New exhibition at the Tasmanian Wool Centre Museum

Our Grateful Thanks and Loving Remembrance

‘Deeply mourned but duty notably done‘

A mother’s words in a newspaper notice
on the first anniversary of her son’s death.

Our Grateful Thanks and Loving Remembrance, the current exhibition at the Tasmanian Wool Centre Museum, is a moving and deeply personal exhibition remembering the soldiers whose names are immortalised on the Ross War Memorial.

During 1919 and 1920, the men of Ross who had served out the war began arriving home.

Their experiences had changed them in ways visible and invisible.

In 2019 we look beyond their war experiences, and share insight into their lives once they came home.

Amongst the several very moving elements within this exhibition, one that stands out is the connectedness of the young men who went to war. Fathers, sons, brothers, cousins, uncles.

Another moving aspect of the exhibition that throws a powerful punch is the signature of each soldier on their story. Real people, just like us, grabbed a pen, wrote their names on a form, and signed their mark.

Exhibition curator Margaret Young says, “We wanted to show how connected the community was. We wanted to show the impact their experiences at war had on their lives, and attempt to recognise what they had been through. We wanted to look at how they were officially recognised, at a local level and more broadly. And we wanted to touch on how we remember them”.

Recognition came by way of medallions, memorial plaques, badges, pins, emblems, jewellery, and condolence letters. Beyond that were Soldier Settlement schemes, employment incentives and retraining programs.

We’ll be sharing the stories of these soldiers throughout the coming weeks. Maybe you’ll recognise one of these men, or come across a familiar name?

The Tasmanian Wool Centre Museum acknowledge and very much appreciate the generosity of the families who have donated and loaned their treasured objects, and shared their stories with us.

Returned from Active Service Badge. Brass, Stokes & Sons, Melbourne c 1916-20.
These badges were issued to soldiers who had returned to Australia after serving overseas, and after they had been discharged from the A.I.F.
They showed that they had served their country and shouldn’t be accused of cowardice or shirking.