Summary
Christmas card written to Elsie Storie of Brunswick, then aged about five, by her (probable) cousin Rupert Balfe, aged nine. They remained close as adults - in 1913 the Punch reported that at the Brunswick Mayoral Ball 'Miss Elsie Storie, who danced with Mr. Rupert Balfe, wore white charmeuse satin, prettily trimmed with lace' (10 July 1913, p.30).
Rupert became a medical student at the University of Melbourne, and a keen footballer. He enlisted to serve in World War I at the outbreak of war, on 14 August 1914. Lieutenant Joseph Rupert Balfe (service no. 2671) was killed within an hour of the first landing at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915. Elsie kept mementoes of 'Rupe' all her life.
Part of a collection of paper-based ephemera relating to the life of Miss Elsie Storie, a middle-class Melbourne woman who was born around 1895, lived through both wars, and remained in Melbourne all her life.
Physical Description
Small cream card with deckled edges; illustration on the cover of two cats playing around a post; inside page has printed and hand written text.
More Information
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Collecting Areas
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Acquisition Information
Donation from Mr John Millward, Mrs Millward, 2007
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Recipient
Miss Elsie Storie, Brunswick, Greater Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Dec 1899
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Author
Lieutenant Joseph R. Balfe - Australian Imperial Force (AIF)
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Inscriptions
Printed in gold ink; 'A happy / Christmas / to you. / From...' Hand written in blue and red ink; 'Rupert / to Elsie / 1899'.
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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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Overall Dimensions - Closed
55 mm (Width), 89 mm (Height)
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References
The cousin relationship between Rupert and Elsie is likely - she was named cousin to a bridegroom, Arthur Balfe, in 1911 District News. (1911, October 21). Brighton Southern Cross (Vic. : 1896 - 1918), p. 6. Retrieved July 13, 2015, from [Link 1] BRUNSWICK MAYORAL BALL. (1913, July 10). Punch (Melbourne, Vic. : 1900 - 1918; 1925), p. 30. Retrieved July 13, 2015, from [Link 2]
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Keywords