Snapshots of War - 1916

Australian troops dressed in their sheepskin vests - Australian War Memorial 

Digger’s Vests

Australians at home put considerable effort and time into the provision of comfort items for soldiers fighting overseas.

Eleanor MacKinnon, a Red Cross executive and doctor's wife from New England,developed the idea of using sheep skins for a vest to keep soldiers warm in the harsh European winters. The scheme gained wide spread support and 75,395 vests had been sent to soldiers at the front by 1916.

The creation of the vests marked the beginning of the Australian sheepskin industry which continues today.

 

The 35th Battalion 

The men of the 35th Battalion - Newcastle Museum 

Despite the heavy losses of Gallipoli, Australian men continued to enlist in the hundreds of thousands. In December 1915 the 35th Battalion was raised, drawing recruits from Newcastle and its surrounding areas. The unit became known as 'Newcastle's Own'. 

An enormous crowd of family, friends and well-wishers came to farewell their train from Broadmeadow Railway Station in May 1916 as they embarked for Europe and the Western Front.