With the ANZAC Centenary being forefront in current thinking, we have heard some amazing stories of bravery and courage in the face of conflict and under the worst of circumstances. And rightly so.
But how did those back home relate to these stories-not politicians, or journalists or those at head of important places, but the man and woman in the street.
From Western Australia comes a heart-warming story that reveals the respect and honour felt by those left at home for those who fought for their country.
John Porter was an ordinary bloke, enlisted in the infantry in Western Australia in September 1914 and set off to war in October 1914. Along with others in the 11th Battalion, Private Porter embarked on the SS Ascanius at Fremantle which joined the convoy sailing from Albany on November 2nd and set off to an unknown world and an unknown fate.
The 11th Battalion was one of the first ashore on April 25 and it was on that fateful day that Private Porter suffered a gunshot wound to his left thigh. As with many of his comrades, John did not receive any medical attention for this injury for 4 days and was eventually transferred to the 15th General Hospital in Heliopolis and was subsequently judged incapable of further service and dispatched back to Western Australia on the HMAR Ballarat.
Meanwhile, in Western Australia, a group of concerned citizens had come together to form the Mt Hawthorn Progress Association. The chief purpose of this group was to lobby for the extension of the tramways to the new suburb of Mt Hawthorn. Upon hearing of the Gallipoli landing the group’s attention was diverted and they decided to build a war memorial.
” Mount Hawthorn is going to do something big- it is going to erect a monument- a monument to the honor[sic] and glorious memory of those gallant and fearless representatives of Australia who brought imperishable renown to this young nation ’neath[sic]the Southern Cross on the morning of the 25th April in the year nineteen hundred and fifteen.” (Western Worker 17 December, 1915, Page 5)
When John Porter returned to live in this suburb, the first returned soldier to live in the Mt Hawthorn Progress Association jurisdiction, the Progress Association decided to extend their plans and give the war memorial a dual purpose: a tribute to those who had perished at Gallipoli and to provide a home for a wounded soldier, Private John Porter and his family.
Having made this very ambitious decision in December 1914, there ensued a hive of activity that included a touch of the dramatic.
On January 1915, 30 men armed with axes and saws set about clearing the bush block in Kalgoorlie St, ready for the construction of the proposed structure. The men worked in the heat of the day until 4pm when the ladies Patriotic Guild “regaled them with afternoon tea”. At that time the only piece of natural bush left standing was a single tree, nicknamed “Lone Pine,” and after the extra energy provided by the ladies, the workers felled this remaining tree.
The next week, on February 5, an impressive parade wound its way from the centre of Perth the site. The parade featured 70 drays laden with materials destined to be used in the construction of the Cottage and was led by the “Soldier’s Queen”, Mrs C Roberts, in her Model T Ford laden with the Metters No 2 stove. The parade was cheered by onlookers along the route.
Then on February 12th, the citizens of Mt Hawthorn were awoken from their Saturday morning sleep at 3:30am by a town crier , ringing his bell and crying” Arise! Arise! ANZAC Cottage is to be built today”.
Two hundred volunteer tradesmen emerged from their homes and once the “Soldier’s Queen” had laid the first foundation stone, set to work to construct this historic home. In the 38 degree heat and cheered on by 4000 enthusiastic onlookers, the men toiled away supervised by Sid Gibson, a Perth City councillor, who was beginning to build a reputation for building houses in one day.
By sunset on that day, the exterior of ANZAC Cottage was all but complete and the “Soldier’s Queen” raised the specially made “ANZAC flag” to signal the success of the innovative plan; a house built in one day for a soldier who only fought for one day.
ANZAC Cottage still proudly stands today in the middle of a suburban street and is regarded as an iconic place dedicated not only to those who served in World War I but in all conflicts that have involved Australian service men and women.
Sadly, in the 1970s the house fell into disrepair and in a further chapter in its unique history, was fully restored by the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia (WA Branch). Private Porter’s youngest daughter, now 94 years old, who has provided so much information about the Cottage, its occupants and history, endorsed the restoration and declared that the Cottage looks exactly like she remembered it as a child.
The Cottage, now owned by the City of Vincent, the major sponsor of the Centenary Celebrations, is used as the headquarters for the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia (WA Branch). The City of Vincent is proud to be the major sponsor for these special celebrations, supplying financial and in-kind support.
The Friends of ANZAC Cottage opens the Cottage to the public once each month, on special occasions such as ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day and by appointment for school and social groups.
With this rich history, the Friends of ANZAC Cottage are planning a weekend of free festivities to celebrate the Centenary of the Cottage and the remarkable feat undertaken so successfully by the Mt Hawthorn Progress Association. Over the weekend of 13 and 14 February, 2016 visitors will have the opportunity to visit and view this fascinating Cottage, to enjoy re-enactments of the various ceremonies conducted 100 years ago at the opening of the Cottage and to hear the story of the Cottage.
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