Those That Fell

The histories under this section are derived from a database compiled of around 540 servicemen (and one servicewoman) either from or with close connesctions to the Darebin that died in service during the First World War. The database includes Northcote, Preston, Epping, Fairfield and Alphington and is awaiting web publication by the Council on their Historical Encyclopedia website. The pages on our site are enhanced versions of the summaries awaiting publication.

Neither Northcote nor (especially) Preston were anywhere near their populations of today, but remarkably it was a 28 year old local, William George Vincent Williams that became Australia's first casualty of the Great War ...

Sadly, many Preston men that embarked for overseas never made it back home to friends and family. In one odd case, that of Claude Harold Cameron, the choice was his rather than as a result of enemy action, accident or disease, but the effects of his wife and three children was equally as devestating ... Top

William Michael McDonald, 3192, Private, 1st Australian Camel Corps

The Leader on February 1 1919 reproduced some of the work of William McDonald Of Preston described as "late of the Australian Camel Corps" after an anthology of his poems had been published under the title "Soldier Songs from Palestine ". The Leader concluded "... In the falling of Private McDonald at the age of 23, a very bright and heroic spirit passed away" .... Top

William McCarthy Braithwaite
Charles Patterson

William Braithwaite's father, William senior was one of the most influential figures in Preston's development through the latter part of the 1800s and early twentieth century. He was also one of the figureheads in the volunteer forces entrusted with Melbourne's defence before Federation and the later formation of a national military force ... Top

Edwin Horwood
Robert William Horwood

Of the families in the Preston area, probably none suffered more than the Horwood family at 43 Gower Street. Four sons enlisted, two were killed, and as if that wasn't enough, two daughters died shortly after the end of the War ... Top

Herbert Templar Collins
(alias Thomas Williams)

For reasons unknown, Collins served as a Private in 9th Battalion Australian Infantry under the surname of Thomas or Templar Williams (official records show both). Given the confusion over his true identity and next-of-kin, the military could be forgiven for considering him more trouble than he was worth ... Top

The Database	The Eyewitnesses	The Ships	The Paperwork
Darebin's Roll of Honour	Letters to the Leader	Troopships	National Archives
Name, address, rank and date of death of all those associated with the Darebin area along with details of how to request information. (Note the file is approximately 1.5mb and may take a few seconds to load)	The daily newspapers provided a global coverage of the war, in many cases highly censored, but it was in the letters from servicemen to those "back home" that the private day-to-day experiences of the troops became known	The ships that took the men of Darebin to war were an odd mixture of passenger ships requisitioned by the Australian Government, cattle ships and even a handful of captured enemy vessels .	You can't have a decent war without a certain amount of paperwork, a massive project undertaken by National Archives of Australia has resulted in the files of serviceman digitally scanned and available on line ...