Week 42 is about conflict, and like so many other families, mine has had a number of individuals serve in the military in various conflicts.
My family was certainly more fortunate than many, with few injuries and even fewer deaths during military service, but I do not doubt that all who served - and those who waited at home for them to return - were profoundly and permanently changed by the events they witnessed.
For those who served in Australian forces, the National Archives of Australia has been invaluable in my research, providing military dossiers of many family members. The Australian War Memorial has also been a fantastic resource, with Embarkation Rolls, Red Cross files, Unit Diaries and general information about the battles in which family members fought. Researching newspaper reports in Trove has also been a gold mine, with news of enlistments, farewells, news from the front, even a few letters home were published in local papers.
With so many commemorations and activities surrounding the centenary of World War 1, the last few years has seen an explosion of information become available about military ancestors and the conflicts in which they served, and I an sure I am not the only family history researcher who has found out so much about various family members as a result.
No comments:
Post a Comment