| posted on April 20, 2017
THE Anzac legend began in Albany when the First Fleet departed en masse on November 1, 1914 for the Middle East.
The mustering of this expeditionary force had a major effect on the Albany community and throughout the war many ships visited Albany for repairs and maintenance.
This provided a steady flow of work for local tradesmen.
From November 1914 to May 1919, 243 Australian and New Zealand troop and hospital ships moored at Albany on their outward and home-bound journeys.
Sick soldiers were treated at Albany Hospital and an unfortunate few were buried at the Memorial Park Cemetery in Middleton Road.
In September 1915, the Governor’s residence, The Rocks, became an Australian Red Cross convalescent home for returning soldiers before repatriation.
For those left at home there were plenty of opportunities to support their gallant troops, with busy bees held to maintain the Australian Red Cross centre.
Women and schoolchildren knitted socks and made food to include in soldiers’ parcels, and concerts were held to raise funds to cover the costs of personal items and baked goods sent in packages. Although remote from the battlefields of Europe, Albany remained heavily involved in the war effort.
– Anne Simpson
Extract taken from “Albany at the Dawn of the Anzac Legend,” designed and produced by Bonser Design, 2014.
