War Memorials in Australia
Contributions
| Guidelines | Advice on how to submit contributions | ||
| List of Contributors | People who have assisted this project | ||
| Contributions Register | Contributions that have been received but not yet described |
Contributions are invited for
this website. If anyone would like to send descriptions and photos of any war
memorial not already covered (or extra information for an existing page) they
would be very welcome. In order to fit in with the way the site is designed the
following guidelines should be followed as closely as possible:
2. Give location
details – town or suburb, postcode, location including the street(s) it is in
and nearest cross streets, other location identifiers such as in XYZ park
or outside post office and, if at all possible, a GPS reading.
If no GPS it may be possible to obtain latitude and longitude in degrees
and minutes, without seconds, of the town or suburb from an atlas or from the
Geoscience Australia website.
3. Provide a colour
photograph, preferably a JPEG file. A photographic print is OK - I will scan the
photo and return it to you if requested. If a monument,
try to get the entire memorial in the frame with some indication of how it fits
into the surrounding environment. More than one photo from different
positions would be helpful. If an honour board, try as close-up a view as
possible of the entire board. Some narrower boards may be best photographed with
the camera held sideways.
4. Photographs of the inscriptions and the names will be very helpful. On some monuments and boards this may entail a number of
photos. They need to be taken
close-up to get results that can be read from the photo. Overlap photos to
ensure all names are recorded. Be
careful of flash from the camera reflecting from polished surfaces thus
obscuring details on the photographic print. One way to do this is to aim
the camera from one side of dead centre so that the flash does not bounce back
into the lens.
5. If light
conditions or the condition of the memorial are unsuitable for photography
(faded inscriptions, dark metallic plaques) please copy down the inscriptions
and names in their entirety and exactly as shown including superscript,
underlining and punctuation. I know
that in some cases with hundreds of names this is a daunting task but if photos
are not possible this is the only alternative (unless the local RSL or Council
can supply a list of names). The purpose of the website is to provide details of
memorials for persons who cannot physically visit the memorial. As a number of
these people are family historians it is important to fully and accurately
record the names.
6. If there is no
photo of the inscriptions I need to have some indication of the printing type
used e.g. u/l (upper/lower case), all capitals, Gothic script and the relative
size e.g. large caps, small u/l, small small caps. This is so I can try to reproduce the appearance of the
memorial.
7. On some of the
World War I monuments it is difficult to distinguish between C and G and careful
inspection is sometimes necessary.
8. Whether photo or
written copy, the inscriptions and names must be identified according to the
face they are on – north, east, south or west.
Please begin with the most important face, usually the one with the
dedication, and move in order of names or whatever order seems most appropriate.
If a face is blank please state this. If the faces are angled northeast,
southwest etc. please say so. It is
not necessary to box the compass further to say north north east.
9. Describe how the
inscriptions/names are recorded e.g. incised, on bronze plaque etc.
Describe other features such as bronze wreath, metal sword,
bronze insignia of Australian Commonwealth Military Forces.
Please list features, inscriptions and names from top to bottom on each
face and, if appropriate include, such explanations as on section below, metal
plaque on east corner of bottom step. Record everything, including the
stonemason’s name if this is shown.
10. Give a
description of the memorial. If it
is a monument describe it as an obelisk, arch, statue on a column etc. Try to
identify the material(s) it is composed of (marble, granite, trachyte, etc),
their colours (grey, white, pink), polished or unpolished and their shape.
Please describe the base such as rough cut granite block, 3-stepped
concrete base, etc. Describe the statue if there is one such as white
Carrara marble statue of a WWI digger standing at ease and holding a rifle,
supported by representation of a tree trunk. The statue faces east.
11. Describe the
surroundings such as enclosed by low steel rail fence with concrete supports,
or bounded by rose gardens. If
there are one or more flagpoles or trophies such as guns describe their position
in relation to the memorial and what they are made of e.g. three wooden
flagpoles on south side.
12. I try to not
only describe the memorial but to record its history wherever I can obtain the
information. A good source is the
local library, which may have newspapers from the period or can locate a local
history book dealing with the memorial. If you can’t find such information
don’t worry as I can access research material in the Australian War Memorial
and may find it there.
13. If you know of a
source of biographical details of any of the persons named on a memorial such as
a book or the website of a local historical society, please provide details
including an address. I will need
to contact them to get permission to link or reproduce.
14. These guidelines
might appear daunting but the more closely you can follow them the better the
result. The whole aim is to draw up
a database of information that can be relied upon by families of the remembered,
local historians, genealogists, teachers, students and others.
The more detailed and accurate we can make the database, the better. Having said that, if any of the above requirements are
just too difficult, have a go anyway and send whatever you can because any
information at all will be useful.
15. Have a look at
some pages on the website to get an idea of what the finished product
should look like. Some good examples are Braidwood War
Memorial , Darwin Cenotaph and
Terowie
Second Great War Honour Roll .
16. I will fully
acknowledge each contributor on the appropriate page and state that copyright in
the photo belongs to him or her. Contact details will be provided only if you so
request. I have stated on the site
that, unless otherwise stated, all text may be freely copied for non-commercial purposes.
If you have difficulty with any of this please let me know.
17. I must add the
proviso that I reserve the right to accept, reject or modify any material
received in order to maintain the standards I believe are necessary.
18 You can send information by email and
attach images, preferably in JPEG format, or you can forward by Australia Post.
My postal address is M. Southwell-Keely
PO Box 67
MITCHELL ACT 2911
19. If you require
any of your material returned please enclose an appropriately stamped and
self-addressed envelope.
Email: Michael Southwell-Keely