Summary
One of 108 images in an album from World War I likely to have been taken by Captain Edward Albert McKenna. The album contains photographs of the 7th Battalion in Egypt.
Image of Captains McCrae, Mason and McKenna (second from left) and Lieutenants De Ravin and Scanlan on donkeys, accompanied by 'donkey boys.'
Captain Geoffery Gordon McCrae was assigned to the 7th Battalion C Company. He was killed in action on 19 July 1916, during the Battle of the Somme. Captain Charles Conway Mason was assigned to the 7th Battalion A Company, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel by the end of the war and lived for sometime in Europe with his wife before moving back to Australia in 1932. Second-Lieutenant Earl Haddon Simpson was assigned to the 7th Battalion D Company. He died of his wounds on April 30, 1915 and is commemorated at the Lone Pine Memorial (Panel 27), Gallipoli, Türkiye. Lieutenant Stanley Melville De Ravin was assigned to 7th Battalion G Company. He was eventually promoted to Major and returned to Australia in January 1918. Second-Lieutenant John Joseph Scanlan was assigned to the 7th Battalion D Company. Scanlan moved swiftly up the ranks and by 1918 was a Lieutenant-Colonel in command of the 59th Battalion. He returned to Australia in May 1919 before being called up for World War II where he was promoted to Colonel in command of the New Guinea Area. He was eventually captured by the Japanese in 1941 and was a prisoner of war for the remainder of the hostilities. He died in 1962.
The album relates to the service of Captain Edward Albert McKenna. McKenna served in the 7th Battalion Australian Infantry and was killed in action in Gallipoli on 25 April 1915, aged 37.
Description of Content
Seven Australian uniformed soldiers sitting upon donkeys in an open field of flowers. On the far left there is a local man dressed in a thawb and wearing a turban, holding a donkey with a pack on its back. On the far right there are two local men also dressed in thawbs and turbans, holding onto two donkeys each. Each of the donkeys are carrying an Australian soldier.
Physical Description
Black and white photographic print on paper with a white border.
More Information
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Collection Names
Returned and Services League (RSL) Collection, Military Memorabilia Collection
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Collecting Areas
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Acquisition Information
Donation from Mr J. Willis, circa 1986
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Acknowledgement
Mr. J. Willis
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Place & Date Depicted
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Photographer
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Creator
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Person Depicted
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Person Depicted
Captain Geoffery G. McCrae - Australian Imperial Force (AIF), Egypt, 1914-1915
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Person Depicted
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Person Depicted
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Individuals Identified
Captain McCrae; Captain Mason; Captain McKenna; Lieutenant De Ravin; Lieutenant Scanlan
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Format
Photograph, Black & White
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Inscriptions
Hand written in ink on on the support underneath the photograph: ' Capts Mason, McKenna Lt Chapman Capt McCrae Lts De Ravin Scanlan' Hand written in pencil on the back of the photograph: 'Sakkara Trip / From right Lt. Scanlan / " De Ravin / Capt McCrae / Lt Chapman / Capt McKenna / " Mason / + Donkeys boys'
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Classification
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Category
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Discipline
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Type of item
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Image Dimensions - Photograph
108 mm (Width), 84 mm (Height)
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Image Dimensions - Photograph album page
174 mm (Width), 141 mm (Height)
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References
National Archives of Australia: McKenna Edward Albert, barcode 1949283, series B2455/1. AIF Project, at: [Link 1] accessed: December 19, 2012 A.J. Sweeting, 'Scanlan, John Joseph (1890-1962)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, at: [Link 2] accessed: December 19, 2012
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Keywords
Military History, World War I, 1914-1918, Australian Army, Donkeys, World War II, 1939-1945