaton.com From Gladstone's Notebook:  Sometimes Poisonous, yet a Culinary Delight and the Explorer’s Saviour – the Common Bronzewing   This is number 9 of a 12 part series in which we take a bird recorded in Gladstone Weatherstone’s notebook between 1962 and 1981, see if anything is different today and, if so, try to explain why.   Gladstone was a dedicated and knowledgeable amateur naturalist who lived on Lyndfield Park near Gunning from 1941 until 1996 Image of Gladstone Weatherstone courtesy Wayne Weatherstone. The Common Bronzewing   On 3 September 1967, Gladstone wrote “ Several Bronzewing Pigeons seen near Jerrawa and possibly nesting near Catherine’s Creek ”.  This bird makes only a few appearances over the 19 years covered by his notebook.  In June 1973 he wrote “ Bronze-winged Pigeon observed feeding around the house today, also two days later.  First time seen in close ....